JRCR Supplement: Poprgebyssky-Botvinnik, Soviet Ch, Leningrad, 1939

[Jack Rabbit]

This game game was truncated when first posted in September. It is presented here complete.

Mikhail Moiseevich Botvinnik (1911-1995), a native of St. Petersburg, was the sixth world champion (1948-1957; 1958-60; 1961-63). On August 17, the chess world celebrated the 100th anniversary of his birth. Several memorial tournaments were held to honor the occasion.

Botvinnik took a scientific approach to all aspects of the game. He even kept files on potential opponents in order to study weaknesses in their play. He was basically a positional player who punctuated his strategy with tactical finesse.

Mikhail Moiseevich was perhaps the greatest connoissuer of the French Game ever, specifically the Nimzo-Winawer Defense.

Resource: Botvinnik, Mikhail (Stephen Garry, trans.), One Hundred Selected Games (New York: Dover, 1960), game 63.



Mikhail Botvinnik
Photo: from the Book of the Botvinnik-Flohr Match, 1933 in Wikipedia Commons.com (Public Domain in Ukraine)


Iosef Pogrebyssky - Mikhail Botvinnik
Eleventh Soviet Championship
Leningrad, April 1939

Closed French Game: Nimzo-Winawer Defense (Main Line)

1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Bb4

BLACK



WHITE

French Game: Nimzo-Winawer Defense

Position after 3...Bf8b4

• This is the Nimzo-Winawer Defense. It is credited to one Szymon Winawer, a strong nineteenth-century Polish master. It was favored by Nimzovich in the years after World War I, but it was Botvinnik, starting in the thirties, who made it one of most popular variations of the French. Since the end of World War II, by which time Botvinnik was recognized as the world's strongest player and then the world champion, it has been the most played variation of the French. It is sometimes called the Botvinnik Variation.
• By pinning the Knight at c3, Black threatens White's e-pawn. This is usually dealt with by advancing the pawn to e5, stetting up the standard French pawn formation. The center is closed and opening play is quite slow. White has a natural advantage in space and will play against the Black King, assuming Black castles kingside (which he may not, as in the present game). Black will attempt to undermine White's center by playing ...c7c5 and ...Nb8c6, putting pressure on the d-pawn, and then develop counterplay on the queenside. Consequently, after a slow opening, the middlegame can be very sharp.
• In the opinion of your humble hare and his staff of chess playing cats, this is the sharpest of all the French lines. Black gives up the two Bishops in order to saddle White with doubled c-pawns; the closed nature of most Nimzo-Winawer positions make it questionable whether Black giving up the Bishops is any kind of concession at all. White's spoiled queenside pawns make it almost unthinkable for White to castle short. Black, on the other hand, typically castles long. The opposite-sided castling combined with long pawns chains for each side running through the center leads to a game with strong play on opposite wings.
• If you find yourself playing Black and needing a win, this is the kind of opening you might consider.

