A last thing (then i won't bother you for a week, i'm going on ski holidays tonight!) : squelbelch's illustrative games are very interesting! the 2 last games showing 2 of the the best advanced anti-morra systems i was talking about, although not very well played by black! (on game 4, Nc6 and Bb4? are not in the spirit of the variation, on game 5, h6? walks into the trap, Nf6 is much better)
Those two variation handled by strong players can be pretty hard to meet for white.
The 1st game illustrates what i was saying about "natural black sicilian setup"...but on this 1 white's play is much less convincing than in the others! Bg5 is ok but Bf4 mifht be more precise, then h3 is a loss of time (ueful on the Bf4 variation to give the h2 square for the knight in some lines), then the e5 thrust doesn't seem a good idea here... Bb3 intending Nd5 seems more to the point. And after 16...Bc6 black has a big advantage. But anyway he won so i stop criticising!
Originally posted by el gilAgainst sicilian: 2 f4
I'd like to receive any suggestions for different openings: coz I like e4, but like many Sicilian players I hate to play against the Sicilian as white.
So I'm trying to solve this problem radically, avoiding e4...
How about 1.c4? Looks interesting but I guess there's a huge theory behind it
Originally posted by shorbockI could be wrong here but I suspect that there's more theory in the Dragon than there is on all the c3 Sicilian & MG declined lines!
...But it's main drawback is that you have to learn 2 openings instead of 1, so it's not really a good way to avoid lots of theory :
You have to learn the "regular" morra gambit, when black accepts the pawn, but black also has very good ways of declining the gambit, mainly 2...Nf6 and 2...d5 forcing a transposition to another important sicilian variation : ...[text shortened]... structures (white pawns on c4 and e4 "binding" black counterplay making d5 difficult)...
Originally posted by shorbockI wanna play a SMG against you sometime. You do know a lot about it. SO what do you say? The only thing is that it can't be done now cause I have too many games in progress.
A last thing (then i won't bother you for a week, i'm going on ski holidays tonight!) : squelbelch's illustrative games are very interesting! the 2 last games showing 2 of the the best advanced anti-morra systems i was talking about, although not very well played by black! (on game 4, Nc6 and Bb4? are not in the spirit of the variation, on game 5, h6? walks ...[text shortened]... t. And after 16...Bc6 black has a big advantage. But anyway he won so i stop criticising!
Originally posted by adam warlockI think he would be unwise to play you.
I wanna play a SMG against you sometime. You do know a lot about it. SO what do you say? The only thing is that it can't be done now cause I have too many games in progress.
I mean - he may have beaten a GM in rapidplay, but as a then 1300 you showed no mercy in destroying me after issuing a similar challenge in the forum in a game that was totally out of book around move 14:
Game 4010788
Originally posted by SquelchbelchDon't scare him away please. 😉
I think he would be unwise to play you.
I mean - he may have beaten a GM in rapidplay, but as a then 1300 you showed no mercy in destroying me after issuing a similar challenge in the forum in a game that was totally out of book around move 14:
Game 4010788
I've recentely lost a SMG against a 1600+ plus by the way. But only because I missed a one move checkmate in an ending were I was till was a pawn up with only one rook at each side. 😞 I think I could have one that one.
And I think I told you at the time that my playing level was a little bit better than my rating would indicate.
edit: I still curse at 10. ... Be7?
I haven't played 1.e4 since 2003. In our chess club everybody plays 1.e4, so I decided to avoid it and I've opened with 1.d4, 1.c4 or 1.Nf3 ever since. I therefore became quite interested in closed positions and transpositional struggles. I haven't encountered a double king pawn opening in all that time as either White or Black.
Originally posted by el gilNigel Davies has written a book on the English recently In the introduction he says that he switched from 1. e4 to 1. c4 with plans to play an early d4. This might suit your style.
I'd like to receive any suggestions for different openings: coz I like e4, but like many Sicilian players I hate to play against the Sicilian as white.
So I'm trying to solve this problem radically, avoiding e4...
How about 1.c4? Looks interesting but I guess there's a huge theory behind it
Originally posted by el gilI can recommend some closed opening setups, easy to learn:
I'd like to receive any suggestions for different openings: coz I like e4, but like many Sicilian players I hate to play against the Sicilian as white.
So I'm trying to solve this problem radically, avoiding e4...
How about 1.c4? Looks interesting but I guess there's a huge theory behind it
1) Nf3 - g3 - Bg2 - 0-0 - d3 - Nbd2 - e4
2) d4 - Nf3 - g3 - Bg2 - 0-0 - Nbd2
...So you are giving up playing e4...because of the sicilian?....Why?...there are loads of ways of meeting the sicilian...2 c3,2d4,2Nc3 2Bc4...infact you can play anything the trick is to study the positions and the pawn structures..i recently drew with a strong english IM over the board...not because i knew the line that well but because i knew the postions...Just tackle it head on...otherwise you will be for ever changing your openings....Hold your ground!