The pawn on c7 (instead of c6) has given the light-squared bishop a good square on b7, which makes Ne4 possible.

The minor pieces are arranged like this: Nc3, Nf3, Bd3, Bb2, 0-0 (and Rc1), ...Bb7, ...Bd6, ...Nf6, ...Nbd7 and ...0-0. White’s plan is to threaten c4-c5 and force a reaction from Black. That’s done with Nc3-a4, which also opens up for the bishop on b2 and allows Nf3-e5. Black can keep control over c5 with ...Qe7, but sometimes White could play c4-c5 as a pawn sacrifice, opening the diagonal b2-f6. In case of ...c7-c5, White takes on d5 and Black has to choose between giving up the centre (...Nxd5) or getting a slightly weak pawn (...e6xd5).

Black has weakened the c6-square and if he doesn’t get in ...c7-c5, White will build up pressure along the c-file with Qa4 (tying the rook to a8), Rac1-c2 and Rfc1. Black has two ways to defend.

a) ...c7-c6, blocking his light-squared bishop. White can open the position on the other side of the board with e3-e4. b) If Black tries to do without ...c7-c6, White can consider b4-b5 or a2-a4-a5, though the latter is most efficient if the rook has never left a1.

And even if Black gets in ...c7-c5, he gets a worse structure with an isolated pawn on d5. What he is hoping for is instead to play ...Ne4 and ...f7-f5, followed by an attack on the kingside. However, he is usually too busy defending to have time for that.

Games

We already saw a Queen’s Indian game in the introduction: Kramnik – Topalov. Now we will start with the Bogo- Indian.

Harikrishna, April 2016: “I was actually playing for advantage in the game, but probably Black missed chances

somewhere.”

Penteala Harikrishna – Keith Arkell Hastings, 1st January 2003 1.d4

1.Nf3 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.e3 d5 4.d4 Bb4† 5.Bd2 Bxd2† 6.Nbxd2 transposes to the game. 1...e6 2.c4

It’s not possible to castle before c2-c4: 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.e3 d5 4.Bd3 c5! and with a move spent on Bd3, White can’t convert to a Tarrasch.

It would have been nicer to the light-squared bishop to arrange the pawns on dark squares (...d7-d6 and ...e6-e5). 5.Ngf3 Nf6 6.e3 Nbd7

7.Bd3

7.Be2! is accurate. The bishop doesn’t step into an attack with ...c7-c5 and ...Nxc5. 7...0-0 8.0-0 b6

8...c5! would have taken advantage of White’s inaccuracy. 9.cxd5!?

This exchange is usually inoffensive, since it allows Black’s bishop to develop to e6 or g4(-h5-g6). But things are different with ...b7-b6 having been played. Black has weakened the c6-square and the pawns can’t defend each other in the chain b7-c6-d5.

Instead, he should play for ...c7-c5 with the knight on d7. As a consequence, the bishop has no other choice than the b7-square.

9...exd5 10.Rc1?!

10.b4 forces Black to accept an isolated pawn if he goes ...c7-c5. 10...Bb7?!

But now, Black had the chance to get a hanging pawn couple with 10...c5 11.dxc5 bxc5, even though 12.e4! splits the pawns and still gives White an advantage.

11.b4!

This makes the positional advantage stable, but what’s the next step? Now a2-a4-a5 isn’t inviting without a rook on a1. The best way to put pressure on the queenside is instead b4-b5 followed by Qa4, Rc2 and Rfc1. If Black defends passively, the turn could eventually come for the a-pawn.

11...c6 12.Ne5!?

12.e4 is always a move to consider when Black has restricted the bishop on b7. Black should not allow the pawn to advance another step and 12...dxe4 13.Nxe4 activates White’s minor pieces.

12...Nxe5

There is no other good way of defending the c-pawn as 12...Rc8 13.Qa4 hits two pawns. 13.dxe5 Nd7 14.f4

White’s pawns look nice, but the one on e3 stops the queen or the c-rook defending the e5-pawn from behind. And without that, it’s difficult to achieve f4-f5. Instead of playing with the pawns, Harikrishna attacks the king with his pieces.

14...Qe7!

Without a pawn on d4, Black has 14...c5. However, it’s clever by Arkell to start with a developing move that wins a tempo due to the threat against the pawn on b4.

15...f6?!

Of course 15...Qxb4? allows the threat: 16.Bxh7†! Kxh7 17.Ng5† Kg6 18.Qg4 And White wins due to the double threat of f4-f5† and Ne6†. For example, 18...f5 19.exf6 Nxf6 20.f5† and the black queen drops.

15...g6 was a safer way to defend against 16.Bxh7†. White can’t stop both ...Qxb4 and ...c6-c5. 16.Qc2

16.Nh4! would have been strong, pinpointing that the fianchettoed bishop on b7 doesn’t defend f5. 16...fxe5?

