Queen's Gambit Accepted 1.d4 5 2.c4 Dc4 (D20-D29)

Bologna, Italy: S1 Editrice S.r.l., 1995. Assumed First Edition . Trade Paperback. Very Good. 6" X 8 1/2. 179 Pages Indexed. Since so many of Black's troubles in the Queen's Gambit can be traced to a cramped game, offhand it looks as though it would be good policy to get free play for the pieces, even at the cost of giving up the centre temporarily. This is the leading motif of the Queen's Gambit Accepted: a more comfortable game gets priority, equality in the centre will come later. Naturally, White is anxious to play "e4", as in all variations of the Queen's Gambit. By removing the pawn barrier Black makes the struggle to see whether White can force a favourable advance or not all the more acute. White must regain his pawn, but also prevent the liberating "eS", which would follow, e.g., on "3.e3". Consequently 3.lUf3 is most natural. Perhaps it should be mentioned that Black cannot afford to try to hold on to the pawn: if now 3 ... bS 4.a4 c6 S.e3 jLb7 6.abS cbS 7.b3 with the better game. Thus Black is compelled to play positionally. It is to be expected, of course, that the defender will insert "cS" at an early stage. White will then be faced by the crucial problem of the QGA: whether to play "dcS" banking on speedier development, or to leave the status quo untouched, allowing the isolated pawn with cd4 ed4. As a rule, the better development which comes after "dcS" is useless, if the queens are exchanged, because it can only be exploited by an energetic attack, e.g. 3.lUf3 lUf6 4.e3 e6 S.Jt.c4 cS 6.0-0 lUc6 7.lUc3 ~e7 8.dcS fgdl 9 . .l::tdl .icS 1O.a3 we7 11.b4 i..b6 l2.~b2 .l::td8 with equality, despite the fact that Black lost a move with his King's Bishop. However, as we shall see, if White had been able to avoid the exchange of queens he could have retained a marked superiority in view of Black's loss of time. It follows that for Black there is a constant sparring for position from the very beginning. He must not allow loss of time with his King's Bishop, for he is rarely certain of being able to exchange queens. Thus Black, after the preliminaries, can either crystallize the position in the centre or concentrate on developing his queenside first, especially since he can get his Queen's Bishop out via "b7". White meanwhile will hasten to mobilize his kingside. This leads us to the first normal line: 3.lUf3 lUf6 4.e3 e6 S.Jt.c4 cS 6.0-0 a6. White is anxious to get his Queen out of the way in order to be able to take prompt advantage of a move of the Black King's Bishop, so he plays 7.'/I:l'e2 with which he also threatens an eventual eS. In particular, should Black advance on the queens ide, this centre thrust would be annoying. Black continues with his plan: 7 lUc6 8 . .l::tdl but now Black can afford to continue on the queenside for tactical reasons: 8 bS 9.~b3 c4 1O . .ic2 lUb4! Il.lUc3 lUc2 12.fgc2 ~b7 13.dS! fgc7 14.e4 eS with equality. The Queen's Gambit Accepted has not been removed from the arena of contemporary chess battles. It is a frequent guest at tournaments and matches at the highest level of chess. Recent developments have shown that the old opening is experiencing a renaissance, and that its best days lie ahead.