4.e5

• The advance is the the most effective to meet the Nimzo-Winawer, but White can also exchange on d5 or reinforce eith the guardian Knight or the e-pawn itself.
• (Exchange Opening) If 4.exd5 exd5 5.Bd3 Nc6 then:
• If 6.a3 then:
• If 6...Bxc3+ 7.bxc3 then:
• If 7...Nge7!? 8.Qh5 then:
• If 8...Be6 9.Rb1! then:
• If 9...b6 10.Nf3 Qd7 11.Ng5 then:
• If 11...0-0-0 12.Nxe6 Qxe6+ then:
• 13.Be3 g6 14.Qf3 Nf5 15.0-0 Nxe3 16.Rfe1 Qd6 17.fxe3 gives White command of two open fileand the advantage in space (Glek-Chenaux, Op, Saint Vincent, 1999).
• If 11...g6 12.Qf3 0-0 13.Nxe6 then:
• 13...fxe6 14.Qh3 Nf5 15.0-0 e5 16.dxe5 Nxe5 17.Bf4 Rae8 gives Black a better center and fewer pawn weaknesses; White has the b-file and the Bishop pair (Charochkina-I. Radziewicz Rajlich, Euro ChW, St. Petersburg, 2009).
• 13.Qe2 Nf5 14.Qxe6+ fxe6 15.0-0 Nd6 16.Re1 Kd7 17.Bf4 gives White the Bishop pair, command of the b- and e-files and control of e5; Black has command of c4 ().
• 13...Qxe6+?! 14.Kd1 Qd6 15.Re1! Qxh2 16.Bf4 Qh4 17.g4! gives White a fine game with command of the b- and e-files and a huge advantage in space in compensation for the pawn.
• If 9...Qc8 then:
• If 10.Ne2 then:
• If 10...Bf5?! 11.Nf4 then:
• If 11...Be6? then after 12.0-0 Nd8 13.Re1 c6 14.a4 h6 15.Ba3 White soon wns (Glek-Naumkin, Op, Cattolica, 1993).
• 11...Bxd3 12.cxd3 0-0 13.Nxd5 Nxd5 14.Qxd5 Re8+ 15.Be3 gives White an extra pawn and a clear advantage in space, but Black is still in the game.
• 10...Bg4 11.Qg5 0-0 12.0-0 Re8 13.Re1 Bf5 14.Ng3 gives White more space; Black can relieve the problem starting with 14...Bxd3.
• 10.Nf3 h6 11.h3 Bf5 12.0-0 Bg6 13.Bxg6 fxg6 14.Qh4 0-0 15.Re1 gives White command of two open files, but Black's pieces protect each other well (Tran Ngoc Lan-Larmuseau, World Jr Ch, Chotowa, 2010).
• If 8...g6 9.Qf3 Bf5 10.Rb1 then:
• If 10...0-0?! 11.Rxb7 then:
• If 11...Na5 12.Rb4 Re8 13.Ne2 Be4 14.Bxe4 dxe4 15.Qf6! gives White an extra pawn (Bykhovsky-Hort, IT, Moscow, 1962).
• 11...Qc8 12.Rb1 Qe6+ 13.Ne2 Be4 14.Bxe4 dxe4 15.Qf4 yields an extra pawn for White.
• Better is 10...Rb8 11.Ne2 0-0 12.0-0 Re8 13.Ng3 Bxd3 14.cxd3 when White has more freedom, command of the b-file and the advantage in space; Black has the e-file.
• If 7...Nf6 8.Ne2 0-0 9.0-0 then:
• If 9...Na5 10.Ng3 then:
• If 10...Bg4 11.f3 Bd7 12.Bg5 h6 13.Bf4 then:
• 13...Nc4 14.Qc1 Ne8 15.Nh5 Qh4 16.g4 f5 17.Bg3 Qg5 18.Bf4 Qh4 19.Bg3 Qg5 20.Bf4 draw (Wippermann-Jussupow, Bundesliga 0506, Germany, 2006).
• 13...Re8 14.Qc1 Re6 15.Nf5 Nh5 16.Be5 Nc6 is equal (Trygstad-S. Ivanov, Euro Club Cup, Saint Vincent, 2005).
