Why Better Pieces Matter

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One topic that I speak about in my course is the importance of having the better pieces. When we count the material balance, which is one of the things that we consider when evaluating a position, we compare pieces.

One common mistake is to evaluate a position as equal just because we have the same pieces and material. Even if we don’t have other advantages (like an attack against the opponent’s king) or small imbalances like a knight against a bishop, having better pieces does matter.

And the best game to illustrate this is the one played by former world champion Anatoly Karpov against Joel Lautier in Biel (1992).

A legend

The critical point of this game starts at move 19 when Karpov started a series of exchanges just to play with a better bishop. This game is more than impressive. Even though Karpov's advantage can be understood, the subtle ways on which he converted his advantage (avoiding tempting but drawish options as we’ll see) is worthy of a world champion.

If you have never seen this game, please don’t miss it.

Check out the lesson here: https://youtu.be/FIhjrXOyCmI