So guys, whenever you’re playing as black, you’re
always at a slight disadvantage right from the start because white always makes the first move.
But let me tell you - there is this one solid opening for black, which is very simple to play.
And just in the first 10-15 moves, you can easily neutralise white’s advantage & in many cases,
you can even gain a much superior position. Not only this, it also has a great win percentage at
all levels. Well, this opening that I’m talking about is the Caro-Kann Defense & in this video, I
will give you a really easy strategy to show you exactly how to play this. But before we begin, I
would like to thank BetterHelp for sponsoring this video. Alright, so when white starts with E4, you
have to play C6 and this is called the Caro-kann defense. Now white obviously takes full control of
the center and that’s when you play d5. Our main objective is to fight for the center. Now since we
are attacking this pawn, white has to do something about this. Basically he has three options.
He can either take this pawn, or he can push forward or he can simply defend this pawn. Now
we will look at all these different variations, but I don’t want to confuse you. So I will give
you a very simple gameplan which will work in every variation. So please focus on this video
right now because the next 2-3 minutes are going to be very important. Alright, first and foremost,
I want you to understand the purpose & placement of each of these pieces. Now for these two pawns -
their purpose is to attack the center. And that’s why we played D5. Now let’s say for example,
he captures this pawn. Well, just re-capture, simplify the center and we enter the exchange
variation of the Caro-Kann. After white’s move, now let’s talk about this knight. In almost
all cases, you will place this knight on the C6 square, because the main purpose of this knight
is to apply pressure on these central pawns. So remember, your knight belongs to C6. Okay, now
let’s talk about this bishop. In the Caro-Kann, this bishop is generally developed to either F5 or
G4. Whenever white brings out his knight to F3, G4 becomes the ideal square for the bishop, because
you pin the knight and indirectly apply pressure on the center. Now if the knight is not here, then
obviously we cannot bring the bishop to G4 because of the queen so, then you can develop the bishop
to F5. In this case, since the knight is here, we play bishop to G4. Okay, now let’s talk about
the other bishop. Now once the light squared bishop moves out of this pawn chain, only then
it’s a good idea to push this pawn forward. So E6 gives us this beautiful pawn chain and opens up
this diagonal for the bishop. After white castles, you can bring out the bishop, but let’s also talk
about the other knight. Now, ideally, whenever this F6 square is available, you should look to
get your knight there. But in some variations, you’ll have a white pawn on D5, so knight f6
won’t be possible. In such games, you will have to maneuver your knight to g6 or f5. I will show
this in the other variations, but for the moment, F6 is straight forward, so we place the knight
there. Okay, now whenever he attacks our bishop with this pawn, we will simply take the knight.
The point is that this knight is slightly better because it is a strong defender of the center,
so eliminating it is generally a good idea. So we take the knight, white recaptures, and now we can
simply develop this bishop. These two squares are generally good for the bishop. But here since we
have this beautiful open diagonal, bishop to d6 is a good option. Next, king safety is important, so
we castle on the kingside. And finally, it’s time to bring out the gorgeous lady, our queen. But
right now, it is defending the knight, so we need to do something about this bishop. Let’s attack
with h6, push him back, push him back further. And this gives us a wonderful opportunity to exchange
the bishops, demolish his pawn structure, which ultimately weakens his king. In fact, you can
take immediate advantage of this. Can you find the idea? Yes, we have queen B6 going after both these
pawns. We are ready to pull the trigger and fire on this exposed king. Its just move number 14 and
these are the kinds of superior positions you can get by playing the Caro-Kann opening. By the way,
at any point, if white pins your knight like this, there is not much to worry because in any case,
even if he captures your knight, you gain an even better pawn structure which solidifies your
central control. Now, with all these important ideas in mind, we can easily deal with all the
common moves that white can play. So let’s look at some of the important variations. But before that,
if you like my work & want to show your support, then do hit that like button below this video
right now. Okay, so after this pawn exchange, let’s say white goes C4. This is the Panov
variation. Now do remember all the rules that we discussed earlier because we’ll apply them in
every variation. Now here, we have an option to capture this pawn, but that simply allows white to
activate his bishop. So that’s something you want to avoid. Now you can play knight c6, but it’s
better to add a defender to this pawn, so why not first play knight f6 since we already know that
this is a good square for the knight. Look, even though the ideas remain the same, our move order
is flexible. It's okay to interchange your moves depending on your requirement. So here, instead
of bringing out this knight, we can first develop the other knight. And once you are comfortable,
then you can play knight C6. If he takes, that’s actually great for you, because now this D4 pawn
is isolated and it becomes very very weak. Anyway, if he plays knight F3, you know what to do, right?
Yes, bring out the bishop to G4. Exchanging this knight is not a good idea because you allow him
to recapture and defend this pawn, so avoid that. Anyway bishop e2. And now, since this bishop is
out, it’s time to activate the other bishop. So e6, then Bishop d6 or bishop e7 is also fine. If
knight takes, recapturing with the pawn makes it isolated, so its better to take with the queen.