• If 10...Qd6 11.h3 Re8 12.Qf3 then:
• 12...Qc6 13.a4 Nc4 14.Bxc4 dxc4 15.Qxc6 bxc6 gives White better targets among Black's weak pawns (Schöne-Mkrtchian, OlW, Dresden, 2008).
• 12...Be6 13.Bf4 Qc6 14.Be5 Nd7 15.Nh5 Nxe5 16.dxe5 is equal (Senff-Poldauf, Bundesliga 0607, Germany, 2006).
• 9...Re8 10.Bg5 h6 11.Bh4 Na5 12.Qd2 Qd6 13.Bg3 is equal (Nataf-Short, FIDE Knock Out, New Delhi, 2000).
• If 6...Be7 7.Nce2 then:
• If 7...Bf6 8.c3 Nge7 then:
• 9.Qc2 g6 10.Bf4 Bf5 11.Nf3 Qd7 12.Bxf5 Nxf5 13.0-0 is equal (Maze-E. L'Ami, Euro Ch, Aix-les-Bains, 2011).
• 9.Ng3 g6 10.Qf3 Bg7 11.Bg5 h5 12.Qf4 Qd7 is equal(Sanz Alonso-Mariotti, IT, Las Palmas, 1978).
• If 7...Nf6 8.c3 0-0 then:
• 9.Ng3 Re8 10.N1e2 Na5 11.0-0 c6 12.Bc2 Nc4 is equal(Cornette-E. Peterson, Euro Ch, Dresden, 2007).
• 9.Qc2 Re8 10.Bf4 Bg4 11.0-0-0 Bh5 12.f3 Bg6 is equal (E. Pähtz-Totsky, Op, Pardubice, 2001).
• If 6.Nge2 Nge7 7.0-0 Bf5 8.Ng3 then:
• If 8...Bxd3 9.Qxd3 Qd7 10.Nce2 0-0 then:
• 11.c3 Bd6 12.Bf4 Rae8 13.Qf3 Nd8 is equal (Spielmann-Dr. Euwe, IT, Zandvoort, 1936).
• 11.b3 Bd6 12.f4 f5 13.c4 b6 14.Bb2 Nd8 is equal (Spielmann-Sämisch, IT, Wiesbaden, 1925).
• 8...Bg6 9.Nce2 Qd7 10.f4 f5 11.a3 Bd6 12.b3 is equal (Spielmann-Nimzovich, IT, Copenhagen, 1923).
• (Kondratiyev Opening) If 4.Nge2 dxe4 5.a3 then:
• If 5...Be7 6.Nxe4 Nf6 then:
• If 7.N2g3 0-0 then:
• If 8.c3 then:
• If 8...Nbd7 9.Bd3 then:
• If 9...c5 10.dxc5 then:
• 10...Nxe4 11.Nxe4 f5 12.Ng3 Nxc5 13.Bc4 Qxd1+ 14.Kxd1 Bd7 15.b4 Na4 16.Re1 Nxc3+ gives Black an extra pawn and the initiative (S. Lalic-N. Pert, British Ch, Great Yarmouth, 2007).
• 10...Bxc5 11.0-0 Be7 12.Qe2 Qc7 13.Ng5 Re8 14.Re1 gives White a little more activity for her pieces, a queenside majority and the advantage in space (Vranesevic-Vasic, Yugoslav YouthW, Obrenovac, 2002).
• If 9...e5 then:
• 10.Nxf6+ Bxf6 11.d5 Nc5 12.Bc2 b6 13.0-0 Ba6 14.Re1 gives White a small advantage in space (Rogers-Zhong Zhang, IT B, Wijk aan Zee, 2003).
• 10.0-0 exd4 11.cxd4 Nb6 12.Be3 Nbd5 13.Bd2 Nxe4 14.Nxe4 is equal (Korbut-Grabuzova, TTW, St. Petersburg, 2003).
• If 8...Nc6 then:
• If 9.Bd3 e5 10.Nxf6+ Bxf6 11.d5 Ne7 12.c4 Ng6 then:
• 13.0-0 Nf4 14.Bc2 g6 15.Qf3 Bg7 16.Rb1 Qh4 17.Bxf4 exf4 is equal (Gluszko-Maier, Euro Ch, Warsaw, 2005).
• 13.Qc2 c6 14.dxc6 bxc6 15.0-0 a5 16.Be4 Qc7 17.Be3 gives White the advantage in space (Zelcic-Jussupow, ZT, Dresden, 1998).
• If 9.Nxf6+ Bxf6 10.Bc4 e5 11.d5 then:
• 11...Ne7 12.Ne4 Nf5 13.0-0 Nd6 14.Nxd6 Qxd6 15.Be3 is equal (Gheorghiu-Uhlmann, Alekhine Mem, Moscow, 1971).
• 11...Na5 12.Ba2 b5 13.0-0 c5 14.Ne4 c4 15.a4 gives White a better center and more freedom.
