Winning with the Najdorf Sicilian: An Uncompromising Repertoire for Black 9789056914295, 9056914294

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Winning with the Najdorf Sicilian

Zaven Andriasyan

Winning with the Najdorf Sicilian An Uncompromising Repertoire for Black

New In Chess 20 1 3

© 2013 New In Chess Published by New In Chess , Alkmaar, The Netherlands www.newinchess.com All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval sys­ tem or transmitted in any form or by any means , electronic, mechanical, photocopy­ ing, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission from the publisher. Photos: New In Chess archives Cover design: Angelo Spiler Supervisor: Peter Boe! Translation: Steve Giddins Proofreading: Rene Olthof Production: Anton Schermer Have you found any errors in this book? Please send your remarks to editors @newinchess.com. We will collect all relevant corrections on the Errata page of our website www.newinchess.com and implement them in a possible next edition. ISBN: 978-90-5 691-429-5

Contents

Preface by Levon Aronian.. ..... .............................. 8 Introduction by the Author...................... . . ........... . 9

Part I

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13

Chapter 1 -The Poisoned Pawn with 8.�d2 ..................... 14 Chapter 2 -The Poisoned Pawn with 8.�d3 ..................... 40 Chapter 3 -The Poisoned Pawn with 8.tt:'ib3 ..................... 65

Part II

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Chapter 4 - White Retreats the Bishop to b3 ..................... Chapter5 - 6.�c4 e6

7.0-0

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69

70

White Castles Kingside .............. 8 2

Chapter 6 - 6.�c4 e6 - White Alternatives on Move 7............. 112

Part III ................................................... 11 9 .

Chapter

7

- 6.�e3 eS: Knight goes to f3 ....................... 120

Chapter 8 - 6.�e3 eS: Knight goes to b3 ....................... 140

Part IV .................................................... 165 Chapter 9 -The Positional 6.�e2............................. 16 6 Chapter 10 - The Aggressive 6.f4............................. 18 0 Chapter 11 - Occupying the Flank: 6.a4........................ 192 Chapter 12 -The Fianchetto 6.g3 ............................ 198 Chapter 1 3 -The Poisonous 6.h3...... ...... .. .... ........... 20 9 Chapter 14 - Exercises ........ ................. . .. ......... 221 Solutions..................................... 23 1 Explanation of Symbols .................................... 242 General Conclusion ....................................... 243 Index of Variations....................... . ................ 245

Index of Players .. .. .. .. . .. ... . . ..... Biography of the Author. .... . .. ............ .. Bibliography .. .. .... .. ....... .... .... . . .

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249 253 254

Preface by Levon Aronian

Honestly speaking, I rarely buy opening books. Most of them seem like diet pills, with promises of a wonderful cure to an array of problems by using shortcut meth­ ods. We know where that all leads. In the few cases when I actively pursue a chess book is when I respect the author and in particular, when the author is a fellow professional. My relationship with Zaven is personal, we played for the same club 'Mika' for three years, and we have trained together on various occasions. I have also watched his progress from a young, promising player, with very little knowledge about openings, to a grandmaster that has devel­ oped quality opening knowledge and novel ideas (some of which I have used in some of my own games) . What I feel is essential in a good book is honesty and a truly personal approach to the assessment and evaluation of positions. This book clearly displays those values. I think that with the amount of Zaven's work and depth of knowledge shown in cer­ tain variations, this book will be very useful to players who would not only like to start playing the Najdorf with black but who also endeavour to acquire a deeper understanding of the most topical lines. I for one, might start thinking about read­ ing it myself! Levon Aronian April 20 1 3

7

Introduction by the Author

Dear chess friends, This book is devoted to an analysis of the Najdorf Variation of the Sicilian Defence. In my opinion the Najdorf can be considered not merely a variation, but a unique defence in itself, because the possibilities and variations are so many from both sides that the Najdorf itself is even larger than some other defences. Although the book is written for players who want to learn to play the Najdorf and also for amateurs who would like to learn some new information and interest­ ing traps in the line, this does not mean that the book is of no interest to strong players, as many useful pieces of advice can be found for them. Strong players will also appreciate the deep and correct analysis of sharp positions and the fresh and human look at the positional lines, plus the new comments on these types of posi­ tions. Although the Najdorf is considered to be only a sharp and tactical variation, there are also a lot of positional nuances and sacrifices of the positional type, such as the typical exchange sacrifice . . . ld'.xc3 for Black. I decided to write this book as the Najdorf is my favourite variation and I have been playing it for many years, with both colours. In recent years, when looking at books about chess openings, the idea came to my mind to write a book in a different way, one which will be more practical, and will include some novelties and a fresh look at the positions. It was also strange for me that although Armenia is one of the leading chess countries in the world, and our players and our national team are regularly on top, there is no chess opening book written by any of our players. This can be explained by the fact that our players don't like remembering variations and studying open­ ings, but prefer to improvise over the board. Our chess literature only consists of several books about chess problems and endgame studies. Before starting to play the Najdorf, I was playing the Dragon Sicilian, but at that time Black was facing serious problems in that opening, and I was regularly getting bad positions. It was becoming very difficult for me, every time I had to play the Dragon, as I tended to be in a very bad mood before the game. Then I realized that I should play a more correct and also more dynamic variation, which suited my style, and watching games of Kasparov, who was playing brilliantly at that time (the end of the 1 990s) , I started to learn the Najdorf and to play it. It became my main weapon. Now there are no tournaments where I don't use it, and with its help, I have won many important games. Indeed, it is amusing and perhaps logical, that I like to play in the Najdorf Memorial tournament, which is held every year in War­ saw. 9