Giving up the h-pawn is clearly a mistake. With only one pawn left on the kingside, Black will always have problems with his king.

16...g6 17.e6 almost wins for White after the forced variation (from Black’s perspective): 17...Qxe6 18.Bxg6 hxg6 19.Qxg6† Kh8 20.Ng5 Qxe3† 21.Kh1 fxg5 22.Rce1

But there is 22...Rxf4! and White has to go for a perpetual. 17.Bxh7† Kh8 18.Ng5 e4 19.Qe2 Not 19.Qf2 Qxg5!. 19...Rf6 20.Bf5 Rh6 Or 20...Rxf5 21.Qh5† Kg8 22.Qh7† Kf8 23.Qh8 is mate. 21.Bxd7!?

Removing a potential defender. 21...Qxd7 22.f5

Strategically, advancing the kingside pawns undresses the black king and wins the game. However, Black has a tricky way to achieve his desired ...c6-c5.

22...a5

There’s a sneaky threat: 23...Ba6 23.Qb2?

23.b5! c5 threatens 24...d4 but 24.Rcd1 Re8 25.Rf4 still stops Black’s pawns from advancing: 25...d4? 26.exd4 cxd4 27.Qc4 with a double threat on d4 and f7.

23...Qe7!

Now it’s Black who gets the double threat. 24.Ne6 axb4 25.g4

Harikrishna is suddenly in a hurry to create something. 25...c5 26.g5 Rxe6! 27.fxe6 Qxg5†?

27...Qxe6 captures the dangerous pawn, and White can’t achieve g5-g6 plus Qh5. After 28.Qg2 Qg6!, the black pawns look like winners.

29...Bd5?

There was a draw after 29...Qxe3! 30.Rxb7 Rxa2 31.Qxa2 Qxc1† 32.Kg2 Qg5† with too many checks. 30.Rg1 Qh6 31.Qg2?!

31.Qf2 and Black has to give up material to prevent the e-pawn from queening. After 31...Bxe6! 32.Rfxg7 Qxg7 33.Qh4†! Kg8 34.Rxg7† Kxg7 35.Qxe4 Re8 he loses the d-pawn as well, but will manage to set up a fortress after some work.

31...Rg8 32.exd4 cxd4 33.Rd7 Ba8

34.Ra7?

38...Qc6† 39.Rg2 Qc1† 40.Rg1 Qc6†. 34...Bc6! 35.Rc7 Qxe6 36.Rxg7?

The engines suggest 36.Qg6 as an almost saving move, but I find it hard to believe that it’s possible to defend against the passed pawns.

36...e3 37.Rxg8† Kh7

White loses the queen and can’t stop the black pawns. After 38.Rg3 Bxg2† 39.Kxg2 Qxa2† 40.Kf3 White’s rooks will create some mating threats, but the queen has a lot of checks and defends against the threats with tempo.

The players agreed a draw after 37...Kh7, but initially I thought that the result was wrong in ChessBase. But trying to convince Harikrishna that he had lost was an impossible task! He actually believed that the final position was drawn, and that confidence probably made it easier for Arkell to believe the same.

White gained a pleasant positional edge from the opening and decided to make more of it with 12.Ne5!?, at the same time allowing Black some counterplay. Harikrishna followed the right path for quite a while before losing the thread. The following two games are much smoother; both are miniatures decided straight out of the opening.

Arik Braun – Tomas Petrik Brno 2006

1.d4 Nf6 2.Nf3 e6 3.e3 b6 4.Bd3 Bb7 5.0-0

A kind of starting position for our Queen’s Indian line. Black chooses between ...c7-c5 and ...d7-d5. 5...c5 6.c4 Be7 7.Nc3

7...cxd4

7...0-0?! allows 8.d5! when the exchange of the d-pawn for Black’s h-pawn would give Black a weak king and a backward pawn on d7.

However, the semi-waiting move 7...a6 is interesting. White should use the same strategy with 8.Re1. 8.exd4 d5 9.cxd5 Nxd5 10.Ne5 0-0 11.Qg4

White starts to create threats on the kingside.

11.Qh5 is just as common as the text move, but theory gives 11...g6 12.Qh3 Nc6 13.Bh6 Re8 14.Bb5 Nxd4! as a strong exchange sacrifice.

11...Nf6

11...f5 12.Qe2 was seen in Kramnik – Topalov in the introduction (page 10). 12.Qh4

12...Ne4

12...Nc6? 13.Bg5! leads to two tactical exercises after 13...g6 and 13...h6. Can you solve them? Black has to give up an exchange after 13...Nxe5 14.Bxf6 Nxd3 15.Bxe7 and 16.Bxf8.