And finally, after all this, you can castle. And our strategy remains the same, just apply the
basic principles of chess and you should be good to go. Alright, so we’ve looked at the exchange
variation of the Caro-Kann. Now let’s look at the most common response you will see from white and
that is e5. He pushes forward, so we call this the advance variation. Now here, you cannot bring
out the knights immediately. So what do you do? Do you remember the purpose of these pawns? Yes,
we have to use them to attack the center. That’s why we’ll push C5. The idea is to pressurize this
pawn & also free up this important square for our knight. And if he takes, don’t worry! These
pawns are extremely weak, we can regain them very soon. Now E6 locks down our bishop, so hold
on. For the moment, let’s develop this knight and attack the pawn. If knight F3, you know what to do
- just pin the knight. And once the bishop is out, then you can play e6. This pawn is in danger -
If he defends, you can very well play bishop e2, but then what about this knight? Remember, I told
you earlier that in some variations, you won’t be able to place your knight here, this is what I was
talking about. Now if you play bishop e2, you’re taking away this square also from the knight, so
the knight is stuck. In such situations, our plan is to maneuver this knight to either F5 or G6.
So first, we’ll go knight E7. In the meanwhile, if he attacks our bishop, you already know that
we have to exchange these pieces, and then we can simply pick up this pawn. From here, it’s
the exact same plan. We’ll relocate the knight, develop the bishop, and castle on the kingside.
It’s quite straightforward. Now on similar lines, in the advance variation, after C5, even if
he defends this pawn, we’ll still bring out the knight as usual. If he takes this, you
take on e5. He ends up with doubled pawns, so that’s actually great for you. And even if he
plays a normal development move like knight F3, we can now exchange the pawns, and bring out the
bishop as usual. If he attacks, we take the knight and after queen takes, we pick up a free pawn.
Going back, instead of h3, if he continues with his normal development, we will continue with the
same game plan – first e6, now the knight cannot go here, so knight e7. If he tries something like
Bishop G5, we again have this brilliant queen B6 double attack, and white ends up in serious
trouble. Going back, if he continues normally, it’s the same plan - just reposition your knight,
then develop the other bishop and castle kingside. If you are an aggressive player, you can also
break with F6, exchange the pawns. Queen B6 is always an option and you can attack along the F
file. Alright, so we’ve looked at the exchange variation, we’ve looked at the advance variation.
But what if he tries to defend this pawn? Well, we’ll discuss that as well. But before moving on,
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so do check it out. Alright, so after e4, c6, d4, d5, now let’s see how to respond when white
tries to defend this pawn. Let’s look at knight C3 first. We are getting the opportunity to
break the center, so let’s just go for it. D takes on E4 and knight takes on E4. Following the
same gameplan, let’s develop the knights. First knight F6. If he takes, we take back with the E
pawn. And don’t worry about these doubled pawns, because this time we will attack the kingside
with all our pieces, especially if he castles short. By the way, this is called the Tartakower
variation. Now, in this position, since we don’t have any pawns on these light squares, this bishop
becomes a lot more valuable. Therefore, giving it up for the knight might not always be fruitful.
So, let’s wait before committing it to G4 since it can easily be pushed back. In the meanwhile,
let’s bring out this bishop. Then castle, white does the same. And we position our rook
on the open file. Now, we will have to make some adjustments for this knight & the bishop. In this
case, both these squares are in white’s control, so our bishop goes to E6. Now our knight can’t go
here. And since our focus is on the kingside, we will rotate the knight like this. So first knight
D7, queen c2 attacks this pawn, so we bring in our knight. And now with Queen D7, our plan is to
attack the king. Now this is just a sample game I want to show you which continues with a beautiful
bishop sacrifice. Pawn takes, Queen takes - it’s a double threat. So he defends the knight. We keep
attacking, and ultimately after the knight moves away, we have a queen check, the bishop is gone.
Another check, and this time, the knight is gone. And from here, black is completely winning. And
that’s an example of how you can demolish your opponents using the Caro-Kann. Now let me show you
one final variation, which many people believe is a good weapon for white against the Caro-Kann. So,
after we challenge the center, white can defend with a very unusual looking move, pawn to f3. We
call this the fantasy variation. You won’t see this very often because obviously, this weakens
the kingside. Now because of this unique setup, this is probably the only variation where we will
deviate a little from our original plan. Ideally, we would have played something like knight F6, but
then E5 is a problem. Therefore, in this position, I would recommend you straight-away counter-attack
in the center. This might look like a silly sacrifice, but the idea here is to open up this
important diagonal to attack the exposed king. So after pawn takes, we first bring up the bishop,
then we have the queen. And this already looks so dangerous for white. If he is not careful & just
saves his knight, then he can pack his bags & go home because we have a beautiful checkmate, just
like this. Going back, in this position, if he does not take this pawn, and plays some random
move like C3, then after takes, takes, we have this deadly queen h4 check. And after one more
check, the rook is gone. Basically, this fantasy variation is a lot more tactical as compared to
the other lines, so be prepared for that. And just one more thing, if we look at the opening, instead
of d4, if white plays some other move like say, knight f3, our gameplan is still the same. We
attack the center, take the pawn & after a few more moves, you will notice that we transpose into
the same exchange variation, that we discussed earlier. And for example, in this position, if he
doesn’t take, and let’s say, he pushes forward, then bishop g4, d4, e6 & eventually we transpose
into the advance variation. So with the Caro-Kann, you have this simplified gameplan & its so easy
to understand that you can literally use this opening for the rest of your life. Alright, so
it’s puzzle time. In this position, it is white’s turn & you need to find the best move for white.
Share your answers in the comments, let’s see how many of you get this right. Guys, do Subscribe
to the channel & I shall see you in the next one.
