Openings
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Kádas Opening
A rook-pawn first move and a hope of surprise
- Offbeat
1.h4 is a rarity. The pawn frees the rook a little, but it does not fight for the centre and develops nothing. The usual problem is plain: it weakens White's kingside, and Black gets the centre for free. People play it for the surprise, not because it is good: theory regards it as objectively weaker than the usual first moves.
3.d4
Moves
(5 plies • 3 moves)- 1–3moves
- 1.
- 2.
- 3.
Defining move
1.h4 — a pawn to the edge
The one move that defines it
The pawn goes to the fourth rank and the h1 rook gets a little room. But h4 does nothing for the centre, and the weaknesses on the kingside remain. So after 1…d5 or 1…e5 White usually has to switch to a normal set-up with the extra move h4 thrown in.
Tabiya
The usual road: a queen's pawn game with an extra h4
Black has taken the centre and developed a knight, and White plays Nf3 and d4 as in ordinary openings. The h4 pawn is an extra move: it weakens the kingside and makes short castling less comfortable. White has to play a position in which Black has no reason to concede anything.
White’s plan
- Take the centre with d4 and Nf3 and develop as in queen's pawn games.
- Use the h-pawn: strike with h4-h5 if Black plays …g6.
- Play for surprise and hope the opponent loses the thread.
Black’s plan
- Take the centre with 1…d5 or 1…e5.
- Develop the knight and bishop to good squares and ignore the h4 pawn.
- Avoid 1…g6 without need: White answers h4-h5 and spoils the structure.
History
The opening is also called the Desprez Opening after the Frenchman Marcel Desprez, while the Kádas name goes to the Hungarian Gábor Kádas. Strong players have tried it now and then, mostly in blitz.
Games in the Atlas
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