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The Modern Benoni was invented by Frank Marshall at the New York 1927 chess tournament. Vugar Gashimov, a leading practitioner of the Modern Benoni exd5 and White recaptures with the c-pawn. Several lines of the King's Indian Defence, such as the Four Pawns Attack, the Sämisch Variation and the Fianchetto Variation, can also transpose into variations of the Modern Benoni if Black plays. However, White often prefers not to play 3.c4, since it takes away a useful square from a white knight. 1.d4 c5 2.d5 Nf6, when 3.c4 e6 would complete the transposition. īlack can also try to reach the Modern Benoni through a Benoni Defence move order, i.e. If White responds with 4.d5 exd5 5.cxd5, Black can play 5.d6, which often transposes into the Fianchetto Variation but a common alternative is 5.b5, which leads to independent positions. Īnother frequent transposition into the Modern Benoni occurs when White invites a Catalan Opening with 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 and Black responds with 3.c5. Players who use this move order will often choose a different defence against 3.Nc3, such as the Nimzo-Indian with 3.Bb4. It also gives Black the additional option of meeting 4.d5 with 4.b5, the Blumenfeld Gambit. The latter move order has been especially popular since the 1980s, as it allows Black to reach the Modern Benoni while sidestepping the Taimanov Attack. It is possible, indeed common, for Black's second and third moves to be reversed: thus 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 c5 and 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 c5 will both transpose into the Modern Benoni if White allows it with 4.d5. Alternative move orders and transpositions Thus players who are seeking the typical imbalance in pawn structure associated with the Modern Benoni tend to prefer the immediate 3.e6 followed by 4.exd5. While recapturing in this fashion does not give White a central pawn majority, it maintains White's spatial advantage and denies Black the counterplay associated with possession of a queenside pawn majority. e7-e6 for the time being and play other moves such as 3.d6 or 3.g6, delaying this move until after White plays e2-e4 gives White the extra option of recapturing on d5 with the e-pawn.
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Still, 3.d5 has long been considered White's most challenging move, as it gains space in the centre. Taking the pawn with 3.dxc5 is hardly ever seen, because Black easily recovers it after 3.e6 followed by. Here it is possible for White to avoid 3.d5: respectable alternatives include 3.Nf3, typically transposing to a line of the English Opening, as well as 3.e3. The standard move order for Black to enter the Modern Benoni is 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c5. The basic pawn structure of the Modern Benoni: White has a central pawn majority, Black a queenside pawn majority Notably, it was Vladimir Kramnik's choice when he needed a win with Black in the penultimate game of the 2004 World Championship, though that particular game resulted in a draw. Only in the 21st century has the opening's reputation and theoretical standing made a recovery. The Modern Benoni suffered a serious theoretical crisis in the 1980s and 1990s, when players as Black encountered great difficulties in meeting the Taimanov Attack and the Modern Main Line. Its subsequent adoption by players of a similarly aggressive and uncompromising style such as Bobby Fischer and Garry Kasparov established the opening's reputation as one of Black's most dynamic responses to 1.d4. In the 1950s the system was revitalized by players in the Soviet Union, chief among them Mikhail Tal. These two features differentiate Black's setup from the other Benoni defences and the King's Indian Defence, although transpositions between these openings are common.įrank Marshall invented the Modern Benoni in 1927, but his experiments with the opening went largely ignored for over 20 years. To support their advance, the king's bishop is usually fianchettoed on g7. After the initial moves, Black proceeds to capture on d5, creating a majority of black pawns on the queenside. It is classified under the ECO codes A60–A79. The Modern Benoni is a chess opening that begins with the moves 1. Capablanca– Marshall, New York 1927 (by transposition)