Winning wi th t h e Naj d o rf S i c i l i an

Miguel Najdorf was a Polish grandmaster who ended up in Argentina in 1 9 3 9 at the beginning of World War II and became a successful businessman, a world-class grandmaster, and a colourful figure in the chess world. In the late 1 9 3 Os, he was one of the first to experiment with the move S . . . a6, which has the intention of prepar­ ing the central thrust . . . e7 -eS . Since the 1 9 S Os the variation has been associated with his name. The Najdorf Variation has helped me on Miguel Najdorf various occasions. One of the most important games of my life, where I played the Najdorf, was the 9th round of the World Junior Championship, when I needed to draw as Black to take my first grandmaster norm. I managed it, and after getting my GM norm, and com­ pleting the goal which I had set for myself before the tournament, I thereafter felt free and played with relief. One of the most important victories of my career was the winning of the Rus­ sian Cup in Belgorod 2 0 1 0 . Throughout this tournament I won several important games with the help of my favourite Najdorf. The book is written as a repertoire for Black, and covers all variations for White. The main idea of the book is that in all variations, Black tries to use a novelty first, to deviate from the main lines and surprise the opponent right from the beginning of the game, so as to make him feel uncomfortable. The book consists of 1 3 chapters, grouped into 4 parts, and I have tried to ana­ lyse all possible main moves which are played by White, and all possible strong an­ swers to these moves for Black. Even the moves which are played rarely by White and are not considered to be good ones, are covered here. This has been done for two main reasons: first to show the contrast with the good move which is shown in the book, and secondly, because the so-called 'secondary moves' are the ones pre­ ferred by some players, who like the positions which are created after these lines. However, the secondary lines are not given as much space as main lines such as 6.�gS , 6 .�c4 and 6.�e3 , which are played most often and preferred by the elite players, and where there are a lot of interesting games. In this book, another interesting move is covered in detail, namely 6 .h3 , which is becoming more and more popular nowadays. The advantages of this rather strange move are explained in the book. My approach in this book is that Black's main idea is to play . . . e7 -eS . The reason why Black plays S . . . a6 in the first place is that the immediate S . . . es runs into the IO

In tro du c t i on b y t h e A u t h o r

annoying 6 .�b S + . But after 6 .�gS and 6.�c4, Black has to change his plans, as we will see in Part I and II. While looking at the database and the games that have been played in recent years (after 2006) , we see that the most common move for White was 6 . ..te3 . The rea­ son for this (and the reason that your author also prefers this move) is this : in my opinion, 6 .�e3 is preferable because Black then has three main answers, and to all these three replies, White has many possibilities to continue the game, both posi­ tional and tactical, so all kinds of players can play this move. That is the reason why it is played so widely. The second most common move is 6 . .1gs . This is one of the oldest moves and it used to be regarded as causing the most trouble to Black. However, in recent years, with the help of strong computers Black has managed to solve his problems, as you will see in the relevant chapters of the book. As noted above, the move 6 .h3 is becoming trendy. When we look at the games which are being played all over the world each week, we see that 6 .h3 is being played more and more by strong players. At the end of the book, you can find a series of exercises, which are very important to solve, but only after reading and understanding the main points of the book. The exercises are in relation to the main ideas of the Najdorf. If you wish to check how well you have mastered the book, these exercises will be very useful. Those chess players who do not know the Najdorfbut wish to play it, after studying this book in detail and looking at the games in the database, will be able to play the Najdorf with black without any doubts, and be sure that they will not be in danger of falling into any traps; indeed, with the help of the book, the white opponent will be trapped first! For playing the Najdorf well, another useful piece of advice, which I followed during my studies, is to analyse the games of chess king Garry Kasparov, not with the help of the computer, but by just putting the position on the board and, maybe with a sparring partner, analysing the games. The important thing is not to try to remember the moves, but to understand why this or that certain move was played, and to try to understand the ideas that Kasparov implements. I would like to thank all the New In Chess staff, especially Peter Boel, who helped me with very good and useful advice and also with the work that he did on editing the book, and also Mr. Allard Hoogland, who believed in me and supported me in writing of the book. I must also express my great gratitude to my friend Levon Aronian, for his inter­ esting preface to the book. Zaven Andriasyan April 20 1 3

11

Part I

White plays 6.�g5

In the following three chapters, we will look at 6 .�gS , the most aggressive reply to the Najdorf Variation. This is the oldest and most poisonous move. Black has a mass of possibilities, and in most cases they lead to very sharp positions, with chances for both sides. In this book, we will look at the most principled and in my opinion, the strongest continuation for Black: 6 . . . e6 7 .f4 'i¥b6 - the glorious Poisoned Pawn Variation. In my opinion, after all the other standard continuations available to Black (nota­ bly 7 . . . it..e 7 , Polugaevsky's 7 . . . bS , 7 . . . tll b d7 , 7 . . . 'i¥c7 , 7 . . . h6 and one move earlier 6 . . . tll b d7 ) , White has ways to obtain an advantage, or else Black obtains a position which is perhaps not bad, but is very dangerous, and involves him in some difficul­ ties. The strong side of the move 7 . . . 'i¥b6 is that play assumes a concrete character, and if the black player knows the theory very well, and has in reserve some of his own ideas, then even against a strong opponent he will feel very comfortable. The line 7 . . . °iVb6 first became popular in the 1 9 60s, especially after it was used several times by Bobby Fischer, who was always happy to grab pawns. Later, his ex­ ample was followed by the other immortal practitioner of the Najdorf Variation, Garry Kasparov. One can also not overlook the contribution to this variation made by the former world champion Mikhail Tal, who played many theoretically impor­ tant games on both sides of the position. After 7 . . . �b6 , White has two main continuations: 8 .°iVd2 and 8 .'tik'd3 . Here White can also play the move 8 .tll b 3 , which is not the most principled and does not allow him to fight for an opening advantage. However, the move has its pluses: it avoids forcing variations and permits a long and complicated struggle, where the chances of the two sides are about equal. 13

Winning w i t h the Naj dorf S i c i l i a n

Chapter 1

The Poisoned Pawn with 8. 'iYd2 1.e4 c5 2.4Jf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.4Jxd4 4Jf6 5.4Jc3 a6 6.itg5 e6 7.f4 'i¥b6 8.'i¥d2

In this chapter we will look at 8 .'t!iYd2 . After this, Black takes on b2, White plays 9 . .l:!.b l and Black plays the only move 9 . . .'t!iYa3 . Here White has two main continua­ tions: the old move 1 0 .fS , after which a forced draw results, or 1 0 .eS, when we reach a very sharp position, with mutual chances. We will look at the second possibility in the next chapter. In Chapter 3 we will take a closer look at the cautious 8 . tll b3 . 1 .e4 c5 2.tllf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.tll xd4 tllf6 5.tllc3 a6 6.�g5 e6 7.f4 'ii' b 6 8.'ifd2

The old move, which is probably the most dangerous for Black, although in recent times, many have played 8. 'it'd3 . The position is always very sharp and interesting, basically dynamically equal, but both sides must know it well and be prepared for unexpected surprises. 8...'ifxb2 9.I:l'.b1