13...g6? 14.Ba6! wins, as in Plaskett – Arkell, London 1991. 13...h6? 14.Bxf6 Bxf6 15.Qe4 wins a piece.

13.Qh3 Qxd4 14.Bf4 Nf6

14...f5? 15.Bc4! was played in Stefanova – Kurtsidze, Women’s World Rapid Championship 2012. The game was so short and nice that it deserves to be given in full.

17.Nxe4! Bxe4 18.Bxe6†! Rxe6 19.Qb3 Qc8 20.Rd7!! Black can’t defend the rook on e6 and after 20...Nxd7 21.Qxe6† Kh8 22.Nf7† Kg8 23.Nd6† it was time to resign, since she loses her queen.

15.Ne2 Qa4 16.Bg5 h6?

Instead 16...g6! defends the king. And then 17.Rfc1 Nbd7 is possible since the pawn is on g6; if the g-pawn was still on g7, then this line would fail due to 18.b3 Qa3 19.Nxd7 Nxd7 20.Qxh7 mate.

So this is a good example of a threat being stronger than its execution. White should have avoided 16.Bg5, and in the theoretical section we prefer 16.Rfc1.

17.Bxh6

Braun is the first grandmaster to compete in chess-boxing, and this is his punch. 17...gxh6 18.Qxh6

The threat is Ne2-g3/f4-h5 followed by mate on g7 or h7. 18...Ne4

19.Rae1!

Accurate. The queen is kept away from d4 for another move. Instead 19.Ng3 Qd4! would not have been as clear. 19...Qe8

19...Bg5 20.Qh5 doesn’t change anything. 20.Bxe4 Bxe4 21.Nf4 f5 22.Re3

1–0

The isolated pawn positions in the Queen’s Indian are perfect ground for creating a quick attack against the king. Black was lost even earlier in the next game, but that fate is not logical considering the position – it’s more of an opening trap. Flear, April 2016: “It’s perhaps more satisfying to win a tough game where one has to make several good moves to

Glenn Flear – Yannick Pelletier Montpellier (rapid) 2015 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4

Our move order is 2.Nf3 e6 3.e3 b6 4.Bd3 Bb7 5.0-0 d5 6.c4 which avoids the check on b4. 2...e6 3.Nf3 b6 4.e3 Bb7 5.Bd3 d5 6.0-0

6.b3 avoids 6...dxc4 7.Bxc4 with loss of a tempo, but allows 6...Bb4†. See the theoretical section. 6...Nbd7 7.b3

Or 7.Nc3 first. 7...Bd6

7...Be7 transposes to something that will be covered in the chapter about the Queen’s Gambit (page 288). 8.Nc3 a6 9.Bb2 0-0 10.Rc1 Qe7 11.Na4

11...c5

We will see more of the main move 11...dxc4 later.

12.c5 was not yet a threat: 12...bxc5 13.dxc5 Nxc5 14.Nxc5 Bxc5 15.Bxf6 gxf6 16.Bxh7† Kg7! and Black is better with the pair of bishops. But 11.Na4 has another idea as well: making Nf3-e5 possible.

12.cxd5 exd5?

13.Nxb6!

Despite being a rapid tournament, Pelletier took his time in the opening and Flear had time to find and calculate the sacrifice. “Although I wasn’t then totally sure it was 100% sound, I just couldn’t resist!” he says.

13...Nxb6 14.dxc5 Bxc5 15.Bxf6 gxf6?!

Being stubborn is seldom a good attitude when things have gone wrong. Black should have preferred to fight on with a pawn less and a horrible position after 15...Qxf6 16.Rxc5.

16.Nh4!

The problem for Black is that he can be mated on either g7 or h7. 16...Rfc8 17.Nf5

17...Qe5

17...Qf8 18.Qh5 Kh8 defends for a moment, but White can take the piece back with 19.Nd6 and it would soon be over.

Exactly a month later Glenn Flear had a chance to create another miniature against Nicolas Brunner in the French League. That time, he could play the moves quickly and won almost without having used any time. Brunner played 17...Qe6 18.Qh5 Ba3 19.Qh6 Qxf5 20.Bxf5 Rxc1 21.Bxh7† and resigned three moves before being mated.

18.Qg4† Kf8 19.Rxc5! Rxc5 20.Qg7† Ke8 21.Qg8† Kd7 22.Qxf7† Kc8 23.Qf8† 1–0

Black loses the rook on c5 and resigned, since he will be two pawns down and will probably lose more material.

Recap

The illustrative games showed one loss for White and two traps Black fell into. Miniatures actually appear more often in the Queen’s Indian than in any other chapter. Black gets a solid position on the queenside, but has to pay the price with a (temporarily) unprotected kingside.

Theory