My h3 King's Indian Was Refuted | 2021 National Open: Round 9 vs. GM Vladimir Belous 

Kostya, I find it very helpful to hear your commentary about your games. Thank you for posting these.

Thanks Kostya, its very interesting to compare your thoughts with Jesse's live commentary. Although you seem to have been called a weanie less in this video.

As someone who plays h3 against the KI (though I usually play Bg5 rather than Be3), this was pretty depressing to see! I know the feeling of playing into a "comfortable" opening as white (at least up until that point) and suddenly realizing you're struggling by move 15. Excellent explanation of your thought process through the game, and a great example of a GM who really understood that position after the black-squared bishops were traded off.

Thanks Kostya, got to learn many important things from these videos 😄

This series may be your Magnum Opus to date. Your analysis has always been pointed, self-critical and seamlessly combining computer analysis with that easygoing Ukraine-Cali drawl (!) and the indicator highlight word ‘objectively’. Ok, so that’s not always *exactly* what you mean, but *I* know what you mean, so I assume *we* know what you mean. You’ve very much forged your own style in the crucible of OTB game analysis. And I, for one, really really appreciate it and hope to enjoy your brave openness for many many years to come, including when your GM title is conferred - for me, with your self criticality, it’s *when* not *if* . For your continued conscientiousness will pay dividends in time and, ultimately, in the *final analysis*. You’ve earned my long term subscription and support. Thanks Kostya!

Very instructive and well-explained game !

Hi IM Kostya! Phenomenal analysis! The Bh6 idea is very interesting and I'm going to investigate it for my future OTB games. Also, that position after the possible Rxf3! or Rxc3! looked disgusting for white and I will be sure to study the resulting position on my own. My first OTB tournament in two years is coming up in August and your videos are helping me so much. Already, yesterday I played a classical OTB game (casual) and after analysis I feel that I'm playing and executing positional ideas far above my official rating. Thank you for sharing these amazing game analysis videos! Cheers!

Another great tournament in the books! Thanks for showing all of these games :)

I believe the moral of this game to be “when the opponent wastes tempi for positional gains on the kingside, put your calculating cap on and blast him on the queenside”. In particular I may have diagnosed an unwillingness to be on the receiving end of an attack, perhaps the reason you are not entering the classical KI, and I’m no Petrosian or Karpov myself, but I feel like the right attitude was “ok mate, put your Rook on h6, the pawn on h4, the knight on f4, while I lunch and munch on your queenside”. Kudos to him if he figured out you would not challenge him in the most brutal way.

Great game! Enjoyed the video and in depth commentary.

Hi Kostya, thank you for posting and commenting your games! I enjoyed your explanations and found them very clear and easy to follow. Best luck for your future games :D

How about not pushing d5 after e5? Nf3 exd Nxd4 O-O g4 Re8 Bg2. It reminds me of Sveshnikov line in Pirc where we go as white Nc3 g3 Bg2 Ne2 and later trying to push f4 g4 while black does not have any breaks in the center because both c3 knight and g2 bishop overprotect e4 d5. Karpov had some great games in this line. And here we kinda have a saved tempo cuz we have g4 in 1 go. That's what I'd probably look at. Even though I see some problems after Nc5. We have to go f3 or Qc2 and I dislike both moves. Have to be checked with an engine. Btw, thanks for showing the games. It is really nice to have an opportunity to see what stronger players' thought process is during the game

Maybe 6.Nf3 is a good answer to Black's system? If Black castles, White can go ahead with typical Makaganov moves. Black can't really go for the bishop exchange maneuver when White hasn't moved his c1 bishop as that would just give away tempi. If 6..e5 7.d5 Nc5 8.Qc2 and looking at the board, it seems like White just has more flexible non-castling developing moves than Black? White could even switch to a g3, Bg2 system.

Thanks for sharing your thoughts! I was definitely wrong in my commentary. I thought you were using so much time because you thought you should be finding n advantage, but it sounds like you were uncomfortable the whole time

good game with original idea , as a try you can setup the position on the chessbase and let it analyze overnight

Hi Kostya, really appreciate your work both here and on the Dojo. I was checking the Fide rating list and saw you lost a bunch of rating points over the summer, going from 2401 to 2383. I understand your quest is to get the GM-title, basically needing to go from 2400 to 2500. How tough is it psychologically for you to tumble down after putting in a lot of work? A little background: from my personal peak of 2074 Fide, I´ve tumbled all the way down to 1938 and my personal goal is to get back to 2000+, I feel like a castrate every time I get under 2000. Sorry to bring up a potentially painful point, but I always see you as being very open and truthful about your chess, just asking to learn. I have your 101 studies chessable course, a lot of fun and very rewarding. Thanks!

After h5 Qd2 Nc5 Bd3 white seems to have a reasonable advantage, you don't like giving up the bishop but the position is closed enough that it shouldn't matter too much, not to mention you're getting c5 in quickly. Also if after Bd3 he plays Bh6 with the idea of Bxh6 Nxd3+ Qxd3 Rxh6 Qe3 you can play for f4 and black doesn't seem to have any counter play. The computer seems to indicate he's close to lost. Not playing for Bh6 you might get some position such as d4 Nf6 c4 g6 Nc3 Bg7 e4 Nbd7 Be3 e5 d5 h5 Qd2 Nc5 Bd3 Nxd3+ Qxd3 0-0 Nge2 a6 0-0 Bd7 a4 Qe7 a5 Nh7 c5! dxc5 Qc4 b5 axb6 cxb6 Rxa6 where white is better. It also flirts with some strange ideas trying to make sense of Nge2 in positions where black has included a6 Re8 and Qe7 where it will play a structure with f4 exf4 Bg5 Qf8 Nxf4 Re5 Nxh5 Bh8 as an idea which looks quite artificial to me and I would prefer to play for c5 if the dark square bishops are on the board

@23:10 with Nb5, Black can also play Nxe4 since if Qxe4 then Bf5 skewers the rook and queen.

