Benoni Defense
Encyclopedia
The Benoni Defense is a group of chess opening
s generally characterized by the opening moves 1. d4 c5 2. d5, although Black's ...c5 and White's answer d5 are often delayed. The most usual opening sequence for the Benoni is 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. d5. Black can then sacrifice a pawn by 3...b5 (the Benko Gambit
), but if Black does not elect this line then 3...e6 is the most common move (though 3...d6 or 3...g6 are also seen, typically leading to main lines).
defeated Efim Bogoljubow
with it in one game of their second match, in 1934. The Old Benoni is sometimes called the Blackburne Defense, after Englishman Joseph Henry Blackburne
, the first player known to have used it successfully.
, Black plays 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c5 3.d5 e5. The Czech Benoni is much more solid than the Modern Benoni, but it is also more passive. The middlegame
s arising from this line are characterised by much manoeuvring, as White will, in most lines, play to gain space in the centre and kingside, while Black looks to break with ...b7–b5 or ...f7–f5 after due preparation.
Asa Hoffman has played the line throughout his career, and produced an instructive game versus Zaderman.
s are possible. The Modern Benoni is a risky attempt by Black to unbalance the position and gain active piece play, at the cost of allowing White a pawn wedge at d5 and a central majority. White usually plays for a central break with e5, while Black tries to effect ...b5. Black will fianchetto
his king's bishop and castle
on the kingside, playing for attack on the queenside with ...b7–b5 and in the semi-open e-file. Although it is not unknown for Black to play also on the kingside with, for example, a breakout with Nh5 in conjunction with f5, Fischer and Kasparov won famous games with this strategy against Spassky and Korchnoi respectively. White will play for a central initiative and simultaneously try to muzzle Black's counterplay.
Compared to the usual lines of the King's Indian Defense
, Black's fianchettoed bishop is far more active, as it is not blocked by a black pawn on e5. However, not having the pawn on e5 makes White's center more fluid; and some of the sharpest ideas for White are based on a central breakthrough with e5. The Modern Benoni is thus a very combative and double-edged opening; indeed, it is one of the most risky defences to 1.d4. Some White players who prefer to steer clear of the highly theoretical main line's sharp battles decide to avoid the Benoni altogether; after 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c5 they play 3.Nf3, which may lead to a quiet symmetrical variation of the English Opening
.
Tal
popularized the defense in the late 1950s and early 1960s by winning several brilliant games (notably against Botvinnik
in a World Championship
game), though he largely gave it up after a shattering defeat inflicted by Viktor Korchnoi
in the 1962 Soviet Championship at Erevan. Bobby Fischer
occasionally adopted it, with good results, including a win in the significant third game of the 1972 world championship match against Boris Spassky
.
Often Black adopts a slightly different move order, playing 2...e6 before 3...c5, in order to avoid the Taimanov Variation, or 'Flick-Knife Attack', arising from the moves 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c5 3.d5 e6 4.Nc3 exd5 5.cxd5 d6 6.e4 g6 7.f4 Bg7 8 Bb5+. 8...Nfd7 is considered the safest response to the check; 8...Nbd7 is also playable but more risky as, inevitably, Black will have to sacrifice material of some sort after 9.e5. Garry Kasparov
, Joël Lautier
and Vlastimil Hort
have favored the Taimanov. When using the different move order, the white knight on f3 rules out this variation.
has many codes for the Benoni Defense.
Old Benoni Defense:
Czech Benoni:
Benoni Defense:
Fianchetto Variation:
Modern Benoni:
Taimanov Variation:
Four Pawns Attack:
Classical Benoni:
Chess opening
A chess opening is the group of initial moves of a chess game. Recognized sequences of opening moves are referred to as openings as initiated by White or defenses, as created in reply by Black. There are many dozens of different openings, and hundreds of named variants. The Oxford Companion to...
s generally characterized by the opening moves 1. d4 c5 2. d5, although Black's ...c5 and White's answer d5 are often delayed. The most usual opening sequence for the Benoni is 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. d5. Black can then sacrifice a pawn by 3...b5 (the Benko Gambit
Benko Gambit
The Benko Gambit is a chess opening characterised by the move 3...b5 in the Benoni Defense arising after:- Origin and predecessors :The idea of sacrificing a pawn with ...b5 and ...a6 is quite old. Karel Opočenský applied the idea against, among others, Gideon Ståhlberg at Poděbrady 1936, Paul...