Here White has an important alterna­ tive in 9.tllb 3 . This variation has never 14

been very popular, although i t was fa­ mously used by Spassky against Fischer, and also by Short in his match against Kasparov. However, they did not find many followers, which is understand­ able when one looks at the position. Black has a number of ways to repulse the white threats to trap the enemy queen. White starts by shutting off the retreat down the b-file, and introduces the threat of 1O .a3 , hence the reply 9 'iVa3 . This is my preference. In the oldest re­ corded game of the Poisoned Pawn, Nezhmetdinov-VScherbakov, Riga •••

Chapter

1

-

T h e P o i s on e d Pawn wi th 8. \W d 2

1 8 ..l he5 tll x e4 1 9 .�xf7 + with equality, Tal-Zaid, Moscow 1 9 7 3 . 1 7 ...tll f6 1 8.tllxf6+ �xf6 1 9.�xf6 gxf6 20.'i¥xf6 �gS=F 2 1 .�h7 �e 7 ! 2 2.'ti'xe7 + �xe7 2 3 .�xgS ]lfs 24.�xf7 �xf7 Black is slightly better, as he has the superior pawn structure and rook and bishop tend to be better in the ending than rook and knight; B) 1 O.�xf6 gxf6 1 1 .�e2 tllc 6 1 2 .0-0 Boris Spassky

1 9 5 4, Black chose 9 . . . tll c 6 , intending 1 0 .a3 tll a 5 . White continued 1 0 .�d3 (1 O .�xf6 gxf6 1 1 .tll a4 'iVa3 1 2 .tll b 6 �b8 1 3 .tll c4 'lWa4 unclear) 1 O . . . d5 (1 O . . . 'i¥a3) 1 l .]lxf6 gxf6 1 2 .tll a4 'iVa3 1 3 .tll b 6 tll d 4? when the surprising 1 4.�b l ! 'iVxa2 1 5 .c3 would have won material. 1 3 . . . d4 1 4.0-0 Jd.b8 was the right way to progress.

A) 1 0.]ld3 �e7 1 1 .0-0 h6 1 2.�xf6 1 2 .�h4?! tllxe4 1 3 .tll xe4 ]lxh4 1 4.f5 exf5 1 5 .�b5+ axb5 1 6.tllx d6+ �f8 1 7 . tll x c8 tll c 6 + , Spas sky-Fischer, 7th match game, Reykjavik Wch 1 9 7 2 . 1 2 ...�xf6 1 3 .eS dxeS 1 4.tll e4 tlld 7 l 4 . . . �e7 ! ? 1 5 .tllxf6+ 'lWxf6 1 6.�ae l exf4 1 7 . Jd.xf4 and for his two pawns, White has a strong attack, which com­ pensates for the material deficit. 1 S.fS exfS 1 6.�xfS �e7 1 7.'iVf2 1 7 .]lc4 tll f6

Here Black has a choice of three main continuations, all of which are OK and lead to the same sort of position, where he has no special problems, but where White's compensation for the pawn gives him chances to equalise: B 1 ) 1 2...�g7 1 3.�f3 0-0

1 4.�afl 1 4. � h l f5 ! (in case of 1 4 . . . �d8 ? ! 1 5 .�g3 White has a strong attack, because Black has not played . . .f6-f5 , opening the long diagonal and so obtaining counterplay : 1 5 . . . d5 1 6 . exd5 f5 1 7 . �d 1--+ Kasimdzhanov­ Polgar, Moscow 2002) 1 5 .exf5 exf5

15

Winn i n g w i t h the Naj d o rf S i c i l i a n

1 6 .!iafl 0i e 7 - Black has n o problems and can fight for the advantage himself: 1 7 .0id5 0ixd5 l 8.'i¥xd5 �e6 l 9 .'i¥xb7 'i¥xa2 2 0 .lig3 Wh8+ Gheorghiu­ Quinteros, Cleveland 1 9 7 5 . 14 ...f5 ! Al­ though it spoils the black pawn struc­ ture, this strong move gives him good counterplay, after which he has no need to fear the white attack. 1 5.exf5 exf5 1 6 . .l:!.g3 'ltih8 1 7 .tlld5 .ie6 1 8 ..l:!.xg7 'ltixg7 1 9. 'iY c3 + f6 2 0 .tll c 7 .ixb3 2 1 .axb 3 't\Yc5 + 22.'iYxc5 dxc5 23.tllxa8 .l:!.xa8 24..if3 .l:!.d8 25.�xc6 bxc6= Volokitin-Areschenko, Eilat tt 2 0 1 2 ; B2) 1 2 ... hS 1 3.Ci:ib l °iVb4?! 1 3 . . . °iVa4! 1 4.°iVe3 0ib4 1 5 .nc l °iVd7 1 6.0i l d2�. 1 4.°iVe3 ! Here, however, Black has some problems, because the queen stands badly on b4, depriving the knight of that square, from where it would attack the c2-pawn, and open a path back for the queen. 1 4 ... d5 1 5 .exd5 0i e 7 1 6.tllc 3 0if5 1 7.1\Vd3 1!Yb6+ 1 8 . .l:!.£'2 'i¥ e 3 ? ! l 8 . . . �d6oo . 1 9.0ie4 'tl¥xd3 20 ..ixd3 11..e 7 2 1 ..l:!.el 'ltif8 22.dxe6 11..x e6 2 3 .tll e c5 ;!; Mecking-Tal, Las Palmas 1 9 7 5 ; B3) 1 2 ....id7 and now:

B3 l ) After 1 3 . .l:!.f3 .l:!.c8 1 4. .l:!.dl h5 1 5.'ltihl h4 l 6.e5 f5 ( l 6 . . .fxe5 ! 1 7 .0ie4 'i¥b4:f) 1 7.exd6 the game has a dou­ ble-edged character, where the chances are equal : 1 7 ... 11.. g 7 1 8 . .l:!.e3 'ltif8 16