• If 8.Be2 Nc6 then:
• If 9.Nxf6+ Bxf6 10.c3 e5 11.d5 Ne7 then:
• If 12.c4 Ng6 13.Nh5 then:
• 13...Bg5 14.0-0 Bxc1 15.Qxc1 Qh4 16.Qc3 draw (Pachman-Bronstein, ITZ, Stockholm, 1948).
• 13...Be7 14.0-0 f5 15.f4 Bc5+ 16.Kh1 Bd4 17.fxe5 is equal (Pachman-Szabo, ITZ, Saltsjobaden, 1948).
• 12.Bc4 Ng6 13.0-0 Be7 14.Ne2 Bd6 15.f4 Qh4 gives Black the advantage in space (Gunnarsson-Maier, Op, Reykjavik, 2008).
• 9.c3 e5 10.dxe5 Qxd1+ 11.Bxd1 Nxe5 12.0-0 Nxe4 13.Nxe4 Nd3 gives Black a slight edge with more space (Kan-Alatorsev, Soviet Ch, Moscow, 1931).
• If 7.Qd3 0-0 8.Bf4 then:
• If 8...Nc6 9.0-0-0 b6 then:
• If 10.N2c3 Nd5 11.Nxd5 exd5 then:
• 12.Ng3 Be6 13.Qc3 Bd6 14.Nh5 Ne7 15.Bxd6 Qxd6 16.Qg3 Nf5 17.Qxd6 Nxd6 18.f3 f6 19.Bd3 Bf7 draw (Morky-Short, Ol, Thessaloniki, 1988).
• If 12.Nc3 Bf6 13.Qg3 Bh4 14.Qf3 Be6 15.Bc4 is equal (, Op, Philadelphia, 1987).
• If 10.h4 Nxe4 11.Qxe4 Bb7 12.d5 exd5 13.Rxd5 Bd6 is equal (Minisian-Asrian, Armenian Ch, Yerevan, 2005).
• If 8...Nbd7 9.0-0-0 then:
• If 9...b6 10.N2c3 Bb7 then:
• If 11.Be2 Nxe4 12.Nxe4 Nf6 then:
• 13.Ng5 Bd6 14.Be5 Bxe5 15.dxe5 Qxd3 16.Rxd3 Nd5 17.Bf3 gives White the advantage in space (Wolff-Morovic Fernández, Op, New York, 1987).
• If 13.Bf3 Nxe4 14.Bxe4 Bxe4 15.Qxe4 Bg5 16.Kb1 draw (Kavalek-Dr. Hübner, IT A, Wijk aan Zee, 1982).
• If 11.Nxf6+ Nxf6 12.Be2 Nd5 13.Nxd5 Bxd5 14.Bf3 Bg5 15.Qe3 Bxf4 16.Qxf4 Bxf3 draw (Ghaem Maghami-Korchnoi, Op, Isle of Man, 2004).
• If 9...Nxe4 10.Qxe4 c5 then:
• 11.Nc3 Nf6 12.Qe1 cxd4 13.Be5 Qa5 14.Rxd4 Rd8 15.Rxd8+ draw (Gipslis-Krogius, IT, Moscow, 1991).
• If 11.dxc5 Nxc5 12.Qe3 Qb6 13.Nc3 Rd8 14.Rxd8+ Qxd8 15.Be2 Bd7 16.Rd1 Qe8 17.Bd6 Rc8 18.Bf3 draw (Opl-Wagener, Austrian ChT, 2000).
• If 5...Bxc3+ 6.Nxc3 Nc6 then:
• If 7.Bb5 Nge7 8.Bg5 f6 9.Be3 0-0 10.Qd2 f5 11.0-0-0 then:
• If 11...a6 12.Bxc6 Nxc6 13.f3 then:
• If 13...exf5 14.gxf3 e5 15.d5 then:
• If 15...Na5 16.Qe2 b5 then:
• 17.f4 18.Bxf4 Bd7 19.Rhg1 Rf7 20.Rg3 is equal (Neelakantan-Harikrishna, Op, Calcutta, 2000).
• 17.Rhg1 Qd6 18.f4 e4 19.Qf2 Rf7 20.Bc5 Qh6 gives Black an extra pawn and White a small advantage in space (Ciocaltea-Ornstein, IT, Smederevska Palanka, 1981).
• 15...Nd4 16.Bxd4 exd4 17.Qxd4 Qd6 18.Rhg1 Rf7 19.Rg5 is equal (J. Polgar-D. Wood, Op, Hastings, 1988).
• If 13...e5 14.d5 Na5 15.Qe2 then:
• 15...b6 16.fxe4 f4 17.Bd2 Nb7 18.Rdf1 Nd6 19.g3 is equal (Stripunsky-Shulman, US Ch, St. Louis, 2010).
• If 15....b5 16.Bc5 Rf7 17.fxe5 f5 18.d6 c6 19.Qh5 is equal (So. Polgar-P. Olivier, Op, Val Maubuee, 1988).
• If 7.d5 exd5 8.Qxd5 then:
• If 8...Nge7 9.Qxd8+ Nxd8 10.Nxe4 Bf5 11.Bd3 then:
