The Reliable Petroff by Daniel Fernandez

The Petroff (or Russian) Defence which is characterised by the moves 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nf6 has been popular at the highest levels for many years and enjoys the reputation of being an extremely solid defence. In the 1990’s and 2000’s, the theory of this variation began to develop quickly, when players like Kasparov, Karpov, Anand, Adams and Kramnik infused it with new ideas for White and Black.

Adams and Kramnik continue to rely on the Petroff, and they have been joined by the 2018 World Championship challenger, Fabiano Caruana. As with many openings favoured by the world elite, there is a sharp contrast between the sidelines (in which understanding plays the most critical role) and the theoretical battleground of the main lines where experience and knowledge of plans are needed, but also a high degree of concrete knowledge. This DVD aims to present this knowledge in a structured way, so that players can pick exactly what they need. This is interspersed with discussions of structural themes and annotated games. Two particular structures are discussed in great detail. But the author is not tied down to dogma, and suggests two relatively minor lines for Black which can alleviate the problems, either practical or objective, which Black has been facing in recent games in the 5.d4 and 5.Nc3 lines respectively.

• Video running time: 5 h 29 min(English)
• With interactive training incuding video feedback
• Extra: Database with model games
• Including CB Reader

1. 01: Introduction and Overview [10:02]
2. Part I: Small Lines
3. 01: 3.Nc3 Bb4 4.Nxe5 d6 - Video notation [04:57]
4. 02: 3.d4 Nxe4 4.dxe5 d5 5.Bd3/Nbd2 - Video notation [15:49]
5. 03: 3.d4 Nxe4 4.Bd3 Nc6 5.d5/dxe5/Nxe5 - Video notation [17:16]
6. 04: 3.d4 Nxe4 4.Bd3 Nc6 5.Bxe4 - Video notation [17:03]
7. 05: Surprises - 3.Nxe5 Nxe4 4.Qe2 Qe7 5.Qxe4 d6 and 3.Nxe5 d6 4.Nxf7 Kxf7 - Video notation 1; Video notation 2 [13:44]
8. 06: 3.Nxe5 d6 4.Nc4 Nxe4 5.Qe2 Qe7 - Video notation [13:10]
9. Part II: Minor d4 Systems
10. 01: 5.Qe2/d3 - Video notation [08:48]
11. 02: 5.c4 Nc6 - Video notation [15:16]
12. 03: 5.d4 d5 6.Bd3 Be7 7.0-0 Nd6 Part 1 - Video notation [15:55]
13. 04: 5.d4 d5 6.Bd3 Be7 7.0-0 Nd6 Part 2 - Video notation [08:03]
14. Part III: Old Main Line
15. 01: 10.a3 and Nc3 Be6 - Video notation [15:39]
16. 02: 10.Nc3 Bf5 - Video notation [16:12]
17. 03: Kasparov,G - Adams,M - 10.a3 Nc6 11.cxd5 Qxd5 12.Nc3 Nxc3 13.bxc3 Bf5 14.Re1 Rfe8 15.Bf4 Rac8 16.c4 Qe4 [12:26]
18. 04: Leko,P - Kramnik,V - 10.Nc3 Bf5 11.a3 Nxc3 12.bxc3 Nc6 13.Re1 Re8 14.cxd5 Qxd5 15.Bf4 Rac8 16.Bd3 Qd7 [08:38]
19. Part IV: Currently Fashionable Lines
20. 01: 5.Bd3 Nf6 - Video notation [11:10]
21. 02: 5.Nc3 Nf6 6.d4 Be7 - Video notation [17:52]
22. 03: 5.Nc3 Nxc3 6.dxc3 Be7 - Video notation [09:53]
23. Part V: Games
24. 01: Giri,A - Hou,Y - 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.Nxe5 d6 4.Nf3 Nxe4 5.Nc3 Nxc3 6.dxc3 Be7 7.Be3 Nc6 8.Bd3 Be6 [07:20]
25. 02: Hou,Y - Wei,Y - 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.Nxe5 d6 4.Nf3 Nxe4 5.Nc3 Nxc3 6.dxc3 Be7 7.Be3 Nc6 8.Qd2 Be6 [07:04]
26. 03: Kramnik,V - Caruana,F - 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.Nxe5 d6 4.Nf3 Nxe4 5.Qe2 Qe7 6.Nc3 Nxc3 7.dxc3 Qxe2 8.Bxe2 Nc6 [08:31]
27. 04: Short,N - Fernandez,D - 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.Nxe5 d6 4.Nf3 Nxe4 5.d4 d5 6.Bd3 Be7 7.0-0 Nd6 [07:39]
28. 05: Carlsen,M - Karjakin,S - 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 Nf6 4.0-0 Nxe4 5.Re1 Nd6 6.Nxe5 Be7 7.Bf1 Nxe5 8.Rxe5 O-O 9.d4 Bf6 10.Re1 Re8 11.Bf4 Rxe1 12.Qxe1 Ne8 [13:09]
29. Part VI: Test Section
30. 01: 1 Cochrane theory [03:01]
31. 02: 2 3.d4 theory note [04:17]
32. 03: 3 3.d4 pawn sac line [01:10]
33. 04: 4 7.Nbd2 try [02:02]
34. 05: 5 7...Nd6 typical W combo [03:18]
35. 06: 6 Queenside break [01:32]
36. 07: 7 9.c5 [03:51]
37. 08: 8 16.Bc4 [03:21]
38. 09: 9 Kramnik 19.d5 [01:57]
39. 10: 10 Topalov game note [01:59]
40. 11: 11 9...Qa5 [04:20]
41. 12: 12 14.Bf4 key tactic [00:43]
42. 13: 13 10.Nc3 main line [03:58]
43. 14: 14 Exchanging manoeuvre [01:23]
44. 15: 15 MVL-Giri [02:03]
45. 16: 16 Pawn Protection [01:14]
46. 17: 17 Short's decision [01:48]
47. 18: 18 Caruana's decision [04:54]
48. 19: 19 Adams' decision [02:56]
49. 20: 20 Fridman's decision [04:12]