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Opposite-colored bishops never cross each others paths. As they control squares of different colors, a chess game featuring them has its own specifics. By saying a position with opposite-colored bishops, we mean that there are no other light pieces left on the board, i.e. a bishop vs bishop endgame, or a middlegame with queens and/or rooks and a bishop each.
Following Capablancas advice, it is better to start studying the intricacies of opposite-color bishops positions by reviewing endgames. At this stage opposite-colored bishops are often a sign of a draw. Sometimes even being a few pawns up may not be enough for a win since the weaker side may build a fortress. However, my experience from watching online broadcasts from tournaments (or commentating myself) shows that people often overestimate this concept and are eager to announce a dead draw in ANY opposite-color bishop position, which is not the case.
The theory of opposite-colored bishop endgames is quite extensive and beyond the scope of a single article. Today we will consider just one feature, although very important positions with two extra pawns. To win, there normally have to be at least 3 files between the pawns and neither pawn should be on an a or h file if your bishop doesnt cover the 8-th square of that file (otherwise you might end up in a well-known bishop of the wrong color + a or h pawn drawn endgame).
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There are some exceptions (lost positions with less than 3 files), but this rule is still useful. Two connected pawns, although formidable looking, are not enough for a win if the weaker side achieves the correct defensive setup.
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It is also important to note that having other pieces (queens, rooks) on the board usually increases winning chances. This has more to do with the placement and coordination of the pieces than with potential pawn promotion.
In the middlegame the placement of the bishops is a critical factor. Having got an active bishop vs a passive one, you may win the whole game. Pogonina vs the World is a nice illustration of this concept. Another critical aspect is an opportunity to attack the opponents king. As your partners bishop cant protect light (or dark) squares, you have great chances to penetrate into his position. Taking all this into account, a few simple rules may be suggested:
Try to activate your own bishop
Keep the opponents bishop passive
Look out for attacking chances
In the following game of mine played at the recent European Club Cup vs IM Elena Zaiats an opposite-colored middlegame occurred:
I had a few promising chances to attack the opponents king, but didnt make use of them. Just like in soccer, if you dont score, then the opponent scores. I had to switch to defensive mode and play for a draw. Treating such positions too shyly is against its nature, so its no wonder that I ended up being worse and, eventually, happy with a draw.
A quite entertaining video featuring Kramnik (assisted verbally by super GMs and other distinguished people) vs Robot. The remarks he is making are quite hilarious ("This scum knows theory!", "It's a disgrace to play for flag!", "Draw, right" (tries to shake the robot's "hand"), "aha, and now you'll finally have to start thinking!", etc.).
The World Blitz Championship will be held as a double round robin on November 16-17. Games start at 3 p.m. Moscow time and will be brodcasted (live video, exceptional quality) at the official website.
The rules are simple - send us your questions and see them featured in the weekly Q&A column!
Q1: I have noticed that after that I work hard on training, studying, playing and an
"upgrade"...comes a season of weakness. I start to play very bad, and the "bad
season" lasts 2 months approx. This happens to me once a year (Nov.-Dec.) for 4 years
straight. What do you think? Advice? A1: First of all, few people improve smoothly. Most of us find ourselves in a situation when we have abandoned certain playing features since now we know that "you shouldn't play like that". However, at that stage we have the knowledge, but not the skills. You can't play like you used to anymore, neither can you jump to the next level right away. That leads to a temporary decline in a player's performances. Secondly, you may simply be tired from chess. The way you mention it (training, studying, playing, etc.) may suit some people, but others just might become fed up with chess, chess, chess all the time. No wonder that you are playing badly after that. Overtraining may be as dangerous as training too little, or even worse.
Q2: I've read in many interviews that GMs (such as Malakhov in his recent
interview) say that they use database of games for analysis/studies? I wonder how do they prepare with such a database of plain games? Do they particularly value "commented" games? Do they look for new moves in opening, or do they look for new ideas in middlegame(strategy). Perhaps they try to guess the moves (as well as candidate move) themselves after some thinking, and then check with the engine in infinite analysis mode? Do they write down all the ideas from the game before moving on to the next game? A2: I can't speak for all the grandmasters since habits differ. Generally speaking, you filter the latest games to find the ones that correspond to your opening repertoire. Then you start reviewing it like reading a detective novel:
- Ok, this is a bad reaction, he must have not known about a game by X
- Yes, right. Just like in my analysis. Wow, we have been preparing the same lines!
