caissora.com
CAISSORA
CAISSORA
THE LIVING BOARD•Fantasy Chess
HomeCaissora WorldChess Atlas
All subsections
Openings
5 / 6
ECO A00Flank opening

Anderssen's Opening

A move that does nothing, with a name attached

  • Offbeat

1.a3 is a waiting move. The pawn guards b4 and keeps all of White's options open, but it neither takes the centre nor develops a piece. The opening is a rarity: people pick it for surprise, or to step around an opponent's home preparation.

Interactive Opening Board

2.c4

♚
Black
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
h
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
h
♔
White
2.c4
Speed:

Moves

(3 plies • 2 moves)
2.c4Tabiya
  1. 1–2moves
  2. 1.
  3. 2.

Defining move

1.a3 — a quiet first move

The one move the opening is named for

The pawn makes one step and takes control of b4. There is no fight for the centre, so Black is free to build it as he likes. But White has not committed to a set-up and can head for an English-type game or another familiar structure, with the pawn already on a3.

Tabiya

A reversed Sicilian with an extra a3

After 1…e5 2.c4 the game becomes an English with colours reversed from a Sicilian: White plays the Black side of a Sicilian, but with a pawn on a3. The a3 move is not entirely idle: it prepares b4 and keeps a black bishop off b4. Black has the centre and easy development.

White’s plan

  • Develop as in the English: Nc3, g3, Bg2.
  • Use the a3 pawn: prepare b4 and gain space on the queenside.
  • Play for surprise and pull the opponent out of his theory.

Black’s plan

  • Take the centre with …e5 or …d5.
  • Develop calmly and ignore White's extra move.
  • Another route: fianchetto the bishop with …g6.

History

The opening is named after Adolf Anderssen, who played 1.a3 three times in his 1858 match with Paul Morphy in Paris and scored one and a half points from three in those games. He lost the match as a whole.

Notable players

Adolf Anderssen

Legends who played it

Games in the Atlas

No games in the Atlas yet

Lines below