Greetings,

In my copy of Samarian's Queen's Gambit Declined (Batsford, 1974), he indicates that - before the discovery of the Schlechter-Rubinstein Attack - 6. Bf4 was considered the strongest of the other possibilities (Marshall's 6. Bg5 is equal at best).

See Tal-Keres, XXVI USSR Ch. 1959 for a sample line - I'd imagine that there should be lots of valuable analyses/annotations since then!

Kindest regards,

Dragan Glas

I used to give Marshall's 6.Bg5 an occasional try, mainly in those early morning rounds when my brain wasn't yet working.  It's not a bad line and avoids a lot of the theory.  But if Black knows what he is about, it's hard for White to get much.

A main line used to be 1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 c5 4. cxd5 exd5 5.Nf3 Nc6 6.Bg5 Be7 7.Bxe7 Ngxe7 8.e3 cxd4 9.Nxd4 O-O 10.Be2 Qb6 11.Qd2 Nxd4 12. exd4.  White can try and grind a little here on the theory that he has the better bishop (his can attack d5, while Black's can't attack d4), but its hard to make any real progress and, if you play this way consistently, you run the risk of boring yourself to death.

Greetings,

Markovich
Nimzowitsch would have turned in his grave to see the d-pawn allowed to advance like that!

Certainly she knew what she was doing - the times on the clock clearly indicate that (1:27 - 0:17 (!!)).

Udav18
As others have picked up, I think you are talking about "sound" when you mistakenly(!?) say "solid".

One might say that, of the two, the Semi-Tarrasch is more "solid" provided the centre doesn't fall into White's hands. Both, certainly, are "sound" against equal or lesser opposition. Against World Champions, any opening would be made to look/feel unsound! 

As with any opening, it depends on who knows and understands more about the underlying strategies, the (thematic) tactical traps and possibilities, and so on.

As with any openings with such unbalanced-equilibrium based on piece-play compensation for positional weaknesses - such as the Lasker-Pelikan-Sveshnikov - if you don't manage to use your pieces actively, you'll be left with being tied-down to defending the pawn weakness.

Do you prefer open positions where you can use your pieces in preference to concerning yourself with weak pawn structures? Do you play such positions well? These must be your criteria for taking up this opening - not whether the current top GMs or World Champions are using it. Tournament and club players continue to follow the trends of the masters long after such masters have changed their repertoires. New rising stars have their own favourite openings - not necessarily the ones the rest of us fancy! 

As has also been noted, the standard positions can arise from the Reti, Catalan and English openings.

You need to know - and be comfortable with - the IQP.

As you are a ~2100 player, I'd heartily recommend Baburin's book on this (Winning Pawn Structures) - assuming you're not averse to hard work, it will teach you a great deal about this important theme in chess, both as a advantage (as "point" for a attacking springboard) and a disadvantage (how to attack it and tie the opponent down to defending it).

Any earlier books on this theme may well also be of help - Nimzowitsch's opus comes to mind, though certain of its strategic solutions may well be out-of-step, if not out-of-date, with modern thinking on the IQP.

Kindest regards,

Dragan Glas

Alias,

It's off-topic, but I score quite well as Black against the Exchange Slav.  If you take a look at the stats, most of the draws occur when players agree to a draw within the first 20 moves.  If either side wants to play for a win (by avoiding trading Bishops, for example), then there are many interesting positions.  I relish playing the Black side of the Exchange Slav. I'm in my element in the positions that arise from that opening. 

Bringing the discussion back to the Tarrasch, both openings require Black to have the will to win, but the ideas behind the Tarrasch are so well known by now that it requires White to sail close to the wind to allow Black any serious winning chances against a strong opponent.

Having lost at least one game to a lower rated player ( ) as White in the Tarrasch, I heartily recommend everyone to stop playing it as Black!

The Tarrasch is not a good opening to play against a strong opponent who is comfortable with a draw.  However, if you know that White is willing to play an uncompromising game then the Tarrasch is an excellent weapon in which every result is possible!  The only real problem I have with the Tarrasch as Black is that Black's counterplay depends largely on White's ambition.  This, by the way, is also my main problem with playing the Caro-Kann as Black.

Udav18 wrote on 09/30/07 at 08:38:40:


Clearly there is no refutation for the Tarrasch Defence.  You need not worry about that. It is irrelevant whether Kasporov give it up or not or if any other 2600+ play it for that matter. It if a fully playable defence at sub elite levels where Black has dynamic compensation for his structural weaknesses. Dynamic compensation does not necessarily mean a direct K-side attack. It can simply mean active piece play that will create tactical opportunities in other areas of the board.

But your question is that you would like to find a solid defence. The emphasis on solid is yours. Clearly the Tarrasch is not a solid defence. Playable, yes, solid no.

winawer77,

I think Black needs comp to let his d-pawn go, unless perhaps all the queenside pawns are off the board.  But I agree that the terrors of Black's position aren't that great.  Aagaard has a nice section concerning how to defend the worst ending that can arise, which is Black's e6 bishop versus White's d4 knight, and no other pieces.

I wasn't aware of anyone, and least in published sources, claiming that Black has much chance of kingside attack, though it's something that lurks in the background.  More it's just that Black is rather active, and that White has tactical weaknesses on e2 and b2 that can sometimes be exploited (or color issues if he goes e3 or b3 to eliminate these weaknesses).

Black's most amusing games come when he gets ...d4 in.  Here's a nice Tarrasch performance by my chessfriend and former student, WFM Abby Marshall, versus FM John Bick at the latest U.S. Open:

http://www.monroi.com/wdc/flashviewer/watch1.php?round_id=1423&game_id=19976&s_i...

Black knew the themes; White didn't.

One thing is, I wouldn't want to have the Tarrasch as the only defense (to d4/queenside openings) in my repertoire, lest I end up in a must-win game on the Black side of this kind of position:  1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 c5 4. cd ed 5. Nf3 Nc6 6. Bg5 Be7 7. Bxe7 Ngxe7 8. e3 0-0 9. dc Qa5 10. Be2 Qxc5 11. 0-0.