Category: The Middlegame

September 1, 2016 Matthew Sadler No comments exist

A little while after posting about Alekhine’s inventiveness in the early opening stages (Alekhine’s Themes – at you right from the opening!) I came across another lovely little example which I just have to share with you. It comes from the game Alekhine – Vidmar Hastings 1936.     After 13 moves of a quiet QGD,…

August 26, 2016 Matthew Sadler No comments exist

I’m often asked how much I see during a game. It’s a difficult question to answer because the implicit assumption behind the question is that if you see something, you see it precisely and accurately and with a high degree of completeness. In my experience that’s not true for most of the variations you spot…

August 18, 2016 Matthew Sadler No comments exist

In 1928, Bogolyubow played 2 matches against Euwe in Holland for the title “Champion of FIDE” (see http://www.chesshistory.com/winter/extra/fide.html for Edward Winter’s excellent Chess Notes entry on the story behind this title) Bogolyubow won both 10 game matches 5,5-4,5 after very tough fights. In the first match, Bogolyubow only managed to nose ahead after winning the…

August 4, 2016 Matthew Sadler 3 comments

My last round game at Haarlem against the Dutch GM Erik van den Doel was far and away my best effort of the tournament. It was played on board 1 when Erik, IM Quinten Ducarmon and I were tied in 1st place with 4,5/5.   Van den Doel,Erik – Sadler,Matthew D Haarlem Nova College 03.07.2016…

August 4, 2016 Matthew Sadler No comments exist

One of my favourite themes is that of the side with too few pieces to cover its (too large) territory. I first came across it in a book I’ve mentioned many times already in this blog: “Best Play: A New Method for Discovering the Strongest Move” by Alexander Shashin. Shashin turns the conventional wisdom of…