The Best Defense is a Good Offense!

The Best Defense is a Good Offense!...

...also a tactic you might not know!

Too often when defending a position we start to go on auto pilot and we may miss active moves for ourselves. Garry Kasparov once said that if you attack an opponent's piece 10 moves in a row, on the 10th move they will lose. Of course, Kasparov was being somewhat hyperbolic, but his point is that you need to guard against the psychological damage that constant defending can produce.

In a recent game I played, both my opponent and I missed a chance for her to strike back aggressively and fully equalize the game! Let's see if you can find the move(s) we missed!

Active Defense

 

A Tactic You Might Not Know!

(It's the first time I've been able to play in an OTB game)

 

 

Conclusion

You should always be looking for active continuations for yourself, but really make a concerted effort if you've been defending for awhile. Don't get stuck in a rut and defend until you lose without making one threat the entire game! <--I've been there, trust me, it's not a good experience. Good luck in your future games, keeping looking for those active solutions!