GO Carlsen, GO!

I'm sorry. I couldnt resist: It is not that often we can selebrate, when it comes to chess. 
Hopefully, with Magnus this is only the beginning.... Btw, he turned 15 today.

The world cup pages seams to be down at the moment.
For the game, here is an alternative link:http://home.online.no/~eirikgu/partier/worldchesscup20052.htm

I believe white can get away with ridiculous extravagances on his opening move and therefore 1.c4 should, with the extra tempo, give black equality and nothing more. Of course, black's only good reply is 1...e5, otherwise white can play 2.d4 and transpose into an opening which is not so bad. The main problem with the English is that it's completely dour. 
As black I try to head for the Bellon gambit, which would probably explain my attempts to rehabilitate the wing gambits (in deferred form) against 1...c5 - A weakening move, and once the pawn is removed, white's lead in development and greater control of the centre should grant white an advantage 

As for a game, with correct play by black... if black played the game correctly, then it would end in a draw since I doubt 1...c5 is so bad that it hands white a won position, just one where he should be better. However I will try to dig out some games tonight which show that should white play correctly (not the open sicilian), then 1...c5 leads to a position where white has all the pressure. I imagine most of these will be in the Bb5 sicilian. Although I do have a soft spot for 2.b3 against the sicilian, and think that this move deserves a lot more attention than it receives.

Of course, these moves are not so much in my style, and therefore I'll continue to try and blast the sicilian apart with gambits such as 2.b4, 2.d4 and 2.f4. You have to be true to yourself, after all...

Regards, 
Craig

Quote:


"The mistake here seems to be in white's third move. 1...c5 is a weak move which does nothing to contribute to black's development, and on the logic of how to punish moves which break rules, breaking them yourself is not the way to do it. 3.d4 allows black to get a 2-1 central pawn majority, which as we know, grants black a good game. Therefore, white must not allow black to trade his c-pawn for white's d-pawn, and must develop his forces accordingly to as to show 1...c5 to be a weakening move." - Craig Evans  

I've never understood why having a pawn on f4(f5) is usually considered a weakness with the c1(c8 ) bishop, but having a pawn on c4(c5) isn't thought of the same way. If "king safety" is the best reason that people can come up with, then there is truly nothing wrong with it, since the king should not be in peril because of the one pawn move. White's strategy in the sicilian should be to prove that 1...c5 blocks the scope of the f8 bishop (forcing a fianchetto, unless black wants to develop passively on e7) and then show the c5 pawn to be a weakness, or force the exchange of the black c-pawn for white's b-pawn, granting him a 4v3 in the centre. Although I often play the morra (an even more direct attempt to prove that 1...c5 is a [i]wasted[/t] move), I personally feel that the Bb5 lines are the correct way of proceeding. Just as the Ruy Lopez is the critical test of 1...e5, there is no reason why it should not be so with 1...c5.

Dogmatic, perhaps, but I do feel that 1...c5 is an inferior move in the opening. If this is black's best then 

1.e4 +/=

Regards,
Craig  

Quote:


agree on the nimzo/QID. But I rather White in the Najdorf anyday.. 

The problem with 1. e4 must be 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nf6! =  Players like Adams, Shirov (!), Anand, Bologan (all 1. e4 specialists) play the Petroff so often, it must've annoyed them alot with White

Is that really true - did Reti not famously beat Capablanca with 1 Nf3?

Breyer, from what little I know of him, I agree.

2...Ng8

When people play like this against me, I always pass them the doubling cube 

Quote:


Hmm, interesting... 
I have never really thought about it but then I might have the ideal repertouar:
I play Alekhine against e4
&
Reti as white...

(...but by beloved dutch leningrad may not fit that well... 8))