WEBVTT 00:01.010 --> 00:01.660 Hi there. 00:01.730 --> 00:08.480 In this lecture, Alexander Alekhine is playing against Gregory Levin Fish in the 1912 St Peter's Tournament. 00:08.510 --> 00:09.420 Let's have a look. 00:09.440 --> 00:12.740 D4 from Alekhine and we have C5. 00:12.740 --> 00:14.120 So this is quite unusual for the time. 00:14.120 --> 00:14.900 It's not a classic. 00:14.900 --> 00:16.280 Queen's Gambit declined. 00:16.430 --> 00:18.470 It's an old Benoni defense. 00:18.470 --> 00:21.230 We have Knight F6 and now Knight C3. 00:21.620 --> 00:22.770 So this is a move free. 00:22.790 --> 00:24.410 It's very interesting to see 93. 00:24.410 --> 00:27.770 It's one of my favorite moves in general rather than sometimes playing C4. 00:27.800 --> 00:31.100 It's good for surprise systems or anti systems. 00:31.880 --> 00:37.130 So here, yes, it's nearly as good from the engine perspective, it's actually nearly as good as C4. 00:37.130 --> 00:41.180 But I think in many ways it's kind of solid from a human point of view. 00:41.390 --> 00:45.950 It's more simple and solid than C4. 00:46.610 --> 00:53.240 C4 tends to weaken dart squares and maybe 11 Fish had wanted to play with a dot square strategy. 00:53.240 --> 00:55.940 So that's kind of been ruled out a little bit here. 00:55.970 --> 01:01.460 Knight C3 d6, e4 G6 and now immediate problems being set with F4. 01:01.640 --> 01:11.960 We have Knight Bd7 A6 is needed at seems here if E5 Knight's after seven this position Queen C7 going 01:12.060 --> 01:16.700 to free black is actually doing quite badly here out of the opening. 01:17.210 --> 01:18.740 Even if d takes to win a pawn. 01:18.740 --> 01:27.020 Bishop G2 White has tremendous compensation here for the pawn and is looking forward to attacking prospects 01:27.020 --> 01:28.070 in this position. 01:28.280 --> 01:31.340 But in the game Knight Bd7 was played. 01:31.340 --> 01:33.440 We have Knight F3 and now A6 here. 01:33.440 --> 01:34.940 This is very different. 01:36.050 --> 01:39.050 The knight is using the parking space of the other. 01:39.050 --> 01:41.920 Knight is less resourceful in a way not being able to use Knight. 01:42.020 --> 01:47.300 57 We have E5 pushing black to do so in D takes. 01:47.630 --> 01:51.830 Knight might have actually been safer, but this looks ridiculous. 01:52.040 --> 01:55.520 Visually, it looks ridiculous and it is significantly better for White's. 01:55.520 --> 02:03.500 For example, after e6 D takes e6 Knight, the f6 y can hold on to the pawn there and fraternite f7. 02:04.460 --> 02:06.140 So what we're black do here? 02:06.770 --> 02:08.270 Knight h6 There's G4. 02:08.300 --> 02:14.810 This is a very interesting move to stop the use of F5 and if Knight G4, Bishop h3 White gets a very 02:14.810 --> 02:22.040 dominating position here with five F tanks and then can play Queen D free looking at G6, you can see 02:22.040 --> 02:26.300 this is an opening disaster in effect, it's a total opening disaster for Black. 02:26.300 --> 02:28.040 White's got a huge advantage here. 02:28.670 --> 02:29.750 So okay. 02:29.780 --> 02:32.040 D Tanks is played F tanks. 02:32.090 --> 02:34.160 This is still looking like a disaster. 02:34.160 --> 02:45.350 Now after e6 knight d e5 if f tanks e6 d tanks might be six y can play actually can afford to play Queen 02:45.350 --> 02:54.500 68 check here because after King takes the eight Bishop F4 and this is very tricky let's look at Bishop 02:54.500 --> 03:06.110 takes E6 here Knight G5 Bishop James Bishop E2 h5 Mike Castle Queenside King eight Rook HD one. 03:06.110 --> 03:13.640 It's very dangerous for black this position for example here H3 and there are numerous, you know great 03:13.640 --> 03:16.340 possibilities if the knight goes back. 03:16.340 --> 03:22.010 There's all sorts of beautiful possibilities here like bishop and free. 03:22.010 --> 03:24.950 Looking at B7, it just looks diabolical for Black. 03:24.950 --> 03:27.350 How is Be7 actually supported? 03:27.350 --> 03:30.320 It's not very easy to defend things in the Kingston Center. 03:30.440 --> 03:35.060 Lots of great possibilities if the forcing Knight f to, you know, rook d to that knight, it's going 03:35.060 --> 03:38.300 to be stranded here soon as another fictional example. 03:38.300 --> 03:39.290 The Knight Stranded. 03:39.590 --> 03:41.180 Yeah, it's all much better for white. 03:41.180 --> 03:44.480 Basically, this is a bit of an unmitigated opening disaster. 03:44.870 --> 03:50.690 So E5 is played Bishop F4 and I think Knight takes F3 and now G takes F3. 03:51.170 --> 03:57.620 The position so strong Queen takes F3 is also good F tanks instead of even taking the Knight White could 03:57.620 --> 03:59.330 do better with D tanks here. 04:01.880 --> 04:06.890 Taking the knight runs into E5, which hits the bishop and hits the Queen. 04:06.890 --> 04:14.840 That's a tactic which still leaves White with a big advantage, actually, but even stronger. 