• If 11...Ne6 then:
• If 12.Bd2 0-0-0 13.0-0-0 Nd4 then:
• 14.Rhe1 Nec6 15.Bc3 Rhe8 16.Bxd4 Nxd4 17.Nc5 is equal (Daces-Drasko, Op, Metz, 2001).
• 14.Kb1 Nec6 15.f4 Rhe8 16.Rde1 Re7 17.Re3 Rde8 is equal (Zelcic-Psakhis, Euro ChT, Batumi, 1999).
• 12.Be3 0-0-0 13.0-0-0 Bg6 14.Ng5 Nxg5 15.Bxg5 f6 is equal (Olszewski-Dizdar, Euro Ch, Warsaw, 2005).
• 11...e5 12.Bxc6 bxc6 13.Bf4 Rb8 14.Bxe5 Be6 15.Qe2 is equal (Zeller-Rogers, IT, Deizisau, 2001).
• If 8...Be6 then:
• If 9.Qxe4 Nf6 10.Qh4 Qd4 then:
• If 11.Bg5 Qe5+ 12.Be2 Nd4 13.0-0-0 0-0-0 14.Bd3 then:
• 14...h6 15.Bxf6 Qxf6 16.Qxf6 gxf6 17.Rd2 Bd5 18.f3 gives White better pawns and leaves him threatening 19.Bc4, winning a piece (Solodovnichenko-Edouard. French ChT, Mulhouse, 2011).
• 14...Nf5 15.Qf4 Qxf4+ 16.Bxf4 Nd4 17.Rhe1 gives White the initiative and a small advantage in space.
• 11.Qxd4 Nxd4 12.Bd3 h6 13.Be3 0-0-0 14.0-0-0 Ng4 is equal (Hakki-Bong Villamyor, Asian Ch, Calcutta, 2001).
• 9.Qxd8+ Rxd8 10.Bf4 Nf6 11.Bxc7 Rd7 12.Bf4 0-0 is equal (Bronstein-Vaganian, IT, Tilburg, 1993).
• (Schwartz Opening) If 4.Bd3 dxe4 5.Bxe4 Nf6 6.Bf3 then:
• If 6...c5 7.Nge2 Nc6 then:
• If 8.a3 Bxc3+ 9.bxc3 e5 then:
• If 10.Bg5 exd4 11.cxd4 cxd4 then:
• 12.Bxc6+ bxc6 13.Qxd4 Qa5+ 14.Bd2 Qd5 15.0-0 0-0 16.Rfe1 Ba6 17.Qxd5 Nxd5 draw (Hort-Uhlmann, IT, Zagrab, 1970).
• 12.Bxf6 Qxf6 13.c3 0-0 14.0-0 Rd8 15.Qa4 Bd7 is equal (R. Ortega-Uhlmann, Rubinstein Mem, Polanica Zdroj, 1967).
• If 10.Bxc6+ bxc6 then:
• If 11.0-0 exd4 12.cxd4 0-0 13.Re1 Ba6 then:
• 14.Be3 Bxe2 15.Rxe2 Nd5 16.Qd3 cxd4 17.Qxd4 draw (Torán Albero-L. Schmid, Ol, Leipzig, 1960).
• 14.Ng3 cxd4 15.Nf5 Re8 16.Bg5 Qa5 17.Nh6+ Kf8 gives Black an extra pawn and the initiative (Tseitlin-Jussupow, TT, Moscow, 1983).
• 11.Be3 cxd4 12.cxd4 0-0 13.0-0 exd4 14.Nxd4 Qd5 15.Re1 gives White a better center; Black has a little more space, but White need only drive the Queen away to fix that (E. Vasiukov-Golz, IT, Gotha, 1957).
• If 8.Be3 cxd4 9.Nxd4 Ne5 then:
• 10.0-0 Nxf3+ 11.Qxf3 0-0 12.Rad1 Qa5 13.Nb3 Qa6 14.Bc5 Bxc5 15.Nxc5 gives White the advantage in space (Sterner-Golz, IT, Dresden, 1956).
• 10.Be2 Nd5 11.Bd2 Nxc3 12.bxc3 Be7 13.0-0 0-0 14.f4 Nd7 gives Black better pawn structure; White has a better center (Fichtl-Uhlmann, IT, Zinnowitz, 1966).
• If 6...0-0 7.Nge2 Nbd7 8.0-0 e5 then:
• If 9.Ng3 Re8 then:
• 10.Bg5 Bxc3 11.bxc3 h6 12.Bd2 e4 13.Be2 is equal (Houska-Fowler, British Ch, Swansea, 2006).
• 10.Be3 exd4 11.Bxd4 c5 12.Bxf6 Nxf6 13.Nd5 Ba5 is equal (Le Roux-Singh, Masters, Hastings, 2006).
• 9.Bg5 Be7 10.Ng3 h6 11.Be3 exd4 12.Bxd4 c5 (Nei-Bronstein, Tartu, 1962).