1 9 .Ci:ibl 'i¥b4 20.c4 b 5 2 1 .cxb5 axb5 22 . .l:!.cl .l:!.d8 2 3 .tll c 5 �d4 24 . .l:!.b3 'il!Yxd2 25.tllx d7+ .l:!.xd7 26.0ixd2 .l::[xd6 27.�xb5 tlla5 28 . .l:!.d3 1/i-1/2 Azarov­ Giri, Rogaska Slatina 2 0 1 1 ; B3 2) 1 3 .f5 ? ! h5 ! There is no reason to allow the opponent to deprive us of castling rights: 1 3 . . . 0ie5 ? ! 1 4.fxe6 fxe6 l 5 .�h5 + Wd8 1 6 . .l:!.ab l .l:!.c8 1 7 .0ie2 �e7 1 8 .0if4 Wc7 1 9 .�e2 Wb8 - an interesting position, where the black queen is unable to return home and White has counterplay for the sacrificed pawn. The evaluation is unclear, Tal-Portisch, Biel izt 1 9 7 6. 1 4.fxe6 fxe6 1 5 . .l:!.xf6 o-o-o+ ; B 3 3 ) 1 3 ..ih5 Not a terribly danger­ ous move. The idea is to bring the rook to f3 and h 3 , and not allow Black to cas­ tle queenside. 1 3 ... .ig7 1 4. .l:!.f3 0-0 1 5 . .l:!.afl 0ia5 16 . .l:!.h3 tllxb3 1 7.axb3 .!:!.ac8:f although later on, the great at­ tacking genius managed to mate his op­ ponent, Tal-Platonov, Dubna 1 9 7 3 ; B 3 4) 1 3 .tllb l 'i¥b4 1 4.1\Ye3 tll e 7 1 5.c3 1 5 . a 3 'i¥a4 l 6.f5 .l:!.c8 1 7 . .id3 e5 1 8 . 0i l d2 d5:f. 1 5 ... 'i¥a4 Black is slightly better, as he has successfully solved the issue of his queen, and re­ tained his extra pawn; B 3 5 ) 1 3 .'ltihl

B3 5 1 ) 1 3 ... h5 1 4.Ci:ib l 1 4.Ci:id l .l:!.c8 1 5 . 0ie3 'i¥b4 (it was also possible to prevent the knight coming to c4 with

C h ap t er

1 S . . . bS ! ?=F, when it is not clear how White can continue the attack) 1 6 .c3 Vi'xe4 1 7 .1l.d3 �a4 1 8 . tll c4 .l:tc7 1 9 .tll b 6 �a3 . Now White decides to take a risk and not repeat the position: 2 0 . .l:!ae 1 ? ! tll e 7 2 1 . tll c 4, but now this exchange sacrifice 2 1 . . . .l::!.xc4! gives Black the advantage: 2 2 .�xc4 h4=F Short-Kasparov, 4th match game, London Wch 1 9 9 3 . 1 4...�b4 1 5.�e3 d5? A strong move is 1 S . . . tll e 7 ! , freeing the square c6 for his queen. The position would then be unclear. 1 6.exd5--+ CfJe7 1 7.c4 CiJf5 1 8.°iVd3 ! t h4? 1 9.1l.g4± Spassky-Fischer, 1 1 th match game, Reykjavik Wch 1 9 7 2 ; B 3 S 2 ) 1 3 ... .l:!.c8 and now: B3 S 2 1 ) 1 4.tll d l is an attempt to transfer the knight to c4, but I do not like this idea: 1 4 ... 1l.g7 1 5.tll e 3 b5! Not allowing the knight into c4 and solving all his problems in the process; B 3 S 22) 14.l:lf3 h5 ! A strong move, which stops White playing l:!h3 , with the idea of �hS , while Black himself will play . . . hS -h4 and seize space. 1 5.l:tdl ke7 ; B3 S 2 3 ) 1 4.l:tad l 1l.e 7 1 4 . . . �g 7 ? l S .tll b l ! and the pawn on d6 is hang­ ing. 1 5.kh5 .l:!.g8! ? Black wants to put his rook on g 7 , where it is wonderfully placed, and will defend the pawns on f7 and h 7 . Or 1 S . . . l:rf8 1 6 . .l:!.f3 'it'd8 ! 1 7 . .l:!.d3 l:tc7 1 8 .tll b 1

1

-

T h e P o i soned Pawn w i t h 8 . tWd 2

1 8 . . . Vi'a4 ( 1 8 . . . �b4! ? and Black even has the choice of playing for a win) 1 9 . tll c 3 � a3 = Luther-Kir. Georgiev, France tt 2 0 0 3 ; B 3 S 24) 1 4.�h5 1l.g7 1 5.f5 But this is another idea: Black is stopped from playing . . . f6-fS , but now instead he ob­ tains the square es for his knight, where it controls important squares and helps the defence. After 1 S .l:If3 0-0, de­ spite the fact that White will attack the king with all his pieces, real threats are not to be seen, whilst Black is always ready with the typical blows . . . e6-eS and .. .f6-fS . The bishop on g 7 defends all the weak squares on the kingside, for example 1 6 . .l:i.afl 'it'h8 1 7 . .l:i.h3 tll e 7 1 8 .eS dS 1 9 .tll e4 dxe4 2 0 .�xd7 fs + Kosteniuk-Karjakin, Cap d' Agde rapid 2 0 0 6 . 1 5 ... 0-0 1 6 . .l:!.f3 tll e 5 1 7 . .l:!.g3 Wh8 Black has the advantage, as he has an extra pawn and two bishops, and al­ though White too has his plusses, his attack is not easy to continue. For exam­ ple: 1 8 . .l:!.fl b5 1 9.tll e2 �xa2 20.tll ed4

20 ... �b2 ! ( 2 0 . . . tll c 4? 2 1 .�f4 es 2 2 .�g4 l:tg8 2 3 . 1l.xf7 1l.h6 24.�xg8+ 1 -0 Kosteniuk-Grischuk, Moscow Wch blitz 2009) and it is not obvious how White should continue his attack. The black knight is needed on eS , to defend the important square g4. 2 1 .�e3 exf5 22.exf5 l:!.fes+.

17

Winning w i t h t h e Naj d o r f S i c i l i an

Back to the main line 9 .l::r b 1 . 9 'ifa3 ...