04:16.160 --> 04:22.610 Here is actually just two play details Essex Bishop takes if he ain't h free 9f6. 04:22.610 --> 04:24.110 Queen takes B seven. 04:24.140 --> 04:28.310 This position is very strong because a six is going to be dropping off. 04:28.340 --> 04:30.800 The queen has to try and defend eight. 04:30.840 --> 04:34.940 Y can just take on C and say I got a six and there's more pain to come here. 04:34.940 --> 04:37.700 This is just a very bad position for blank as well. 04:37.730 --> 04:39.440 I pawn down miserable position. 04:39.860 --> 04:40.340 Okay. 04:40.340 --> 04:47.180 So anyway g takes though was played we have six bishops see fall here. 04:47.360 --> 04:53.420 You know another strong move he takes seven Jack King takes an in Queen D to this position of course 04:53.450 --> 05:02.180 in queenside is nice so Bishop C4 though was played f thanks if Bishop G seven if that pawns left it 05:02.570 --> 05:06.320 F seven As you might suspect, King takes D six check E six. 05:06.680 --> 05:08.120 This is nice. 05:08.120 --> 05:12.200 Queen D two if B five, Bishop e2f 95. 05:12.200 --> 05:14.630 Here one can actually play. 05:14.660 --> 05:18.980 This is strong 94 Bishop takes b2 rook d one. 05:18.980 --> 05:21.650 This is just a very strong position for white. 05:23.690 --> 05:25.130 Things are happening here. 05:25.520 --> 05:28.430 So anyway, appetites is played. 05:29.330 --> 05:39.380 We have three tanks now, Queen B six, so hitting B, two and E, but is in a position to really do 05:39.380 --> 05:39.860 this. 05:39.950 --> 05:44.240 Alekhine finds a brilliant concept here in this position. 05:47.270 --> 05:50.300 Queen E two is played offering B2. 05:51.050 --> 05:56.750 Now if Bishop G seven won't do council's queenside protecting B2 and it's a fantastic position with 05:56.750 --> 06:00.320 that pawn on E6 and this h file attack is building up. 06:01.160 --> 06:03.860 So black took the B to pawn. 06:03.890 --> 06:05.150 Is this poisoned? 06:05.150 --> 06:05.960 This pawn? 06:06.740 --> 06:12.380 So guess what Alekhine plays here in this position for 200 points won't play. 06:16.450 --> 06:19.390 Brilliancy move might be fine. 06:19.420 --> 06:27.610 This is a romantic era offering both rooks its romantic era queen sex A1 is played if Bishop G 797 check 06:27.610 --> 06:34.390 and here just rook d fraternize the north, the rook the eight jack and if 98 rook taste e is coming 06:34.690 --> 06:37.180 so hair rook to France then rook takes AEA. 06:37.510 --> 06:38.800 This is just crushing. 06:39.250 --> 06:39.900 For example here. 06:39.910 --> 06:40.970 That's checkmate. 06:40.990 --> 06:44.620 So that means that Black's best is actually Queen D for Czech. 06:45.070 --> 06:46.900 And that's just totally lost. 06:46.930 --> 06:52.030 So, anyway, in the game, Queen takes a one chat King F two offering now the rook. 06:52.060 --> 06:55.750 The knight controls the E4, which is nice stopping that check. 06:56.440 --> 06:58.210 So, yeah. 06:58.240 --> 06:58.570 Queen. 06:58.570 --> 06:59.170 Thanks. 06:59.170 --> 07:00.010 Each one. 07:00.490 --> 07:07.930 We have 97 chat King D eight, Queen D two, Czech Bishop D seven and now E2 67 with the big France 07:07.930 --> 07:09.610 of 96 Champ mate. 07:10.210 --> 07:11.170 Wonderful stuff. 07:11.170 --> 07:12.430 This ends the game. 07:12.520 --> 07:21.490 Black resigned here if Queen A1 96 is champ mate if E5 96 check King E7. 07:21.490 --> 07:25.530 But now the eight queen in check rotates. 07:25.540 --> 07:29.920 Queen takes care of seven nine Takes a fake check from the bishop. 07:30.460 --> 07:31.480 It's brutal stuff. 07:31.480 --> 07:31.990 95. 07:32.020 --> 07:32.710 This is just delaying. 07:32.710 --> 07:36.940 Bishop takes the E5 check and then Queen E is checkmate. 07:37.180 --> 07:38.440 Crushing stuff. 07:38.470 --> 07:40.030 A really crushing game. 07:40.090 --> 07:41.230 And it's interesting. 07:41.230 --> 07:43.360 The use of knights he framed Move free. 07:44.760 --> 07:51.820 It's a pet move of mine, you know, to start games with 193 if you check my 90 free course but yeah 07:51.850 --> 07:57.970 cropping up on mu phrase and anti kind of theory system so C4 would have been what the fish had been 07:57.970 --> 08:04.090 hoping for I believe to try and get a Benoni style position without too much hassle and maybe work on 08:04.090 --> 08:05.380 the dark squares later. 08:05.530 --> 08:08.320 For example this kind of position about 93. 08:08.320 --> 08:08.680 Yeah. 08:08.830 --> 08:12.310 Makes the opponents, opponents in general sometimes improvise. 08:12.310 --> 08:20.470 And this was an incredibly bad opening of the knight bd7 especially black his in severe difficulty. 08:20.470 --> 08:21.370 It's very, very quickly. 08:21.370 --> 08:25.660 It's quite an unusual game from the perspective of an opening disaster. 08:25.900 --> 08:29.200 I hope you enjoyed this one so much.