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Bishop's Opening: Berlin Defence, 3.d3 c6

Almasi–Fridman, 17th Corsican Circuit Final 2013 · Carlsen–Caruana, 2nd Sinquefield Cup 2014 · 6:44 · ECO C24

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In this video

Game 1: Zoltan Almasi (2707) vs Daniel Fridman (2602)

17th Corsican Circuit Final 2013, 21 October 2013 · White won (1-0) · 48 moves

Click a move to jump the video to it. Dotted moves are the opening line the video is about.

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Key moments

  1. 4.Qe2The first move after the opening line0:23
  2. 39...Qb7The evaluation moves from +1.22 to +2.81, and White stays more than two pawns ahead from here3:06
  3. 41...Qb6The evaluation moves from +3.39 to +5.433:16
  4. 43...Qd4The evaluation moves from +3.73 to +6.173:26
  5. 44...exd4The queens come off3:32
  6. 48.Bg8+White wins after 48 moves3:49

Evaluation

Above the line, White is better; below it, Black. Scores are in pawns, capped at five either way.

Game 2: Magnus Carlsen (2877) vs Fabiano Caruana (2801)

2nd Sinquefield Cup 2014, 29 August 2014 · Black won (0-1) · 34 moves

Click a move to jump the video to it. Dotted moves are the opening line the video is about.

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Key moments

  1. 4.Nf3The first move after the opening line4:12
  2. 24.e5+The evaluation moves from −0.52 to −1.625:38
  3. 31.Nh2The evaluation moves from −1.66 to −7.42, and Black stays more than two pawns ahead from here6:12
  4. 34...Qg1+Black wins after 34 moves6:30

Evaluation

Above the line, White is better; below it, Black. Scores are in pawns, capped at five either way.

About these games

After 1.e4 e5 2.Bc4 Nf6 3.d3, White protects e4 and keeps the game closed, aiming for a slow build-up with Nf3, Bb3 and c3. Black's 3...c6 prepares ...d5, attacking the bishop's diagonal and claiming the centre at once. When the central pawns are exchanged on e4, the d-file opens and the game revolves around White's e4 pawn against Black's e5 pawn.

Almasi–Fridman went 4.Qe2 with Bb3, c3, Be3 and Nbd2. Black played ...d5 only at 12...d5, and after 13...dxe4 14.dxe4 the position was level at +0.06. White then took queenside space with 18.b4, and the a-file exchanges left White pressing at +2.05 after 28...Nd6. 29.Qd1 let that slip to +0.77, but the trades on c5 and d6 gave White a passed pawn on d6. After 39...Qb7 the score jumped from +1.22 to +2.81. The pawn reached d7 with 40.d7, and 43...Qd4 (+6.17) led to a queen trade. White won after 48.Bg8+.

Carlsen–Caruana followed the main line 4.Nf3 d5 5.Bb3 Bb4+, and Black played ...d5 immediately rather than waiting as in Game 1. After 13...Nxg3 Black stood at −0.46. White sacrificed with 15.Bxf7+ and took the h8 rook, but the black pieces counter-attacked White's king. The score was −1.65 after 28...Rd5, and 31.Nh2 dropped it from −1.66 to −7.42. Black won after 34...Qg1+.

Chapters

  1. 0:00Introduction and the opening line
  2. 0:10Game 1: Almasi vs Fridman, 17th Corsican Circuit Final 2013
  3. 3:58Game 2: Carlsen vs Caruana, 2nd Sinquefield Cup 2014

The opening line

1. e4 e5 2. Bc4 Nf6 3. d3 c6

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