The Chess Game So Far

It's my move, and I guess what it will be is obvious.

I think the game is still even, though Rook has been more aggressive in grabbing space, as shown by the four men that he already has on his fourth rank, while I only have one on mine.

This is because earlier instead of getting right up in his face by playing the usual P-Q4, I chose the quieter P-Q3. The idea was to try to finish my development without provoking a squabble in the center at this early stage.

So Rook thinks he has something of an advantage in the all-important center, but I see things there as being equal. His QBP might be bearing on the center, but it's not really keeping me from playing P-Q4 even now or a little later. Instead his QBP is more a participant in his expansion on the Queenside.

I had been waiting to see what he would do with his white-squared Bishop, and on his last move he finally committed to keeping it on his Queen side. He probably sees it as bearing directly on the center, but I'm hoping it will turn out to be misplaced there, blocking a file that he might want for one of his Rooks.

The Q-side is Black's natural sphere of operations in this kind of line, whereas White's ambitions are on the Kingside. This can mean that, if the center remains stabilized, it becomes another case of who can get there first with the most, always an exciting situation. But this center doesn't have to stay stable.