Hi Kostya! I spent some time trying to think up some ideas for you... you seem pretty opposed to playing Bd3 to protect the e4 pawn after 8.Qd2 Nc5, but perhaps you should reconsider? Strategically, the light square bishop is bad piece, and although we are conditioned to value the bishop pair very strongly, perhaps this is an example where we should be willing to part with the bad bishop and try to claim that our knights are going to outplay the c8 in a closed position. The c8 bishop has very little future, playing against it could be powerful. Perhaps developing the ability to outplay the bishops with the knights is a useful skill for chess development? Playing the Tromp has been eye opening in this way for me, for example. (I know you're much stronger than me!) One key I saw was that after 8... Nc5(!) 9. Bd3, yes, black should play Nxd3 according to the engine, but it is often the case that a Bh6 follow up is VERY BAD. Playing in a way that makes the main idea in other lines bad seems like a recipe for success to me. For example, Bh6 immediately is losing after Bxh6 Rxh6 Qe3, say Rh8, then f4. It seems white plans to soften the center, develop Nf3, and keep the pawns on the light squares to suffocate the c8 bishop while pressing their space advantage. I love the bishop pair, but I think this looks really good for white, but yet, it's not obviously losing ie I could see black going for this. It's easy for black to misevaluate here I think. Even if black plays the top moves somehow, Bh6 will often be bad later, so they have really have to understand the position deeply and avoid playing what is good in so many other variations. White develops with Ne2, castles queenside a lot, hoping to eventually get in the f4 break favorably later. Note that after in the main lines after 7.Bd3, black does NOT want to play Nc5, since white can answer Bc2 and with b4 eventually coming the knight has simply lost time. So we are move ordering black into a middlegame where they likely have no experience, since Nc5 x d3 doesn't happen in other variations. In this new middlegame, white is playing a plan (Nge2, f4) that is actually bad in the main line. Again, the door is open for black to misevaluate badly by relying on their pattern recognition. Note that 7.Bd3 is met by Bh6, so again we're encouraging black to play the correct Nxd3 and then follow up with the natural but blunder ... Bh6? Our play is fully engine-blessed as well which is always nice. Some example traps, I'll use exclams to denote non-obvious top engine moves 7. Qd2 7... anything outside of ...Nc5 is getting very close to losing, and as a bonus our plan is the same against virtually every move. We're going Bd3 anyways, now with Bc2 available after black comes to their senses and plays Nc5, and we're going Nge2 and O-O-O against almost everything. 7... Nc5! 8. Bd3! then... 8... Nxd3! 9. Qxd3 Bh6? white is winning 8... Nxd3! 9. Qxd3 b6! 10. Nge2 and now natural moves like ...Bh6, ...Bb7, ...Ba6 are all losing or very close to it for black 8... Nxd3! 9. Qxd3 8... Nxd3! 9. Qxd3 there is also 8... Nh7 / 8... Nd7 with a quick f5 to deal with. At worst, white is better and with opposite-side castling likely on the horizon, we're happy to go into this imo. Plenty of plans here and we just want to get 3-result sharp positions, eventually run well for a tourney and pick up that GM norm. To my eye, this looks extremely dangerous for black. Note that we can just take on f5, Bxf5, Qd2... game on! A main line vs an engine might go 7. Qd2 Nc5 8. Bd3 Nxd3 9. Qxd3 O-O 10. Nge2 Qe7 11. O-O-O and if you don't think this middlegame will be fun chess is not for you! For example 11... a5?? white is already winning with f3 / g4 it's so sharp. :D To me, white's plans in the 6... h5 7.Qd2 line are simple and clear while black must walk a tightrope. White has room to make mistakes and still hold a draw, black does not. I like those odds. Good luck to you my friend I hope this is remotely useful for you. :)

i have a question i konw the engine always thinks that white has an advantage in these kind of KID positions because of the space but you asked i f somebody has any suggestions against this line with h5 but how do you define an advantadge if you cannot analyse with engines because they are not helpful?what makes you think that white can proof an advantage if not analysing with engines?

Can you upload a pgn or video with a few of the most instructive KID games?

What are your thoughts on the position after (instead of b4)? Qd2 Rh8 Be2 h4 Nh2 Nc5 Qe3 a5 O-O g5 b3 Rg8 Bg4 Nxg4 hxg4 Qf6

After 7. ... h5 white’s plan has to become Bd3-c2, Nf3-d2, b4 and c5 with the idea to win on the queenside, right? Why not start with Bd3 just because the knight isn’t on c5 yet. If black trades dark square bishops, white is better on the queenside and ... f5 isn’t ever a problem?

Finally s Line against h3. I hatr Makagonov

Wow

Sir, I am thinking of buying Understanding Chess middlegames by John Nunn. Can I go with it ?

What is names of books u purchased?

Which books did you buy with your prize?

:(