BOOKS, OPENINGS, QUEEN'S GAMBIT DECLINED, TOURNAMENTS, TRAINING

RAKHMANOV’S SECRETS OF OPENING PREPARATION

August 21, 2026 NigelD

There are a lot of chess books published and not all of them are very useful. Yet I've found a few of them to be interesting and one in particular that I keep dipping into. This is Aleksandr Rakhmanov's Secrets of Opening Preparation published by Thinker's Publishing in 2021.

Rakhmanov is a very strong GM, but one who gets by with relatively little theoretical knowledge. He tries a variety of things with White including 1.d4, and Flank Openings if there's something he prefers to avoid. With Black his front line defences are the Petroff (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nf6) and Janowsky Variation of the Queen's Gambit Declined (1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 a6), both of which he knows very well. Against lower rated opponents he tries some less classical openings including the Nimzowitsch-Rubinstein Sicilian (1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 Nf6) and the Old Indian Defence (1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 d6 3.Nc3 e5).

Rakhmanov explains his approach very clearly and honestly, and although his lines are slighly unusual he prepares them very deeply with strong engines. In many ways it seems quite risky to show so much and in such detail, but his methods could just as easily be applied to other lines. I'd say this book is of most value to players over 2200 who want to further develop their approach to openings, but most chess enthusiasts should find it interesting.

Vimeo Closing Its Video On Demand

Unfortunately Vimeo is closing its Video On Demand service in November, so I'll no longer be offering any titles through them. Those who have purchased one of my videos on this platform will be able get access to the materials at Tiger Chess by sending me their receipts, these are available here when you are logged onto your Vimeo account.

Sam's Youtube Chanel

My son Sam runs a Youtube channel in which he streams his live games on chess.com. This shows considerably more bravery than I'm able to muster, so please check it out and subscribe. I think he's doing a nice job.

Upcoming Events

This is how things look right now having withdrawn my availability for the European Senior Team Championships. I might get invited to the English Senior Championships in October, in which case I will probably play:

August 21-23: Manchester Summer Congress, Bolton UK
This is a long standing event which is now run in a nice venue and with good prizes. Details can be found here.

September 25-27: Hull 4NCL
The 4NCL Congresses are always well run, so I'll be playing in this one. Details can be found here.

October 23-25: Scarborough Congress
I've now entered this one and booked my hotel. Details can be found here.

November 2-13: European Youth Championships, Crete
I've been appointed as one of the coaches for this event, which basically rules out the English Senior Championships because the two events only have a day's break between them.

Tiger Chess Themed Training Tournaments are organized on a weekly basis at Lichess, featuring selected opening variations. You can check out what's coming up here.

Have a good weekend.

Nigel

FRENCH DEFENCE, MIDDLEGAMES, PATTERN RECOGNITION

LOGIC AS AN AID TO MEMORY

August 14, 2026 NigelD

Several of my students have been asking about my adventures with the Sicilian Najdorf (1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6), which is quite a surprising choice of new weapon for Grandmaster in his 60s. I have lost my last two games with it against higher rated players (GM Oleg Korneev and IM Maciej Czopor) but the positions I obtained out of the opening were fine. I also won the first game in which I tried it in a local rapidplay, and also won a game against 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.Bb5+. It seems that you get more anti-Sicilians if you play the Najdorf!

There is also another factor in its favour, the Najdorf is a very logical and well motivated opening in which it's clear strategic plans and ideas are almost always evident. This is not true of some lesser known openings which are only kept alive by spectacular discoveries from strong engines. In this week's Chess Questions Answered video I show a variation from the Philidor Defence (1.e4 d6 2.d4 Nf6 3.Nc3 e5) which completely bemused me, I could hardly predict any of the engine's moves. This is because it helps to hang memories on hooks of understanding, when these are not present it seems well nigh impossible to remember anything.

This should definitely influence our opening choices, it makes sense to play openings with clear strategic themes. Besides the Najdorf I'd say that the Sicilian Dragon (1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 g6) and Gruenfeld (1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 d5) have great strategic clarity, there can be a lot of theory but at least it should make sense. For strategic clarity with a lesser amount of theory then I recommend the French Defence (1.e4 e6), which also maintains a top notch reputation.

Vimeo Closing Its Video On Demand

Sam's Youtube Chanel

Upcoming Events

August 21-23: Manchester Summer Congress, Bolton UK
This is a long standing event which is now run in a nice venue and with good prizes. Details can be found here.

September 25-27: Hull 4NCL
The 4NCL Congresses are always well run, so I'll be playing in this one. Details can be found here.

