The Berlin Defence by Michael Roiz

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Every player who meets 1.e4 with 1...e5 needs a reliable response to the Ruy Lopez, and The Berlin Defence is an ideal solution. Ever since Vladimir Kramnik used the Berlin to shut down Garry Kasparov’s best efforts in their 2000 World Championship match, practically all of the world’s top players have successfully incorporated the “Berlin Wall” into their repertoires.

GM Michael Roiz presents a complete repertoire for Black after 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 Nf6, offering top-class antidotes to anything White may try. From the famous Endgame Variation to recently fashionable tries such as 4.d3, Roiz combines cutting-edge analysis with insightful positional guidance.

Grandmaster Michael Roiz reached the top 40 in the world. He has won Olympiad Team Silver for Israel, as well as many tournaments over the years. In recent years he has focused more on seconding elite grandmasters in top tournaments such as the Candidates and so far one World Championship match. The author can be contacted via chessbasic.com.

224 pages - Published 29 September 2021

Reviews

"Leading Israeli Grandmaster and theoretician Roiz maps out a full repertoire for Black, which is perhaps most notable for the manner in which it doesn't swamp the reader. The key motifs are highlighted, the repertoire unsurprisingly looks very sound, and plenty of coverage is devoted to those lines where White avoids the famous endgame."