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Strategy: the skill that separates the men from the boys (or women from the girls) in chess.
The great Garry Kasparov once observed, “when you boil [tactics] down, they are actually the simplest part of chess and are almost trivial compared to strategy.”
But what is strategy? One description is “evaluating a position, setting goals and devising a plan to reach them”.
At club player level, strategy usually consists of playing according to well-known themes, targeting isolated pawns, putting your pawns on the opposite color squares to your Bishop and so on.
Grandmaster Strategy, unsurprisingly, is much deeper. In this free preview of his course “Thoughts on Strategy“, GM Matthew Sadler presents a fascinating and instructive game of his own, against WGM Peng Zhaoqin.
GM Sadler, in his usual clear explanatory style, reveals how he assesses positions on the chessboard, pointing out the strength of his fianchettoed Bishop, Black’s problems with development and the few weak squares that might present an opportunity later on.
After evaluating the position to be slightly in his favor, GM Sadler realizes this part of the game will be all about how Black deals with the subtle threat of a3-a4, forcing Peng to accept an isolated pawn on the Queenside. This is a critical decision, which square should the Black pawn end up on so as not to be lost?
Now we see the inner workings of Grandmaster strategy as Matthew explains how he considers each possibility and the impact of every move on the evaluation, fine for Black or good for White.
As the game continues, GM Sadler shows how to time your plan, sometimes it’s better to improve a piece before resuming the attack on your target. These small positional gains quickly accumulate into an imposing advantage, making it easier and easier to win.
GM Sadler’s commentary makes this game a great example of Grandmaster Strategy and is sure to add depth to your own play.
Enjoy this video and remember to check out the full course here.