October 23-25: Scarborough Congress
I'm intending to play in this one if I can. Details are here.

October 26-31: English Senior Championships, Peterborough
This is also up in the air unless and until I get invited. Details can be found here.

Tiger Chess Themed Training Tournaments are organized on a weekly basis at Lichess, featuring selected opening variations. You can check out what's coming up here.

Have a good weekend.

Nigel

BUILDING AN OPENING REPERTOIRE, FRENCH DEFENCE, OPENINGS

ANOTHER IDEA IN THE LONDON

August 7, 2026 NigelD

In this week's webinar I presented another new idea in the London, namely 1.d5 d5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.Bf4 c5 4.e3 Nc6 and now 5.h3 rather than 5.Nbd2 or even the Heinzl Variation with 5.Be2. The London is like this, White develops sensibly and will always have some good choices. He may not get an advantages with 5.h3, but certainly it seems playable.

In this day and age it seems that even the most ambitious and principled openings fizzle out to equality, so there's certainly a case for playing something less critical in which both sides have to find good moves. With White this is relatively easy, playing Black is a tougher proposition because many venerable defences have come under tremendous pressure, especially after 1.e4.

The safest option is the French Defence because Black can angle for a closed position in which engine moves matter less than understanding. After 1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 I give the Rubinstein (3...dxe4) in my Building an Opening Repertoire course and 3...Nf6 in my French Defence course. There are other options too, for example 3...Bb4 4.e5 and now 4...Qd7 or 4...b6. Some great masters of the past used to play these lines and would outplay opponents with lesser understanding.

Vimeo Closing Its Video On Demand

Sam's Youtube Chanel

Upcoming Events

August 21-23: Manchester Summer Congress, Bolton UK
This is a long standing event which is now run in a nice venue and with good prizes. Details can be found here.

September 25-27: Hull 4NCL
The 4NCL Congresses are always well run, so I'll be playing in this one. Details can be found here.

October 23-25: Scarborough Congress
I'm intending to play in this one if I can. Details are here.

October 26-31: English Senior Championships, Peterborough
This is also up in the air unless and until I get invited. Details can be found here.

Tiger Chess Themed Training Tournaments are organized on a weekly basis at Lichess, featuring selected opening variations. You can check out what's coming up here.

Have a good weekend.

Nigel

BUILDING AN OPENING REPERTOIRE, FRENCH DEFENCE, QUEEN'S GAMBIT DECLINED, TOURNAMENTS, TRAINING, WHITE 1.d2-d4 REPERTOIRE

ARE PET LINES A GOOD IDEA?

July 31, 2026 NigelD

In this week's Chess Questions Answered video I explored whether pet lines are a good idea, citing the example of Alexander Rakhmanov's use of the Nimzowitsch-Rubinstein line of the Sicilian (1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 Nf6). Certainly they can be but it depends largely on the objective quality of the line and the level at which you intend to use it.

During my own career I had a period in which I played nothing apart from the Modern Defence (1...g6 as Black), and although this was useful from some perspectives it almost certainly hobbled my development as a player. I now believe that it's better to play a varied set of classical openings in order to learn about different position types. I had done something along these lines as a kid but then somehow lost my way.

Playing classical position types would become one of my guiding lights in the creation of Tiger Chess opening repertoires, but I also wanted them to be easy to learn. This is why Queen's Pawn Openings play such a large part in the recommended lines for White, plus the Queen's Gambit Declined and French Defence for Black. If I was to expand this range then I'd want to include the Ruy Lopez, either for White or Black, but playing 1.e4 and meeting 1.e4 with 1...e5 means a lot of work!

Vimeo Closing Its Video On Demand

Sam's Youtube Chanel

Upcoming Events

August 1-9: British Championships, Coventry, UK
I've accepted an invitation to this one (the Championship itself) and look forward to playing.

August 21-23: Manchester Summer Congress, Bolton UK
This is a long standing event which is now run in a nice venue and with good prizes. Details can be found here.

September 25-27: Hull 4NCL
The 4NCL Congresses are always well run, so I'll be playing in this one. Details can be found here.

October 23-25: Scarborough Congress
I'm intending to play in this one if I can. Details are here.

October 26-31: English Senior Championships, Peterborough
This is also up in the air unless and until I get invited. Details can be found here.

Tiger Chess Themed Training Tournaments are organized on a weekly basis at Lichess, featuring selected opening variations. You can check out what's coming up here.

Have a good weekend.

