The Petroff

Book excerpt: The Petroff has long been regarded as a very solid defense. Black avoids the perils of the Scotch, the Italian Game and, above all, the dreaded Ruy Lopez, and instead opts to neutralize White's initiative with active piece play. In the Petroff, it is quite common for Black to launch an early counterattack, often gambiting a pawn to do so. For many years the Petroff enjoyed a steady following, but since 1998, after its adoption by Vladimir Kramnik, who has played it regularly and considerably reinforced its theoretical standing, its popularity soared. In this book, Janjgava gives a complete and detailed picture of the Petroff, taking recent developments fully into account. Readers will be fully equipped to take on either side of the Petroff with confidence in their own games.