11/12/2024 – One rule of thumb in rook endings is to get active - with your king and with your rook. But this is just a rule of thumb. In the diagram position it is Black to move and draw. What should she do?

11/12/2024 – Absolute chess superstars occasionally play a Sicilian Dragon in a classic game, and it is rare for these games to win a brilliancy prize. However, some of our readers prefer to see the Dragon in action at the highest level, and have mentioned recent games by Arjun Erigaisi and Ray Robson. Here at ChessBase our Dragon Tamer Chris Ward analyses these games, having previously done so on the chesspublishing.com website. Then, as an extra treat, he shows us a fantastic game by super grandmaster Daniil Dubov! | Photo: John Upham

11/12/2024 – The Chennai Grand Masters tournament concluded with a thrilling final round in the Masters section. In a surprising turn, Aravindh Chithambaram emerged victorious after defeating Parham Maghsoodloo and then besting elite players Arjun Erigaisi and Levon Aronian in tiebreaks. Meanwhile, in the Challengers, 18-year-old Pranav Venkatesh maintained his lead by holding Leon Luke Mendonca to a draw, securing first place and a spot in next year's Masters section. | Photos: Aditya Sur Roy and Anmol Bhargav

11/11/2024 – The line 1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.Nc3 Nbd7!? is very popular among the adherents of the Queen's Gambit Declined. The knight move has given Black solidity and flexibility. Our author, GM Yago Santiago, recently went in search of a more ‘hidden’ idea for White to surprise his opponents with lesser-known positions. The move 5.Qc2!? caught his attention and captivated him more and more during his analysis...You can check out his opening article from the latest CBM #222 in this week's free reading sample in the ChessBase Books format - right in your web browser on your iPad, tablet, Mac or Windows PC!

11/11/2024 – The second edition of the Chennai Grand Masters is taking place on 5-11 November at the Anna Centenary Library in Chennai. The tournament, which will play a key role in the FIDE circuit race, is an 8-player single round-robin with a classical time control. Arjun Erigaisi heads the field, which also includes the likes of Levon Aronian, Vidit Gujrathi and Maxime Vachier-Lagrave. | Follow the action live with expert commentary starting at 10.30 CET (4.30 ET, 15.00 IST)

11/11/2024 – The latest version of the standard chess study program has received a major update. It now allows you to evaluate your opponents, study their repertoire, their strengths and weaknesses, all at a click of the mouse. It draws its conclusions by replaying all their games – it has access to many billions of online games. Head programmer Matthias Wuellenweber has written about the new program in the latest issue of ChessBase Magazine. Check out the details and decide whether you can afford not to have the program.

11/8/2024 – In his new Fast & Furious episode, Robert Ris looks at a recent game from the Women's Grand Prix in Shymkent, Kazakhstan, in which Aleksandra Goryachkina demonstrated the attacking potential of the Sicilian Sveshnikov. | Fast & Furious is available on-demand with a ChessBase Premium Account. You can register a Premium account here.

11/8/2024 – The second tournament of the 2024-25 Women's Grand Prix Series takes place in Shymkent, Kazakhstan. It's a ten-player-round-robin, the best two players in the Grand Prix series qualify for the next Women's Candidates Tournament. After eight rounds second seed Aleksandra Goryachkina leads with 6.5/8, one point ahead of the number one seed, Tan Zhongyi with 5.5/8. The ninth and final round starts at 13.00 local time (9.00 CET, 3.00 EST). Follow the games live with commentary. | Photo: FIDE / Konstantin Chalabov

11/8/2024 – Round 3 of the Chennai Grand Masters delivered compelling games across both the Masters and Challengers sections. In the Masters, Arjun Erigaisi continued his stellar form with a win over Alexey Sarana, joining Amin Tabatabaei in the lead, while climbing to second place in the live world rankings. In the Challengers, Pranav Venkatesh emerged as the sole leader after defeating Karthikeyan Murali, extending his perfect record. | Photos: Aditya Sur Roy and Anmol Bhargav / ChessBase India

11/7/2024 – In part two of his review of the ChessBase Opening Encyclopaedia 2024, Nagesh Havanur explores the nuanced world of Semi-Open games, focusing on the Sicilian Defence and French Defence. From the explosive Najdorf Sicilian, favoured by Fischer and Kasparov, to the sharp Sicilian Dragon, each line offers distinct challenges and strategies. As our author transitions to Closed Games in his next instalment, he offers much practical advice for the aspiring tournament player.

11/7/2024 – In the European Club Championship, lower rated players occasionally faced GM superstars, such as Erigaisi, Gukesh, Abdusattarov, Praggnanandhaa or others. And in the very first round, Pragg had to deal with IM Francois Godart from Belgium, rated 2377. In a Sicilian Rossolimo, Godart had a pawn less, but strong counterplay. Counterplay that was so strong that the strong moves seemed to play themselves. Robert Ris took a closer look.

11/7/2024 – Aleksandra Goryachkina wins and wins and wins. In round 7 of the FIDE Women's Grand Prix she won with Black against Batkhuyag Munguntuul - her fifth win in her last five games. She now leads with 6.0/7 and is one point ahead of Tan Zhongyi who won in round 7 against Nurgyul Salimova. | Photos: Konstantin Chalabov and Anastasia Abramova (FIDE)