Here the paths diverge; White has a rich choice, but there are many variations he cannot play, because Black is very pre­ cisely prepared and knows how to re­ fute the white attack, so probably only one move remains. This is: 1 0.e5

A) 1 0.�xf6 ! ? gxf6 1 1 .�e2 ( 1 1 .fS .ih6 !) and now:

The position reached is very sharp; White has sacrificed a pawn, but is ahead in development. The idea of the move .ie2 is to castle kingside quickly and continue with f4-f5 , attacking the light squares: A 1) Black has no time to lose, and he must develop his pieces. He also needs to exchange a pair of minor pieces, to 18

reduce White's initiative. Black has one other significant plus on his side - the weakening of the dark squares in White's camp. 1 1 ... ti:lc6 1 2.ti:lxc6 bxc6 1 3.0-0 'ifas 1 4.\tihl

Al 1 ) 14 ...dS This move looks aggres­ sive, but it is not. Its idea is simple: Black needs to develop his dark-squared bishop, because on e7 , it stands very badly. And once . . . d6-d5 has been played, the bishop has the diagonal a3 -f8 , along which it can come into play effectively. A l 1 1 ) 1 5.exdS ! ? cxdS 1 6.fS �d6 White wants to open all lines, whilst Black is still undeveloped and has not managed to evacuate his king from the centre. Here Black needs to develop his bishop, and he has two main options: if he could play . . . .ig 7 and castle, he would be fine, but this is not possible, because he comes under a strong attack, for example 1 6 . . . .ig? ? ! 1 7 .�e l ! l::r a 7 1 8 .fxe6 fxe6 19 . .ihs + \tid8 2 0 .�g3 �cl 2 l .�e3;!;. For this reason, Black puts the bishop on d6. 1 7.fxe6 Jl.xe6 Black seeks to consolidate his pieces. White must not forget that Black has an extra pawn and two very strong bish­ ops. 1 8.l::r xf6 Jl.es 1 9.�h6 'i¥xc3 20.l::r x e6 + fxe6 2 1 .1li'xe6+ @dS 22.Jl.g4 l:la7 23.�xdS + \tie7! Not 2 3 . . . \tie8 ?? 24 . .11.h s+ \tif8 2 5 .°ifd8+

C h apter 1

�g7 2 6 .'iWgS + @f8 (Shmuter-Timo­ shenko, Nikolaev zt 1 9 9 3 ) because of 2 7 .J::!'.fl + and White wins: Black must give up the queen to avoid immediate mate, but even then, the computer con­ firms that he will be mated in another 1 4 moves. . 24.l:i.fl �f6 2S.'iWe6+ @f8 26.l:i.xf6 + @g7 2 7.l:i.fl l:i.f8=; A l 1 2) 1 5 .f5 �b4 1 6 .l:i.b3 dxe4 and now:

Al 1 2 1 ) 1 7.°iYd4 �xc3 1 8.l:i.xc3 e5? Here Black could have played 1 8 . . .'iWeS and obtained an equal endgame with 1 9.'iWxeS + fxeS 2 0.f6 l:rb8=. Of course Kortchnoi saw this, but knowing Viktor Lvovich's uncompromising fighting character, he understood the dangers of 1 8 . . .es , but remained true to himself and went in for the complications: 1 9.'iWe3! �d7 20.l:i.c5 'iWd8 2 1 .'iVxe4 0-0 22.l::txe5 �e6? Simply a blunder, after which he loses at once; 22 . . .l:i.e8! . 23.fXe6 fXe5 24.exf7 + 1 -0 . After l:rf7 there follows �c4. Minic-Kortchnoi, Rijeka tt 1 96 3 ; A 1 1 2 2) White i s two pawns down and a third is hanging, and he is pinned, so radical measures are needed. The following exchange sacrifice even gives him chances of fighting for an ad­ vantage: 1 7 .l:rxb4 'iYxb4 1 8.a3 e3 1 9.'iYxe3 'iYxa3 20.fxe6 �xe6 2 1 .�f3 0 - 0 2 2 .�e4 l:r.ad8 2 3 .1\Yg3 + @h8 24.'iVh4 f5 25.1\Yf6+ @g8= .

-

T h e P o i s on e d Pawn w i t h 8 . �d2

A l 2) 1 4...�e7 Black wants t o com­ plete his development quickly and get his king out of the centre. Now:

A 1 2 1 ) 1 5 .f5 h5 Black can exchange e-pawns, and the computer considers 1 S . . . exfS to be OK, but quite frankly, I do not like this idea, because I see no reason to spoil the pawn structure and open the e-file in front of the black king. 1 6.�f3 @f8 1 6 . . . �d7 1 7 .l:i.b7 h4 1 8 .h3 . 1 7.l:i.b3 If we look at the posi­ tion after 1 7 .fxe6 �xe6, we can see that Black has practically completed his de­ velopment and his king stands very well on f8 . Later the queen can occupy the excellent square eS and Black has an ex­ tra pawn, but he also has some weak­ nesses, which provide White with some compensation. If 1 7 .. .fxe6 1 8 .eS ! is a freeing pawn sacrifice, after which all the white pieces come to life and White's attack is very dangerous, for ex­ ample : 1 8 . . . dxeS 1 9 .�xc6 l::i. a 7 2 0 .1\Ygs fS 2 1 .�g6 'iWxc3 2 2 .l:!:b8 ; or 2 1 . . .l:i.c7 2 2 . tt:'ids exdS 2 3 .J::!. b 8 f4 .ld.h7 2 4.�e8 l:rxd 7 2 S .�d7 2 6.'iWxh7 + - . 1 7 ...h4 Black needs a waiting move, which does not spoil his position, and this move also has an­ other small plus - the pawn will not be hanging on h4. Or 1 7 . . . �a7 1 8 . .l:i.b8 'iWc7 1 9.l:rfb l dS - with this move, Black announces that he is not prepared 19

Winning w i t h t h e Naj d o r f S i c i l i a n

to wait passively and see how White strengthens his position. He is also pre­ pared for sharp counterplay; A l 22) 1 S . .ld.f3 hS 1 5 . . . .l:!.a7 1 6 .�e3 (if l 6 . .l::!.b 8 �c7 ; there is a simple chess principle - if you are material up, ex­ change pieces) 1 6 . . . .ld.b7 ! ? 1 7 . .ld.xb7 �xb7 l 8 .�a7 �c8D. 1 6 . .ld.d3 .ld.a7 1 7.�e3 1 7 . .ld.b8 �c 7 . 1 7 ... J:!.b 7 1 8 . .ld.xb 7 �xb7 1 9.�a7 �c8 ; A l 2 3 ) 1 S .�d3 0-0 1 6 . .b!.f3 @h8 1 7 . .ld.h3 fS l 8 .�f3 dS 1 9 .exfS exfS 2 0 .�xdS cxdS 2 l .�e2 �h4 2 2 .�hS f6 2 3 .�xh4 .ld.a7 24 . .l:!.d l .I:l.g7 25 . .l:.xdS �a3 26 . .ld.g3 .l:!.xg 3 + Hovhannisyan­ Ter Sahakyan, Lake Sevan 20 1 0 . Black exploits the opponent's weak back rank. A2) 1 1 ...�g7!?

