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Hikaru's Blitz Repertoire (Part II)

#11
@jahrzehnte said in #10:
> Thanks for this analysis.
>
> I play Nf3 c5 with black, after b3 Nc6 Bb2 Nf6 e3 g6 Be2 Bg7 d4 cxd4 Nxd4 O-O O-O, I would play Nxd4 before I play d5 with black. If he takes on c6 earlier, I can, depending on the situation, play dxc6, or I play bxc6 and then d6 and c5.

I play the same lines. I think it is the most effective against 1.b3 overall
#12
I guess you mean 1.Nf3. Against 1.b3 I also like 1...e5 or 1...g6.
#13
@jahrzehnte said in #12:
> I guess you mean 1.Nf3. Against 1.b3 I also like 1...e5 or 1...g6.

I'm talking about both move orders 1.b3 and 1.Nf3 - 1...c5 2...Nc6 etc. But many moves are good against b3 of course.
#14
Yes, against 1.Nf3 I also like 1...c5 most.

I don't like Queen's Gambit with black, so I don't like 1...d5 2.d4!?. Against 1...Nf6 white has move orders which prevent normal Grünfeld (keep pawn on d2 and an early h4, for example). One may play 1...f5 because the knight can not go to h3 anymore, but untested.

Against 1...c5 White can transpose to Sicilian, but I play this anyway against 1.e4. If white plays c4 and an early d4, black plays Nf6, Nc6, e6. If he plays g3, then black does too and then plays e6 Ne7 d5, or d6 Nh6. There are other lines, but black always gets good play.
#15
Yes, when playing Grunfeld - Nf3/c4 always becomes a headache. Mostly in terms of avoiding draw, I think; because otherwise - Nf6-c5-d5 seems pretty comfortable, but 1.Nf3 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5.e4 Nb4 6.Bb5 Nc6 7.d4 is basically a draw, and after 3...d5, there is no reasonable way to avoid it for black. But if Sicilian is in the repertoire - then 1...c5 2...Nc6 3...g6 looks pretty good. Against g3 - my favorite is Bf5-Qd7-h5 system - pretty hard for white to play if they don't know the h3 move after Bf5. Even if they do - e5 looks quite comfortable for black
#16
@Gordima

> 1.Nf3 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5.e4 Nb4 6.Bb5 Nc6 7.d4 is basically a draw, and after 3...d5, there is no reasonable way to avoid it for black.

There is also the possibility 6.Bc4 Nd3+ Ke2 Nf4+ Kf1 Nd3 (edit: there is also Ne6 which has been played in Top GM games, I would then play h4 too) Qe2 Nxc1 Rxc1, where white still has some pressure, he plays h4-h5-h6, e5, keeps the pawn on d2, and tries to get the rooks on the c-file (Rh4-c4).

> Against g3 - my favorite is Bf5-Qd7-h5 system - pretty hard for white to play if they don't know the h3 move after Bf5. Even if they do - e5 looks quite comfortable for black

I was meaning the variation Nf3 c5 c4 Nc6 g3 g6, here it is an advantage for black that he has not yet played Nf6. Against 1.g3 (and 1.g4) I just play e5, d5, Nc6 and if c4 then d4. Basically what I also play with white against 1...g6.
#17
> otherwise - Nf6-c5-d5 seems pretty comfortable

I guess you mean Nf3 Nf6 g3 d5 Bg2 d5 O-O e6, yeah, that's probably even
#20
@Gordima, please make a blog post exploring ideas how to get from 2300+ to 2700+, when already age 40+.