A Hidden Opening Bomb in the Modern Benoni

It's been awhile since posting one of these. For the first time in forever, I've actually felt satiated in terms of finding opening novelties. I still remain shocked from discovering my last post's 18.Qc8!N in the 9.0-0-0 Dragon. Finding a spicy novelty in the infamous 9.0-0-0 Dragon line has always been the "holy grail" of opening research for me ever since I was a kid who loved playing the Dragon. I've since tested 18.Qc8!N in a few games with great results.

But who am I kidding, the urge to find new opening ideas never stops. I wanted to share a cool novelty in another childhood favorite line - the 7.Bf4 Modern Benoni.

7.Bf4 Modern Benoni, 8.Qa4+

Years ago, 7.Bf4 used to be considered perhaps the most critical try against the Modern Benoni, and I used to devote a lot of attention to it from the Black side. Nowadays it is still considered to be a top try if the devestating 7.f4 line isn't available to White (mainly with 8.e3 or 8.h3), such as if they enter the Modern Benoni after an early Nf3 has been played. Even in 7.f4 though, I think there's hope for Black .

Most notably, 8.Qa4+ used to be feared, so much so that Black players would shy away from 7.Bg7 and opt for 7.a6 instead. Today, however, the engines show multiple ways of fighting against 8.Qa4+. It's certainly been defanged, which unfortunately reduces the theoretical relevance of the idea I'm about to show, but it certainly doesn't reduce its awesomeness.

The Bomb 

Hope you enjoyed the idea. I think if I had found it in 2014 I would have felt like I saw a unicorn in real life. Today, despite 8.Qa4+ losing some of its venom, it is still quite a popular line against the Benoni, and I think the idea still packs a theoretical punch. And of course, the idea is simply just stunning from an aesthetic point of view, a quality which we are seeing less and less in opening ideas today.