Nigel

HOW TO, OPENINGS, PSYCHOLOGY, TRAINING

HANDLING A DIFFICULT OPPONENT

July 24, 2026 NigelD

Sometimes we have opponents of a similar strength to us but who we struggle to play against. There can be a number of reasons for this, for example they can play very quickly and this puts us off. There can also be personality issues, for example it might be that we get intimidated by someone with a confident demeanour.

The issue that can be handled systematically is an opponent's style being awkward, for example we might like to create complications but then meet a good calculator who is not intimidated. One of the most famous examples of this was Mikhail Tal's difficulties against Viktor Korchnoi, the Tal magic just didn't work like it did against other opponents. Another case was that Paul Keres struggled against Mikhail Botvinnik, who didn't allow Keres the free flowing play in which he revelled.

In my own career the best example was how Mark Berkovic learned to play against me, after losing the first one he made subsequent encounters very dry and technical. I've featured two of our games in this week's Chess Questions Answered video and this was very good work by him. It's also something we can all learn from.

Vimeo Closing Its Video On Demand

Sam's Youtube Chanel

Upcoming Events

August 1-9: British Championships, Coventry, UK
I've accepted an invitation to this one (the Championship itself) and look forward to playing.

August 21-23: Manchester Summer Congress, Bolton UK
This is a long standing event which is now run in a nice venue and with good prizes. Details can be found here.

September 25-27: Hull 4NCL
The 4NCL Congresses are always well run, so I'll be playing in this one. Details can be found here.

October 23-25: Scarborough Congress
I'm intending to play in this one if I can. Details are here.

October 26-31: English Senior Championships, Peterborough
This is also up in the air unless and until I get invited. Details can be found here.

Tiger Chess Themed Training Tournaments are organized on a weekly basis at Lichess, featuring selected opening variations. You can check out what's coming up here.

Have a good weekend.

Nigel

OPENINGS, PSYCHOLOGY, TOURNAMENTS, TRAINING

SLEEP ISSUES DURING TOURNAMENTS

July 17, 2026 NigelD

Something that I've often sruggled with during tournaments is sleep, especially if I've just had a tough game. This is a very big deal because none of us will think as clearly when deprived of sleep. There are a few things that can be tried and hopefully some combination of these will work.

The first is medication, for example Nytol offer a variety of sleep aids which will hopefully bring results. There are a number of similar drugs sold by Tesco and Boots, but your options are quite limited in the UK. Unfortunately we can only get melatonin on prescription, unlike the US where it is sold over the counter.

A second major area is that of sleep routines, for example you might avoid looking at an electronic screen a few hours before going to bed. Avoiding any caffeinated drinks after 2 or 3pm is also a good idea, leaving at least 8-10 hours before going to bed. Keeping your bedroom cool is also supposed to be effective as is having a wind-down routine which might include dimming lights and reading.

Finally there are methods such as those used by the US marines which were developed because of the importance of getting a good night's sleep. Here's a good description of the kind of thing that is involved, and no doubt variations on this are also good. Sweet dreams!

Vimeo Closing Its Video On Demand

Sam's Youtube Chanel

Upcoming Events

August 1-9: British Championships, Coventry, UK
I've accepted an invitation to this one (the Championship itself) and look forward to playing.

August 21-23: Manchester Summer Congress, Bolton UK
This is a long standing event which is now run in a nice venue and with good prizes. Details can be found here.

September 25-27: Hull 4NCL
The 4NCL Congresses are always well run, so I'll be playing in this one. Details can be found here.

October 23-25: Scarborough Congress
I'm intending to play in this one if I can. Details are here.

October 26-31: English Senior Championships, Peterborough
This is also up in the air unless and until I get invited. Details can be found here.

Tiger Chess Themed Training Tournaments are organized on a weekly basis at Lichess, featuring selected opening variations. You can check out what's coming up here.

Have a good weekend.

Nigel

FRENCH DEFENCE, TOURNAMENTS, TRAINING

CHOOSING TOURNAMENT SCHEDULES

July 10, 2026 NigelD

A major factor for older players is the tournament schedule they sign up for. Organizers have discovered that playing nine games in five days saves money on the venue, and many players will also appreciate the condensed format because they can save on hotel costs and the number of days off they have to take. Yet for older players, who may have less stamina, such formats can be a kiss of death.

Even in a single game, older players can tire after a few hours. If there are two games in a day this tiredness is going to be amplified, and if this happens for a number of consecutive days you can expect to be exhausted. A faster time limit might help a bit, four hour games are considerably less exhausting then those which can last for seven. Also the strength of opposition can be a factor, playing stronger opposition is going to be considerably harder.