John Nunn

20

Black decides first to develop his kingside pieces, in order to be able to castle if necessary, but he also has one other strong idea, involving the pawn sacrifice . . .f6-fS . A2 1 ) 1 2.fs �h6 1 3 .�d3 �cs 1 4.fxe6 1 4.tt::l a 4? �as + . 14 ... fxe6 1 S.�g4 ( 1 5 .�b3 0-0)

Two games have been played here, both with the move . . . l:rg8, which is bad for Black - see the variations below. How­ ever, the natural move 1 5 . . . tt::lc 6 equalises: A2 1 l ) 1 S ... .ilg8? 1 6.�xe6 .ld.xg2 1 7.�xc8 .ld. d2 1 8.�g3 �xd4 1 8 . . . .l:lxd4 1 9 .�e6±. 1 9.�g8+ �f8 20.tt::l e2 .ld.xe2+ 2 1 .@xe2+- White has an extra exchange and a winning posi­ tion, and there is no perpetual to be found for Black; A2 1 2) 1 S ... tt::l c 6N This move and the subsequent variation was analysed by Nunn in his book The Complete Najdorf 6.�g5. But I have added to his analysis the move 1 7 . . . . bS (see below) , a natu­ ral move that leads to equality. I ana­ lysed this position a lot on the board, because it seemed to me that White had a big advantage. But when I switched on the computer, I was shocked at the miraculous ease with which it held the position. Despite all my efforts to show an advantage for White, I was unable to

Chapter 1

do so. I should like also to commend Nunn's magnificent work in his book, which he wrote back in 1 9 9 6 . Check­ ing his variations today, I was surprised how he managed to do such work with­ out the help of modern-day computers. 1 6.tt:Jxe6 �xe6 1 7.�xe6 bS Not 1 7 . . . tt:Jb4? 1 8 . .l:Ixb4! 'iYxb4 1 9 .0-0± with great attack for White. Now:

A2 1 2 1 ) l S.tt:ldS ltJd4D 1 9 . .!d.b 3 ! ? 1 9 .'iYh3 tt:Jxc2+ 2 0 .Wdl ltJe3 + = ; and 1 9 .tt:Jxf6+ Wd8 2 0 .�b3 Ii.f8 2 1 .Ii.fl Ii.c8 2 2 .c3 'iYxc3+ 2 3 .'iYxc3 .l:!.xc3 24.ltJdS .t!.xfl + 2 5 .Wxfl .i::!. c S = are both equal. 1 9 ... tt:Jxe6 1 9 . . . ltJxb3 20 .axb 3 ;!; ; the move l 9 . . . b4 also leads to equal chances, but it was better to re­ frain from 1 9 . . . tt:Jxe6, which leads to a forced draw. 20.'iYh3 0-0!? Castling is more solid and leads to a forced draw, whilst with 20 . . . ltJf4, White remains a pawn down but with excellent com­ pensation: 2 l .ltJxf4 �xf4 2 2 .'iYe6+ Wd8 2 3 .'tWxf6+ Wd7 24.'iYg 7 + We6 2 5 .'tWg4+ We7 2 6 .'tWxf4 .l:!.hf8 2 7 .'iYh4+ We8 is equal. 2 1 .'iYxh6 WhS 22.tt:Jxf6 l::ta 7 23.l:th3 'iWb4+ 24.We2 �c4+ 25.We l 'i¥b4+ 26.c3 'iVb l + 2 7.@f2 'i¥b2+ 2S.Wgl 'iYb l + and Black keeps the perpetual; A2 1 2 2) 1 S.'iYh3 �e3 1 9 .ltJe2 leads to an interesting position with oppo­ site-coloured bishops, where both

-

T h e Po i s o n e d Pawn w i t h 8. � d 2

kings remain in the centre and cannot castle. Chances are equal; A2 1 2 3 ) 1 S.�b3! gives chances to fight for the advantage, but by accurate play, Black can hold: 1 S ... tt:Jd4 1 8 . . . .l::!.c 8 1 9 .tt:Jds ltJb4 2 0 . tt:Jxb4 'iix b4+ 2 1 .We2 'iYc3 2 2 . a'.bfl We7 23 . .!d.fs ;t . 1 9 ..l:!.fl .!:!.cs 20.tt:Jds tt:Jxc2+ 2 1 .�xc2 'iYxc2 22.tt:Jxf6+ We7 2 3.ltJdS + @es 24.'i¥xc2 .l:!xc2 2S.a4 l::tf8 =. All) With 1 2.0-0 White follows his plan and completes his development, and only then starts active operations:

1 2 ... fs 1 3.1:!'.fdl After 1 3 .Wh l 'iYcs Black has a large advantage, and it is not clear how White can avoid material losses, Nakamura-Novikov, New York 2 00 1 ; 1 3 .exfS 'li'cS 1 4 . .l:!.bd l tt:Jc6; or 1 3 . �f3 'iY cS , when White has fallen into a pin and his weak dark squares tell. He cannot avoid material losses. A22 l ) 1 3 ... tt:Jc6 1 4.tt:Jxc6D �xc3 1 4 . . . bxc6 1 5 . .l::!. b 3 'iYcS + 1 6.Wh l with attack. There are no other moves which maintain equality. l S .'iWe3D bxc6 1 5 . . . �b2 ! ?. 1 6 . .!d.b3D 'li'cs 1 7.�xcS 1 7 . .l:!.xc3 1lWxe3 + 1 8 . .!d:xe3 @d7 ( 1 8 . . .fxe4 l 9 . .!d.xd6 We7 2 0 .l:!'.xc6 �d7 2 l . .l:i.a6 with a minimal advantage) 1 9 .exfS Wc7 . 1 7 ... dxcS 1 S . .l:!.xc3 fxe4 1 9.lhcS �d7 White is a pawn down, but Black's pawns are weak and White has enough compensation for a draw ;

