Aflank opening is achess opening played by White and typified by pawn moves and play on one or bothflanks (the portion of the chessboard outside the central d- and e-files).[1] White often plays inhypermodern style, attacking thecenter from the flanks withpieces rather than occupying it withpawns. Some of these openings are played often, although more often by advanced players than beginners, and 1.Nf3 and 1.c4 trail only 1.e4 and 1.d4 in popularity as opening moves.
In addition, some flank openings that are consideredirregular:
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If White opens with 1.Nf3, the Zukertort Opening, the game often becomes one of the d4 openings (closed games orsemi-closed games) by a different move order (this is calledtransposition), but unique openings such as theRéti andKing's Indian Attack are also common. The Réti itself is characterized by White playing 1.Nf3,fianchettoing one or both bishops, and not playing an early d4 (which would generally transpose into one of the 1.d4 openings).
TheKing's Indian Attack (KIA) is a system of development that White may use in reply to almost any Black opening moves.The characteristic KIA setup is 1.Nf3, 2.g3, 3.Bg2, 4.0-0, 5.d3, 6.Nbd2, and 7.e4, although these moves may be played in many different orders. In fact, the KIA is probably most often reached after 1.e4 when White uses it to respond to a Black attempt to play one of thesemi-open games such as theCaro–Kann,French, orSicilian, or even theopen games which usually come after 1.e4 e5.Its greatest appeal may be that by adopting a set pattern of development, White can avoid the large amount of opening study required to prepare to meet the many different possible Black replies to 1.e4.
| a | b | c | d | e | f | g | h | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  | 8 | |
| 7 |  |  | | | | | | | 7 | |
| 6 |  |  | | | | | | | 6 | |
| 5 | | | | | | | | | 5 | |
| 4 | | |  | | | | | | 4 | |
| 3 | | | | | | | | | 3 | |
| 2 | |  | | | | | | | 2 | |
| 1 |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  | 1 | |
| a | b | c | d | e | f | g | h |
TheEnglish also frequently transposes into a d4 opening, but it can take on independent character as well including symmetrical variations (1.c4 c5) and the Sicilian Defense withcolors reversed (1.c4 e5).
| a | b | c | d | e | f | g | h | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 | | | | | | | | | 8 | |
| 7 | | | | | | | | | 7 | |
| 6 | | | | | | | | | 6 | |
| 5 | | | | | | | | | 5 | |
| 4 | | | | | | | | | 4 | |
| 3 | | | | | | | | | 3 | |
| 2 | | | | | | | | | 2 | |
| 1 | | | | | | | | | 1 | |
| a | b | c | d | e | f | g | h |
WithBird's Opening White tries to get a strong grip on the e5-square. The opening can resemble a Dutch Defense in reverse after 1.f4 d5, or Black may try to disrupt White by playing 1...e5!? (From's Gambit).
Larsen's Opening (1.b3) and thePolish Opening (1.b4) are occasionally seen ingrandmaster play.Benko used 1.g3 (Benko Opening) to defeat bothFischer andTal in the 1962Candidates Tournament inCuraçao.
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