), but if Black does not elect this line then 3...e6 is the most common move (though 3...d6 or 3...g6 are also seen, typically leading to main lines).
Etymology
"Benoni" is a Hebrew term meaning "son of sorrow" – the name of an 1825 Manuscript about this opening.Old Benoni
The Old Benoni starts with 1.d4 c5. The Old Benoni may transpose to the Czech Benoni, but there are a few independent variations. This form has never attracted serious interest in high-level play, though Alexander AlekhineAlexander Alekhine
Alexander Alexandrovich Alekhine was the fourth World Chess Champion. He is often considered one of the greatest chess players ever.By the age of twenty-two, he was already among the strongest chess players in the world. During the 1920s, he won most of the tournaments in which he played...
defeated Efim Bogoljubow
Efim Bogoljubow
Efim Dmitriyevich Bogolyubov was a Russo-German chess grandmaster who won numerous events and played two matches with Alexander Alekhine for the world championship.-Early career:...
with it in one game of their second match, in 1934. The Old Benoni is sometimes called the Blackburne Defense, after Englishman Joseph Henry Blackburne
Joseph Henry Blackburne
Joseph Henry Blackburne , nicknamed "The Black Death", dominated British chess during the latter part of the 19th century. He learned the game at the relatively late age of 18 but quickly became a strong player and went on to develop a professional chess career that spanned over 50 years...
, the first player known to have used it successfully.
Czech Benoni
In the Czech Benoni, also sometimes known as the Hromadka Benoni, after Karel HromádkaKarel Hromádka
Karel Hromádka was a Czech chess player, two-time Czech champion, 1913 and 1921 ....
, Black plays 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c5 3.d5 e5. The Czech Benoni is much more solid than the Modern Benoni, but it is also more passive. The middlegame
Middlegame
The middlegame in chess refers to the portion of the game that happens after the opening and before the endgame. There is no clear line between the opening and middlegame, and between the middlegame and endgame. In modern chess, the moves that make up an opening blend into the middlegame, so there...
s arising from this line are characterised by much manoeuvring, as White will, in most lines, play to gain space in the centre and kingside, while Black looks to break with ...b7–b5 or ...f7–f5 after due preparation.
Asa Hoffman has played the line throughout his career, and produced an instructive game versus Zaderman.
Modern Benoni
The Modern Benoni usually begins after the moves 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 (or Nf3) c5 4.d5 exd5 5.cxd5 d6 or 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c5 3.d5 e6 4.Nc3 (or Nf3) exd5 5.cxd5 d6. Then follows 6.e4 g6 7.Nf3 or 6.Nc3 g6 7.e4 (if Nf3 was played earlier). Obviously many transpositionTransposition
Transposition may refer to:Mathematics* Transposition , a permutation which exchanges two elements and keeps all others fixed* Transposition, producing the transpose of a matrix AT, which is computed by swapping columns for rows in the matrix AGames* Transposition , different moves or a different...
s are possible. The Modern Benoni is a risky attempt by Black to unbalance the position and gain active piece play, at the cost of allowing White a pawn wedge at d5 and a central majority. White usually plays for a central break with e5, while Black tries to effect ...b5. Black will fianchetto
Fianchetto
In chess the fianchetto is a pattern of development wherein a bishop is developed to the second rank of the adjacent knight file, the knight pawn having been moved one or two squares forward....
his king's bishop and castle
Castle
A castle is a type of fortified structure built in Europe and the Middle East during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars debate the scope of the word castle, but usually consider it to be the private fortified residence of a lord or noble...
on the kingside, playing for attack on the queenside with ...b7–b5 and in the semi-open e-file. Although it is not unknown for Black to play also on the kingside with, for example, a breakout with Nh5 in conjunction with f5, Fischer and Kasparov won famous games with this strategy against Spassky and Korchnoi respectively. White will play for a central initiative and simultaneously try to muzzle Black's counterplay.
