Dominating the Center to Win
Hello chesskids! Today we will be learning about using the center to squeeze the opponent. It is nice to have a central advantage, but is difficult to see how to increase it. Many players will try the classical advice of attacking on the wings, but this is only possible when your center is secure. A premature attack on the flanks will allow the opponent to counterattack in the center and equalize -- or worse. To improve your central position, focus on
1. Moving all of your pieces toward the center,
2. Creating an outpost in the center, and
3. Advancing your c and f pawns to increase your central control.
The first guideline refers to all of your pieces. This principle of improving your position to the maximum before making a committal decision recurs in all aspects of chess so be sure to understand it. The next step to central dominance is to establish an outpost, or a square where your piece cannot be attacked by an opponent's pawn, in the enemy ranks.
If you can place your knight on a central outpost, it will prevent the opponent from using many convenient squares. The final step to central domination is to advance your pawns near the center, typically the c and f pawns. This can be a double-edged sword, as this can weaken your king, but with care, this can greatly improve your control over the d5 and e5 squares. From this position, you will be free to launch an attack on any part of the board, or if your opponent tries to counter-attack in the center, you will be prepared and be able to use your central dominance to win. The following game demonstrates these points:
The above game seemed quite straightforward, yet there were many subtleties that should be appreciated. First, I retreated my knight from e4 to c3. This is a common theme in d4 openings. Black would like to trade knights because his position is cramped and then play c5, but Nc3 stops the knight trade and prepares to answer c5 with d5. Next, I brought my rooks to d1 and e1 so all of my pieces were placed in the center.
Then, I advanced my knight to e5 and played f4, creating a central outpost. At this point, I had a central advantage which I knew my opponent could not tolerate forever. At this point especially, it is important to be thinking about how your opponent may try to counterattack. With this in mind, I played the tricky move Qf2, preparing for c5. Sure enough, my opponent played c5 and b5, and I won the c5 pawn and the game. This game shows that patiently improving your central position is often enough for victory.
At no point in this game was I prepared for a flank attack, yet the mere possibility that my opponent would be so constricted that he would not be able to defend against one caused him to react in the center and allowed me to crash through. When you have a small central advantage and do not see immediate action, remember this game and strengthen your center.
Sincerely,
David Adelberg