21

Winning wi th t h e Naj d o rf S i c i lian

A2 2 2) 13 ...0-0 14.exfS 1 4.'it>h l fxe4. 1 4 ... exfs 1 5 .tt:Jds t2'ic6 1 5 . . . �cs . 1 6.t2'ixc6 1 6 .c3 ! ?. 1 6 ... bxc6 1 7.t2'ie7+ 1 7 .t2'ib6 . 1 7 ... @h8

Here White has several continuations, and a minimal advantage in all, but it is practically impossible to win such op­ posite-coloured bishop positions: A222 1 ) 1 8.�xd6 �xd6 l 8 . . . �e3 + 1 9 .'it>fl ; or l 8 . . . �xa2 ! ? . 1 9.ld.xd6 .2.e6 20.ld.b7 Visually, White's position looks very attractive, but it is impossible to obtain real advantages from it. 2 0 .c4 ld.fe8 2 1 . t2'ixc6 .2.f8 2 2 .ld.d2 .l::!. a c8 2 3 .tlJaS 1/2-1/2 Elent-Blanco Gramajo, corr. 2004; 2 0 .�f3 �xa2 2 l .ld.b6 �ad8 2 2 . .l:!.xd8 .l:!:.xd8 2 3 . t2'ixc6 l::t a 8 Figlio-Korosec, corr. 1 99 9 . 20 ... .l:!:.fe8 2 1 .ld.xc6 ..if8 22.lkc7 �xa2= ; A2 222) 1 8.t2'ixc6 i s the only way to avoid a queen exchange and opposite bishops, but now Black has no prob­ lems: 1 8 ... �cS+ 1 9.t2'id4 1 9 .'it>h l .2.e6 . 1 9 ... ld.e8 = ; A 2 2 2 3 ) 1 8.t2'ixc8 ld.fxc8 l 9 . �xd6 �xa2 2 0 .�cS �e6 2 l .�d3 �d5 with an absolutely equal position. A23) 1 2.ld.b3 �as 1 3.fs o-o 1 4.0-0 This transposes to 1 3 .f5 . 14 ... t2'ic6 1 6 .�xd6 ld.a7 1 5 .tllx c6 bxc6 1 6 . . . exfS ! ?= . 1 7 . .2.d3 ld.d7 1 8.�g3 In the event of l 8.�xc6 ld.c7 1 9 .�a4 �e5 Black has excellent compensation 22

for the sacrificed pawn. 18 ... .!ld4 1 9.a3 exfS 20.exf5 ld.e8 2 1 .t2'ie2 l:ta4

An unclear position, in which each side has his pluses, but the position remains roughly equal. Now let us turn to the move 1 0 .f5 , with which White begins an attack at once, without first developing his pieces. B) 1 0.fS

1 0 ...t2'ic6 1 1 .fxe6 This is the most accu­ rate move-order. If instead 1 1 . t2'ixc6 bxc6 l 2 .fxe6 , Black has l 2 . . . .2.xe6! and after 1 3 .�e2 .2.e7 1 4.0-0 ( 1 4.ld.xb7 .2.d8) 1 4 . . . 0-0 he has achieved every­ thing - he has completed his develop­ ment, castled, and White cannot even spoil his pawn structure. Black has the advantage. 1 1 . . . fxe6 1 2.t2'ixc6 bxc6 B 1 ) 1 3 .es dxeS 1 3 . . . t2Jd5 1 4. t2'ixd5 1 4. cxd5 is extremely risky. 1 4..2.xf6 gxf6 Most Najdorf players have probably analysed this position in detail at some

Chapter

time. Kasparov has shown how Black should defend here, and to this day, his line remains the correct one and has not been shaken even by the all-powerful computer. B l 1 ) 1 5 .i.e2? 'i:Yd6 1 6.'i:Ye3 Not 1 6 .il.h5 + We7-+.

1 7.'i!Yf3 �b4 Bl 1 1 ) 1 6 ... 'i:Yd4! 1 8.'i:Yxc6+ l 8.ld.xb4? 'i:Yxb4 l 9 .�xc6+ We7 -+ . 1 8 ... We7 1 9.'i:Yxa8 �xc3+ 20.Wfl l:td8 and Black is better; B l 1 2) 1 6 ...'i:YcS ! ? This interesting move was analysed by Nunn in his book. 1 7.'i:Yg3 il.e7 1 8.tlJe4 'i:Yxc2 and now: B 1 1 2 1 ) 1 9 .il.d3 'i:Yxa2 20.0-0 l:tf8 20 . . . fS transposes into 2 0 . . . ld.f8 after 2 1 .Wh l ld.f8 . 2 1 .Whl fs 22 . .!:!.fdl fxe4 23.il.xe4 'i:Ya4 24.'i¥g4 l:!.f4D 25.'li'hs + 2 5 .'ii' g 8+ il.f8 2 6 . il.xh7 ld.d4 2 7 .ld.fl l:!.f4= . 25 ... wfs 2 6 .'iYh6 + @es 2 7.'iYhS+=; B 1 1 2 2 ) 1 9.tt:Jxf6 + il.xf6 2 0 .il.h5 + 'it>ds 2 1 .0-0 �d7 22.Whl

I

-

T h e P o i soned P a wn w i t h 8. \W d 2

A strange position, where White is a piece and two pawns down, but Black cannot coordinate his forces. Such posi­ tions should end in a draw. The silicon monster says that almost all moves end in a draw, so I will give just a sample variation: 2 2 . . Jk8 2 3 .ld.bd l .!:If8D 24.�a3 ld.g8 2 5 .g3 'ife4+ 2 6.Wg l il.e7 2 7 .�xe7 + Wxe7 2 8 . .i::i.f 7+ We8 2 9 .l:tg7+ Wf8 3 0 .ld.f7 + = . B 1 2) 1 5 .tlJe4 As we have seen, 1 5 ..ie2 does not even give equalising chances. The text suits the position better, as it pre­ vents the black queen from returning to the centre, which is the key to White's whole play in this line. Black has to be very accurate, to avoid being mated. All the moves are concrete: 1 5 ...'iYxa2 This move arrived on the stage in the mid-sev­ enties. Kortchnoi's move 1 5 . . . �e7 , Black's main choice for many decades, has almost become obsolete because of 1 6.il.e2 hS and now the surprising 1 7 .ld.fl ! , first played by Nurlan Ibraev in 2003 . 1 6.l:!.dl il.e7

