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Ruy Lopez: Open Variation, 9.Nbd2

Kasparov–Shirov, Linares 2001 · Vachier-Lagrave–Deac, Superbet Classic 2021 · 6:44 · ECO C80

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In this video

Game 1: Garry Kasparov (2849) vs Alexei Shirov (2718)

Linares 2001, 4 March 2001 · White won (1-0) · 38 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. 9...Nc5The first move after the opening line0:40
  2. 16...exd5The queens come off1:12
  3. 31...h5The evaluation moves from +1.94 to +4.642:26
  4. 33.Re3+The evaluation moves from +5.85 to +3.292:34
  5. 34...Kc4The evaluation moves from +1.53 to +4.10, and White stays more than two pawns ahead from here2:42
  6. 38.Ne6White wins after 38 moves2:59

Evaluation

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

Game 2: Maxime Vachier-Lagrave (2760) vs Bogdan-Daniel Deac (2627)

Superbet Classic 2021, 6 June 2021 · Black won (0-1) · 44 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. 9...Be7The first move after the opening line3:38
  2. 30.Qd3The evaluation moves from +0.96 to −0.665:18
  3. 32.Rxc3The queens come off5:28
  4. 37.Rcc2The evaluation moves from −1.60 to −4.23, and Black stays more than two pawns ahead from here5:52
  5. 44...a5Black wins after 44 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 5...Nxe4 Black takes White's e-pawn and gives it back at once with ...d5 and ...b5, getting quick development and a strong knight on e4. With 9.Nbd2 White challenges that knight straight away instead of first playing c3. White aims to fix the e5 pawn and play against Black's loosened queenside and the isolated d5 pawn. Black looks for piece activity and an early ...d4 or ...f5 break.

Kasparov–Shirov went 9...Nc5 10.c3 d4 11.Ng5, offering a knight. Black took it with 11...Qxg5 and castled long, and after 12.Qf3 the game turned into an endgame by 16...exd5, with the score near 0.00 at 19.Ba3. White's bishop pair and the passed c-pawn after 26.c6 slowly told, and the evaluation reached +1.94 before 31...h5 raised it to +4.64. After 33.Re3+ it dropped to +3.29, and it stood at +1.53 at 34.Bxb4. Then 34...Kc4 let it jump to +4.10, and White stayed more than two pawns ahead. 38.Ne6 ended the game, and White won.

In Vachier-Lagrave–Deac Black chose the quieter 9...Be7 and 11...f5. After 12.exf6 Nxf6 the e5 pawn was gone and Black's pieces were free. The ...d4 break and 20...Qxb2 opened lines on the queenside. White stood around +0.96 until 30.Qd3, which brought it to −0.66. The queens came off at 32.Rxc3, and Black picked up the g5 pawn and later the a4 pawn. 37.Rcc2 took the score from −1.60 to −4.23, Black's extra pawns decided after 44...a5, and Black won. Unlike Game 1, Black kept the queens on longer and made the queenside pawns count.

Chapters

  1. 0:00Introduction and the opening line
  2. 0:10Game 1: Kasparov vs Shirov, Linares 2001
  3. 3:08Game 2: Vachier-Lagrave vs Deac, Superbet Classic 2021

The opening line

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Nxe4 6. d4 b5 7. Bb3 d5 8. dxe5 Be6 9. Nbd2

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