Caro-Kann DefenceB10 – B19
Black challenges the centre with …d5, supported by a pawn rather than a piece, and — this is the whole point — develops the light-squared bishop to f5 *before* playing …e6. In the French Defence that bishop spends the game locked behind its own pawn chain; in the Caro-Kann it is out of the box on move four. What Black pays for this is a tempo, and the resulting positions are slow, sound and structurally very hard to break. Almost every line leads to a queenless or semi-open middlegame where Black's pawns are healthy and White has a little more space. The two things to remember: the bishop comes out before …e6, always, and when White chases it with h4-h5 you go to h7 rather than losing it — the whole line is known and ends in a comfortable position for Black.
Played by
- Anatoly Karpov — made the Caro-Kann the solid backbone of his Black repertoire against 1.e4
- Tigran Petrosian — a world champion whose Caro-Kann games are the pattern for its patient, prophylactic style
Model game
Spassky – Karpov, Candidates semifinal, Leningrad 1974
Next: e4
