4. Qd4: The Anti Jun Zhao Najdorf Weapon

Once you have seen one Chinsee Brilliancy,
half an hour later you want to see another. 😉

So I was looking at the other games Jun Zhao played in the 2011 Chinese Champioship.
(see Thread 138988 Fantastic Game)

He played two other entertaining crackers. (geddit? crackers....Chinese Crackers!!!)
Not is the same class as the linked game but good fun.
Maybe I'll show these two fine wins another time.

But alas....

All is not well in the Jun Zhao camp.
He is having a spot of bother with the anti Najdorf 4.Qxd4
facing this twice and losing on both occassions.


An old favourite of mine after I read an article about it in BCM by Bill Hartston.
Scored a few nice wins with it.
There is a bucket load of theory on it showing you all the White sac-sac wins.

A good blitz weapon till one day rat-faced Ruxton played...


4...a6. Which stops 5. Bb5 after 4...Nc6.

Not a refutation but side steps all the fun and the rec'd move is 5.c4,


a Moroczy Bind type thing. And a Moroczy Bind type thing is certainly not me.

This is me.

G. Chandler - R.Cranston Edinburgh Chess Club, 1979



Anyway let's look at Jun v 4.Qd4.
First he tries the tactical method saccing the exchange for a pawn.
He tries to mix it and mess it up but White has the game under control.

Hua Ni (2646) - Jun Zhao (2580) Chinese Championships 2011



Next the more sedate way and Black gets outplayed quite wonderfully.

Yue Wang (2734) - Jun Zhao (2580) Chinese Champioship 2011



Think I'll get a boat to China and show Jun 4...a6.

I know what you are thinking.....

Don't say it....Please don't say it....What ever you do, please don't say it....

But I must....

....A Slow Boat to China. 🙂

Originally posted by greenpawn34
Once you have seen one Chinsee Brilliancy,
half an hour later you want to see another. 😉

So I was looking at the other games Jun Zhao played in the 2011 Chinese Champioship.
(see Thread 138988 Fantastic Game)

He played two other entertaining crackers. (geddit? crackers....Chinese Crackers!!!)
Not is the same class as the linked ...[text shortened]... t ever you do, please don't say it....

But I must....

....A Slow Boat to China. 🙂

shame on Ruxton!

Good post GP. I play 4.. a6 as well. I think most players after a game or two of getting their Knight pinned on c6 opt for that route. That being said there is an option besides 5. c4 if you hate the Maroczy, 5. Be3 - with the idea of Qd2 Nc3 and 0-0-0 usually hitting a Dragon like position;



and here e5 is annoying.

Hi Nimzo

Of course I know of these lines but I'm always looking for a
system with ideas and positions I can play my wee tricks with.

Look at it.


What am I do with that chunk of wood on f1?
Be2 or Bd3 and it's in the way. on c4 it's a target.

I want to be plotting and planning and scheming, Not worrying about
white squared Bishops and how useless they are v The Sicilian.

So that is why I switched to the Rosso (Bb5+) to rid myself of
this loafer in the ranks. I'm a Knights man.

Heresy!

At my old club, there was an IM who made his living off the Rosso, creating a doubled pawn and grinding you down in a dreary endgame.

Sicilian Defense / Chekhover Variation

Hi Nimz's

I have a healthy plus with the Rosso v the Sicilian and I can promise
you I have never ever chased a doubled pawn. Never.

That's endgame crap. I don't do endgames.

Forgive my amateurish musings, but (re chandler/cranston '79) instead of 19 h4, is not a shifty Q x g5 ...hxg5 20. Ne7+ a healthy plan?
Just interested in what I may have missed.

Thanks for posting these by the way.

Hi WFG

Never worry about asking.

The QxN line goes nowehere (see below).
The thing to take from the game is my Knight tour to d5.
Look out for outposts in your games and figure out ways of
getting Knight to them.

Once there don't give them up cheaply.
Knights on out posts (squares that cannot be attack by pawns) are worth more than Rooks.

Originally posted by greenpawn34
Thank you, 7 moves in and I have a plan. Plonk a Knight on d5 and win.

Hallo GP,

can you make me see such plans as well? Not only that it becomes clear in retrospect, but also in advance, which would make more sense for my play...

Thank you very much in advance, maybe in the blog, by pm or in the forum. Just one or two lines, are surely enough.

T.

The GP-Cranston game is nice, particularly the mating pattern. I would point out however though that Black played aimlessly with 12. a6 13.. Qc7 14.. Rfd8 and then 15.. Bg5. Clearly this guy forgot the key idea for Black when you have the Sicilian pawn structure of e5 d6.... push the d pawn!!

I still like GP's chances, but a proper defense around the idea of doubling behind the d pawn via 12.. Qd7 13.. Rfd8 and then if GP dares drop that knight on f1 14... Bg5! No d5 square for joo!



This is how planning in chess goes, constantly re-evaluating and making new plans.

Ah yes, I see.
Thanks for replying

Originally posted by nimzo5
The GP-Cranston game is nice, particularly the mating pattern. I would point out however though that Black played aimlessly with 12. a6 13.. Qc7 14.. Rfd8 and then 15.. Bg5. Clearly this guy forgot the key idea for Black when you have the Sicilian pawn structure of e5 d6.... push the d pawn!!

I still like GP's chances, but a proper defense around the idea ...[text shortened]... 15[/fen]

This is how planning in chess goes, constantly re-evaluating and making new plans.

thanks nimzo, good to read...

Nimzo is correct. Very rarely are you allowed to carry out such a plan.
Black stumbled onto what I up to far too late. 15...Bf6-g5 was
one move too late.

And I took a writers liberty with the notes. My Knight tour plan
did not really kick in till he played Nf6 and I saw I could chop it.

The art (which sometimes I can do , but often fail trying) is to
create a weakness, forcing with guile your opponent to make a pawn move
allowing me an outpost and then shuggling a Knight in.

(me...Guile?? ha ha...I'm a two bit hacker...good fun though.)

Thankfully at our level guile is not needed, often a pawn is pushed without thought.

Not a great discovery picked all this up from 'Most Instructive Games of Chess.'
Tarrasch's Best Games by Reinfeld. And then hours and hours of of studying
and solving tacitcs or playing over short games.

You need the last bit, without that it does not matter how good you
are plotting and planning. You have to finish them off.

....and the combo. Here:


I'm threatening mate with Qh8. and RxN RxR+ is a bog standard mate.
So he has to go for RxR and then a headful of mating patterns kicks in.

What I am saying is I doubt if Nxd6+ winning the Queen entered my head
I'm pretty focused when I have a King in my sights.
It's about the only thing I can say I am really any good at.

Continued...(my son, the gimp, wanted to go on Facebook).

tharkesh, looked at few games to see if I could spot any potential
Knight outposts etc...some good stuff in there, your OK.

Found this. (opening could have been played better).

Your opponent was doing OK till he played 13.Bc4 inviting d5 with tempo.
(13.Bb3) and 14.Ke2? was a shocking move.

In you go and polish him off. But can you spot what
you and him appear to have missed?

You had the scent of victory and he had his losers hat on.

Beware of the won game. It can now only be thrown away.
Relax for one momet and it's gone.

Never give up, things are not always as bad as they seem.

(and of course....checks ALL checks).