Compared to the usual lines of the King's Indian Defense
King's Indian Defence
The King's Indian Defence is a common chess opening. It arises after the moves:Black intends to follow up with 3...Bg7 and 4...d6.The Grünfeld Defence arises when Black plays 3...d5 instead, and is considered a separate opening...
, Black's fianchettoed bishop is far more active, as it is not blocked by a black pawn on e5. However, not having the pawn on e5 makes White's center more fluid; and some of the sharpest ideas for White are based on a central breakthrough with e5. The Modern Benoni is thus a very combative and double-edged opening; indeed, it is one of the most risky defences to 1.d4. Some White players who prefer to steer clear of the highly theoretical main line's sharp battles decide to avoid the Benoni altogether; after 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c5 they play 3.Nf3, which may lead to a quiet symmetrical variation of the English Opening
English Opening
In chess, the English Opening is the opening where White begins:A flank opening, it is the fourth most popular and, according to various databases, anywhere from one of the two most successful to the fourth most successful of White's twenty possible first moves. White begins the fight for the...
.
Tal
Mikhail Tal
Mikhail Tal was a Soviet–Latvian chess player, a Grandmaster, and the eighth World Chess Champion.Widely regarded as a creative genius, and the best attacking player of all time, he played a daring, combinatorial style. His play was known above all for improvisation and unpredictability....
popularized the defense in the late 1950s and early 1960s by winning several brilliant games (notably against Botvinnik
Mikhail Botvinnik
Mikhail Moiseyevich Botvinnik, Ph.D. was a Soviet and Russian International Grandmaster and three-time World Chess Champion. Working as an electrical engineer and computer scientist at the same time, he was one of the very few famous chess players who achieved distinction in another career while...
in a World Championship
World Chess Championship
The World Chess Championship is played to determine the World Champion in the board game chess. Men and women of any age are eligible to contest this title....
game), though he largely gave it up after a shattering defeat inflicted by Viktor Korchnoi
Viktor Korchnoi
Viktor Lvovich Korchnoi ; pronounced in the original Russian as "karch NOY"; Ви́ктор Льво́вич Корчно́й, born March 23, 1931 is a professional chess player, author and currently the oldest active grandmaster on the tournament circuit...
in the 1962 Soviet Championship at Erevan. Bobby Fischer
Bobby Fischer
Robert James "Bobby" Fischer was an American chess Grandmaster and the 11th World Chess Champion. He is widely considered one of the greatest chess players of all time. Fischer was also a best-selling chess author...
occasionally adopted it, with good results, including a win in the significant third game of the 1972 world championship match against Boris Spassky
Boris Spassky
Boris Vasilievich Spassky is a Soviet-French chess grandmaster. He was the tenth World Chess Champion, holding the title from late 1969 to 1972...
.
Often Black adopts a slightly different move order, playing 2...e6 before 3...c5, in order to avoid the Taimanov Variation, or 'Flick-Knife Attack', arising from the moves 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c5 3.d5 e6 4.Nc3 exd5 5.cxd5 d6 6.e4 g6 7.f4 Bg7 8 Bb5+. 8...Nfd7 is considered the safest response to the check; 8...Nbd7 is also playable but more risky as, inevitably, Black will have to sacrifice material of some sort after 9.e5. Garry Kasparov
Garry Kasparov
Garry Kimovich Kasparov is a Russian chess grandmaster, a former World Chess Champion, writer, political activist, and one of the greatest chess players of all time....
, Joël Lautier
Joel Lautier
Joël Lautier is a French chess grandmaster and FIDE Senior Trainer .Born in Canada, of French father and Japanese mother, Lautier is one of the strongest grandmasters from France. He won the 1988 World Junior Chess Championship on tiebreak at Adelaide, and the French Chess Championships in 2004...
and Vlastimil Hort
Vlastimil Hort
Vlastimil Hort is a chess Grandmaster of Czech nationality. During the 1960s and 1970s he was one of the world's strongest players and reached the Candidates stage of competition for the world chess championship, but was never able to compete for the actual title.Hort was born in Kladno,...
have favored the Taimanov. When using the different move order, the white knight on f3 rules out this variation.
Encyclopedia of Chess Openings
The Encyclopaedia of Chess OpeningsEncyclopaedia of Chess Openings
The Encyclopaedia of Chess Openings is a classification system for the opening moves in a game of chess. It is presented as a five volume book collection describing chess openings...
has many codes for the Benoni Defense.
