MIDDLEGAME:

The Middlegame is is arguably the hardest part of a game for a beginner. One must be able to navigate the position arising from the opening to gain an upperhand in a Middlegame before transitioning to an Endgame. Although, if the advantage in the Middlegame is great enough, a game might end in a Middlegame itself.

In this section, we will limit ourselves to only to basic principles of the Middlegame. Let's dive in.

Some basic concepts of the Middlegame include:

1. Aspect of King safety

2. Future prospects

3. Practical gameplay

KING SAFETY:

King safety is one of the most important aspects of a game It has two side- safety of our own King and Safety of our opponent's King. Both are very important to consider. We should try to make our King as safe as possible. Thus, we should avoid pushing the pawns infront of our King. We should also try to castle as quickly as possible, although there can be exceptions if we anticipate that our opponent might start an attack on the side we castle our King. We must also be cautious of any possible attacks too.

At the same time, we must try to weaken our opponent's King and, exploit the weakness. we can do that by looking for the least defended square near the King and, piling pressure on that square. Sometimes, we may also sacrifice pieces to open up the King to an attack. However, it is important to know that in most cases, WE MUST HAVE TWO MORE ATTACKERS THAN DEFENDERS TO HAVE A SUCCESSFUL ATTACK. It is because we need two pieces to deliver a checkmate, one to deliver and the other to defend the piece that delivers. However, not all attacks need to end in checkmate, we can use the threat of checkmate to win immense material or a positionally winning position.

FUTURE PROSPECTS:

A Middlegame may not always result in complicated attacks and counterattacks, sometimes it may just lead to a lengthy Endgame. However, we must try to create practical prospects we can later materialize in the Middlegame itself. This might include a queenside majority pawn structure that may result in a past pawn later in the game or, a controlled pawnbreak that can activate our pieces in a closed positon.

PRACTICAL GAMEPLAY:

We must also be aware of the practical gameplay itself. Sometimes our opponent might not play ideal moves. In such situations, we must be able to realize the error and exploit the move. One approach I prefer is that we must find the difference between the ideal move and the moves played. Then, we can target the aspects of the ideal move that the move played does not encompass.

We should also try to create practical problems for our opponent. This may include giving our opponent as many decisions to decide as possible. Because decisions take time and also provide the oppurtinity to take the wrong decision.