- Hmm. Can one play like that? Really? Maybe I should take a closer look at this variation.
- Omg! It looks like a refutation of the line I have been preparing. I need to patch it up asap!
Commented games by top GMs are instructive, of course. Nowadays the opening and middlegame are so strongly connected that it's hard to imagine preparing an opening without reviewing the middlegame ideas and plans. "Guess the move" takes too much time. It can be part of the general chess training, but not of studying openings. And yes, people do add new lines and commentary to the database (if they find something useful) before proceeding to the next one.
Q3: Hello I have been playing chess for a couple of years as a hobby. I have become
bored because I am beating everyone I play. I have made a lot of money due to bets
and stuff, but I was wondering do you think I should start entering tournaments
now? By the way, I think you are very pretty. A3: If you want to improve in chess and are not of losing, you may try competing in tournaments. On the contrary, if you prefer playing with your friends only and treasure your "invincible" image, then you probably shouldn't. Thanks.
Q4: Best wishes for the upcoming Women`s World Championship! What do you think are your
chances in this 64 player tournament ? And do you think it is an adequate system in
contrast to the men`s candidate system (which is troublesome, see the boycott of
Magnus Carlsen ), as for the Women World Championship there is not such a long
traditional history? A4: Knock-out events are well-known for their relatively random results. That is, if 64 players of similar strength are competing, each has a chance of 1/64 to win. Naturally, some are stronger than the others, so bookmakers assign odds like 100 to 1, 50 to 1, 20 to 1, etc. to the participants. You can probably check out one of such websites to find out the coefficient for me.
Regarding the format: Grand Prix (for top players, with decent financial conditions, regulations, no organizer's nominees), World Cup (more democratic event). Then a semi-final match between the winner of the Grand Prix and World Cup for the right to face the Women's World Champion in the final.
Q5: I would like to know who or what was your inspiration that convinced you to play chess and when you were an amateur, how did you study? A5: Love for the game. In fact, I have always liked playing chess more than studying. At 14 I used to solve a lot of tactics, study new ideas and plans in the middlegame with a coach, play training games, both study endgames and play them out (including basic ones, e.g. mating with a bishop + knight in 30 seconds), try to find and learn openings that suit my style. Also, I used to participate in rather many tournaments.
Q6: Will you please play a vote chess game vs our club/website? A6: I am in the middle of a second match vs the World. While I find this activity to be very important in terms of promoting chess and helping people improve their understanding of the game, there are also some obstacles. I feel responsible for playing well (acting otherwise would be disrespectful towards my opponents), and that puts me under constant pressure. The need to analyse, not to forget to make a move. Even when you are at a serious tournament. While members the World team may take breaks from the game (play a few moves, then skip the next few, then return again), I can't afford that luxury. Therefore, each time I start a game I realize that I will have to sacrifice some of my personal chess ambitions for the sake of letting others improve. That's always a hard step to take, so I can't be playing vote chess games all the time.
Q7: What do you think about Magnus Carlsen's withdrawal from the Candidates Cycle? A7: Unfortunately, it's a lose-lose scenario both for him and the chess community. Magnus will miss a chance to gain extremely valuable match experience and decrease his chances of ever becoming a World Champion. As to the chess community, fans will be disappointed; the game might lose some of the prestige (as there is a chance that many people will be thinking that chess has a champion AND the best player in the world). However, that is his personal decision. And, on the other hand, I am glad that such a talented and bright grandmaster as Alexander Grischuk will have a shot at the title.
The Russian Women's Superfinal will be held as a round robin in Moscow from November 16th to 27th (rest day - November 22nd). The line-up is unique in terms of chess strength. All the top players are participating:
Kosintseva Tatiana (2586)
Kosintseva Nadezhda (2576)
Kosteniuk Alexandra (2507)
Galliamova Alisa (2487)
Gunina Valentina (2479)
Pogonina Natalia (2472)
Girya Olga (2435)
Bodnaruk Anastasia (2407)
Paikidze Nazi (2401)
Matveeva Svetlana (2389)
Shadrina Tatiana (2384)
Nebolsina Vera (2377)
The prize fund of the tournament is 1.4 mln roubles (about $46 000; appr. 1st - $13 000, 2nd - $10 000, 3rd - $6 600 and so on. 12th - $650)