What schedules will I go for? Generally I'm OK with a typical weekend tournament of a game on Friday night and then two on Saturday and Sunday. Nine games in six days is also OK, it means three double round days and three with just one. Yet I'd still say that my favourite format has to be nine games in nine days and maybe having a rest day if it's taking part in an interesting place.

Vimeo Closing Its Video On Demand

Sam's Youtube Chanel

Upcoming Events

August 1-9: British Championships, Coventry, UK
I've accepted an invitation to this one (the Championship itself) and look forward to playing.

August 21-23: Manchester Summer Congress, Bolton UK
This is a long standing event which is now run in a nice venue and with good prizes. Details can be found here.

September 25-27: Hull 4NCL
The 4NCL Congresses are always well run, so I'll be playing in this one. Details can be found here.

October 23-25: Scarborough Congress
I'm intending to play in this one if I can. Details are here.

October 26-31: English Senior Championships, Peterborough
This is also up in the air unless and until I get invited. Details can be found here.

Tiger Chess Themed Training Tournaments are organized on a weekly basis at Lichess, featuring selected opening variations. You can check out what's coming up here.

Have a good weekend.

Nigel

FRENCH DEFENCE, HOW TO, OPENINGS, TRAINING

HOW TO COPY AN EXPERT

July 3, 2026 NigelD

One of the best ways to accelerate the development of an opening repertoire is to copy someone else's; just find a player whose games you like and play what they play. Clearly you won't have their deep knowledge, but the choices themselves can be very instructive and would otherwise require a lot of work. Once you're on board you should be able to fill in any knowledge gaps over time.

Who are the best players to emulate? I would suggest choosing players with a relatively narrow repertoire who clearly do their homework. A good example would be Matthius Bluebaum in the French Defence (1.e4 e6), he's clearly an outstanding specialist who works deeply on the variations he chooses. As he also plays online a lot you will be able to find a lot of his games in the French in the databases.

What if your model plays several different openings and several different lines within their most common choice? In this case you should play what they play most often, as long as there are also recent games. A major issue for specialists is that a lack of mobility can make them easier to prepare for. Accordingly they have to vary a bit, but this won't be the case at amateur level.

Video Discounts

This week's discount is 40% off my French Defence course using the code 'july3to11'. It features over 11 hours of video which explain key games and ideas plus a pgn (portable game notation) file of recommended variations that can be built upon, extended and important into software such as Chess Position Trainer. The 88 games presented are also included in pgn format, but without annotations.

Last week's discount was 40% off buying my Endgame Mastery series using the code 'june26july4', and this is still valid until tomorrow. The endgame is one of the most important aspects of chess, though it tends to be neglected at club level. In this series of videos Nigel shows how you can improve your endgame play and use this stage of the game to notch up valuable points.

Sam's Youtube Chanel

My son Sam runs a Youtube channel in which he streams his live games on chess.com. This shows considerably more bravery than I'm able to muster, so please check it out and subscribe, I think he's doing a nice job.

Upcoming Events

July 7-12: South Wales International, Bridgend, Wales
I've accepted an invitation to this event and look forward to playing!

August 1-9: British Championships, Coventry, UK
I've accepted an invitation to this one (the Championship itself) and look forward to playing.

August 21-23: Manchester Summer Congress, Bolton UK
This is a long standing event which is now run in a nice venue and with good prizes. Details can be found here.

September 25-27: Hull 4NCL
The 4NCL Congresses are always well run, so I'll be playing in this one. Details can be found here.

October 23-25: Scarborough Congress
I'm intending to play in this one if I can. Details are here.

October 26-31: English Senior Championships, Peterborough
This is also up in the air unless and until I get invited. Details can be found here.

Tiger Chess Themed Training Tournaments are organized on a weekly basis at Lichess, featuring selected opening variations. You can check out what's coming up here.

Have a good weekend.

Nigel

ENDGAMES, FRENCH DEFENCE, HOW TO, PSYCHOLOGY, TRAINING

HANDLING DRAWISH VARIATIONS

June 26, 2026 NigelD

A concern that many of us have is that positions can become quite drawish, especially when playing against lower rated players. This can lead us to avoid the most logical and best moves and going for something tricky instead, but this is almost always a mistake. When your opponent plays the right moves in reply you can find yourself in a difficult position and just wishing you'd played the move you thought was the best.

This can extend to opening choices in which we may avoid many opening choices because of a concern the position may become impossible to win. So the French and Slav Defences are rejected because of their respective Exchange Variations (1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.exd5 and 1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.cxd5) and 1.e4 e5 is rejected because of the Four Knights Game (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Bb5). That takes out three of the best opening choices, and then we might be dismayed by the prospect of 2.c3 being too drawish against the Sicilian!