Old Benoni Defense:
- A43 1.d4 c5
Czech Benoni:
- A44 1.d4 c5 2.d5 e5
Benoni Defense:
- A56 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c5
- A57–A59 (Benko GambitBenko GambitThe Benko Gambit is a chess opening characterised by the move 3...b5 in the Benoni Defense arising after:- Origin and predecessors :The idea of sacrificing a pawn with ...b5 and ...a6 is quite old. Karel Opočenský applied the idea against, among others, Gideon Ståhlberg at Poděbrady 1936, Paul...
) 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c5 3.d5 b5 - A60 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c5 3.d5 e6
- A61 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c5 3.d5 e6 4.Nc3 exd5 5.cxd5 d6 6.Nf3 g6
Fianchetto Variation:
- A62 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c5 3.d5 e6 4.Nc3 exd5 5.cxd5 d6 6.Nf3 g6 7.g3 Bg7 8.Bg2 0-0
- A63 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c5 3.d5 e6 4.Nc3 exd5 5.cxd5 d6 6.Nf3 g6 7.g3 Bg7 8.Bg2 0-0 9.0-0 Nbd7
- A64 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c5 3.d5 e6 4.Nc3 exd5 5.cxd5 d6 6.Nf3 g6 7.g3 Bg7 8.Bg2 0-0 9.0-0 Nbd7 10.Nd2 a6 11.a4 Re8
Modern Benoni:
- A65 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c5 3.d5 e6 4.Nc3 exd5 5.cxd5 d6 6.e4
- A66 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c5 3.d5 e6 4.Nc3 exd5 5.cxd5 d6 6.e4 g6 7.f4
Taimanov Variation:
- A67 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c5 3.d5 e6 4.Nc3 exd5 5.cxd5 d6 6.e4 g6 7.f4 Bg7 8.Bb5+
Four Pawns Attack:
- A68 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c5 3.d5 e6 4.Nc3 exd5 5.cxd5 d6 6.e4 g6 7.f4 Bg7 8.Nf3 0-0
- A69 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c5 3.d5 e6 4.Nc3 exd5 5.cxd5 d6 6.e4 g6 7.f4 Bg7 8.Nf3 0-0 9.Be2 Re8
Classical Benoni:
- A70 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c5 3.d5 e6 4.Nc3 exd5 5.cxd5 d6 6.e4 g6 7.Nf3
- A71 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c5 3.d5 e6 4.Nc3 exd5 5.cxd5 d6 6.e4 g6 7.Nf3 Bg7 8.Bg5
- A72 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c5 3.d5 e6 4.Nc3 exd5 5.cxd5 d6 6.e4 g6 7.Nf3 Bg7 8.Be2 0-0
- A73 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c5 3.d5 e6 4.Nc3 exd5 5.cxd5 d6 6.e4 g6 7.Nf3 Bg7 8.Be2 0-0 9.0-0
- A74 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c5 3.d5 e6 4.Nc3 exd5 5.cxd5 d6 6.e4 g6 7.Nf3 Bg7 8.Be2 0-0 9.0-0 a6
- A75 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c5 3.d5 e6 4.Nc3 exd5 5.cxd5 d6 6.e4 g6 7.Nf3 Bg7 8.Be2 0-0 9.0-0 a6 10.a4 Bg4
- A76 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c5 3.d5 e6 4.Nc3 exd5 5.cxd5 d6 6.e4 g6 7.Nf3 Bg7 8.Be2 0-0 9.0-0 Re8
- A77 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c5 3.d5 e6 4.Nc3 exd5 5.cxd5 d6 6.e4 g6 7.Nf3 Bg7 8.Be2 0-0 9.0-0 Re8 10.Nd2
- A78 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c5 3.d5 e6 4.Nc3 exd5 5.cxd5 d6 6.e4 g6 7.Nf3 Bg7 8.Be2 0-0 9.0-0 Re8 10.Nd2 Na6
- A79 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c5 3.d5 e6 4.Nc3 exd5 5.cxd5 d6 6.e4 g6 7.Nf3 Bg7 8.Be2 0-0 9.0-0 Re8 10.Nd2 Na6 11.f3