What can be done? My discussions with colleagues have revealed that our worst fears are rarely realized and if they are you just keep playing. Stronger players often show their strength in apparently equal endgames, where strategic sensitivity and an eye for nuance can help turn drawish positions in their favour. There are countless examples of this happening and at the highest level, the games of Magnus Carlsen being a great source.

Video Discounts

This week's discount is 40% off buying my Endgame Mastery series using the code 'june26july4'. The endgame is one of the most important aspects of chess, though it tends to be neglected at club level. In this series of videos Nigel shows how you can improve your endgame play and use this stage of the game to notch up valuable points.

Last week's discount was 40% off Surviving Computerized Opening Preparation using the code 'june19to27', and this is still valid until tomorrow. With the advent of databases and high powered engines, computerized chess opening preparation has become a menace to players at every level of competition. Drawing on his extensive experience as a player and coach, Nigel shows different ways in which the effects can be mitigated so that players can just sit down and play a chess game.

Sam's Youtube Chanel

My son Sam has started a Youtube channel in which he streams his live games on chess.com. This shows considerably more bravery than I'm able to muster, so please check it out and give him a like, I think he's doing a nice job.

Upcoming Events

July 7-12: South Wales International, Bridgend, Wales
I've accepted an invitation to this event and look forward to playing!

August 1-9: British Championships, Coventry, UK
I've accepted an invitation to this one (the Championship itself) and look forward to playing.

September 25-27: Hull 4NCL
The 4NCL Congresses are always well run, so I'll be playing in this one. Details can be found here.

October 23-25: Scarborough Congress
I'm intending to play in this one if I can. Details are here.

October 26-31: English Senior Championships, Peterborough
This is also up in the air unless and until I get invited. Details can be found here.

Tiger Chess Themed Training Tournaments are organized on a weekly basis at Lichess, featuring selected opening variations. You can check out what's coming up here.

Have a good weekend.

Nigel

CHESS SOFTWARE, OPENINGS, PSYCHOLOGY, TOURNAMENTS

POSITIONS FOR ENGINES ONLY

June 19, 2026 NigelD

There's a growing awareness that it's not at all simple for humans to follow computer recommendations, both in the openings and elsewhere. The massive calculating power of engines means that they can find brilliant moves that make little sense to humans, and then follow them up with more brilliant but strange moves. Eventually it becomes clear that the concept has worked but only an engine can make it work.

This is the problem with many engine driven openings books and courses, engines find improvements everywhere but with moves that make no sense to humans. Let's say that you remember a brilliant new move out of the hundreds of brilliant new moves suggested. Will you then remember the follow-up, potentially consisting of another ten brilliant moves that you couldn't possibly work out on your own. My contention is that this will be difficult if not impossible.

What is the solution? We certainly shouldn't abandon engines because we can't keep up with them, but we can manage how we use them. I suggest investing heavily in understanding the logic behind the moves but then have the engine run in the background. If the engine improvements make sense then great, if they don't make sense then either study the position until they do or go with the option that makes sense to you. Sometimes you may find that an entire line depends on brilliant engine moves and in this case I personally would be likely to look elsewhere.

Video Discounts

This week's discount is 40% off Surviving Computerized Opening Preparation using the code 'june19to27'. With the advent of databases and high powered engines, computerized chess opening preparation has become a menace to players at every level of competition. Drawing on his extensive experience as a player and coach, Nigel shows different ways in which the effects can be mitigated so that players can just sit down and play a chess game.

Last week's discount was 40% off buying the Building an Opening Repertoire course with the code 'june12to20' on checkout, and this is still available until close of play tomorrow. The lines presented here (French and Queen's Gambit Declined as Black, 1.d4 followed by 2.Nf3 and 3.e3 as White) are easy to learn and remember. There are no elaborate computer generated variations, just plans and ideas.

Sam's Youtube Chanel

Upcoming Events

July 7-12: South Wales International, Bridgend, Wales
I've accepted an invitation to this event and look forward to playing!

August 1-9: British Championships, Coventry, UK
I've accepted an invitation to this one (the Championship itself) and look forward to playing.

September 25-27: Hull 4NCL
The 4NCL Congresses are always well run, so I'll be playing in this one. Details can be found here.

October 23-25: Scarborough Congress
I'm intending to play in this one if I can. Details are here.

October 26-31: English Senior Championships, Peterborough
This is also up in the air unless and until I get invited. Details can be found here.

Tiger Chess Themed Training Tournaments are organized on a weekly basis at Lichess, featuring selected opening variations. You can check out what's coming up here.

Have a good weekend.

Nigel