B l 2 1 ) 1 7.�d3?! f5 1 8.0-0 0-00 Not 1 8 . . . fxe4? ? 1 9 . .ie2 'iYdS (or 1 9 . . . hS 2 0.'iYc3 �d7 2 1 .'iYxeS ld.h7 2 2 .�xhS + Wd8 2 3 .'ii' d4 �a3 24.'ii'b 6+ Wc8 25 . .l:!.xd7 +-) when both 2 0 .'ii'h 6 and 2 0.'iYaS ! ! win for White. 1 9.'li'h6 If 1 9 . .l:!.f3 , it is possible to make a draw with 1 9 . . .fxe4 2 0 Jhf8 + il.xf8 23

Winning wi t h t h e Naj d o rf S i c i l i a n

2 1 .�gS+ @h8 2 2 .�f6+ @g8 2 3 . .l::tf l �a3 24.�£7 + @h8 2 S .�f6+=; or 2 S .itxe4 ..tcs + 2 6 .@h l .l::t a 7 2 7 .�e8+ @g7 2 8 .�hS @g8 . But with 19 . . . @h8 , Black can fight for a win: 2 0 .�h6 ..td7 2 1 ..l::t g 3 �f7 2 2 .tlJgS ..txgS 2 3 .�xgS �as 24 . ..te2 �cs + 2 S .@fl �e7 2 6 .�d2 e4 27 . ..ths f4 2 8 . .l::t g S - Black has defended well anti has a winning position, on account of his three extra pawns, Sophistry-PAKrnan, playchess. com 2 0 0 6 . 1 9 ..J!f7 20.l:.i.£'3 itd7+ B 1 22) 1 7 ...te2 0-0 1 8.0-0

This position has been seen many times. It has been played by Kasparov, Anand, Gelfand and Karjakin. In most cases, the games have ended in perpet­ ual check. It may all look simple, but this is not the case, and Black needs to know the concrete variations very well. B l 2 2 1 ) 1 8 ... fS ? ! 1 9.l:.i.f3 1 9 .�h6 �xc2 2 0 . .l:i.d3 �xe2 2 1 . .l::t g 3 + 'it>f7 2 2 . .l::t xfS + exfS 2 3 . l:rg 7 + @e8 24.�xc6+ @d8 2 S .�b6+ = .

Here is a small example of how one can lose most 'beautifully' : 1 9 ... fxe4? B 1 2 2 1 1 ) 20 . .l::txf8+ Here Black saves himself by a miracle: 20 ... @xf8 Not 20 . . . �xf8 ?? 2 1 .�g S + @h8 2 2 .�f6+ @g8 2 3 .iths l::i. a 7 2 4 . l:rfl itcs + 2 S .@h l +- . 2 1 .�h6+ @g8 22.ithS �as 2 3.itf7+ @h8 24. ..tg6 itcs + 25.@hl .l::ta 7 26 ...txh7 l::rxh7 2 7.�f6+ l:.i.g7 28.l:.i.d8+ @h7 29.�h4+ @g6 30.�g4+ @f7 3 1 .�hS +=; B 1 2 2 1 2) 20 . .l::tg 3+ Wh8 2 1 .�h6 l:.i.g8 22.l:.i.fl ! There was even one game here where White was unable to calculate the variation to the end, arid after mak­ ing a move which draws, then followed up with one that loses: 2 2 . .l::tx g8+ Wxg8 2 3 .iths �as 24 . ..tf7 + Wh8 2 S . ..tg 6 ! (Danin-Antipov, Zalakaros Open 2 0 1 1 , saw the losing 2 S .h3 ?) 2S . . . ..tcs + 2 6.Wh l l:i.a7 27 .�xh7 �e3 2 8 .�h4 .l:!.d7 2 9 .�fs + Wg7 3 0 .�h7+ Wf8 3 1 . �h8 + 'it>e7 3 2 .�h4 + = . 2 2 ...l:.i.a7

23.Whl ! .l::tb 7 24.l:tf7 l:.i.b l + 2s.itf1 l:.i.xfl + 26.l:.i.xfl 'i¥a5 2 7.h3 ! +- No comment! ; B 1 2 2 1 2) 1 9 ... f4!N It is strange that this move has not been seen in practice, since it is not obvious how White can fight for an advantage after this. The move closes the kingside and, most im­ portantly of all, takes control of the key

24

Chapter 1

square g3 : 20.�c3 t!.b8 2 1 .l:!.g3 + 2 1 ..!:f.h3 J::i.f7 2 2 .ti:Jd6 �xd6 2 3 .t!.xd6 �b l + 24 . .t:l.d l �b6+ 2 S .@h l �c7oo. 2 1 . . .fxg3 22.°iVxg3+ @h8 2 3.�xeS + 'itg8 24.�g3 + 2 4 . �xb8 �xc2 2 S .�g 3 + @h8 2 6.�eS+=. 24... 'ithS= B 1 22 2 ) The most precise path to a draw is 1 8 ... �a7! 1 9.�h6 1 9 . .l::!.f3 l::t d 7 20 . .!:f. g 3 + @h8 2 l .�h6 .t:l.xd l + 2 2 . .txd l .t:l.f7 2 3 .�hS 'i¥a5 24.'itfl �d8 2 S .�xf7 �xd l + 2 6 .@f2 'iYxc2+ 2 7 .'itf3 'iVd l + 2 8 .@f2 "liVc2 + = . This position is known from the games Vallejo Pons-Kasparov, Moscow 2 0 04, and Azarov-Kasparov Izmir Ech-tt 2 004. Here Black has two drawing lines, both equally good: 1 9 ... .i:td7 Or 1 9 . . . 'l!Hxc2 2 0 .tlJxf6+ .txf6 2 1 .l:lxf6 Wies + 2 2 .@h l .t:l.g7 2 3 .�c4 'l!He7 ( 2 3 . . . 'lWxc4? ? 24 . .t:l.xf8 + 'itxf8 2 S .Wif6+ and mate) 24.l::f.xf8 + Wixf8 2 S .�xe 6+ �xe6 2 6 .'iVxe 6 + J:lf7 2 7 . .!:f.d7 e4 2 8 .l::!. c 7 with a draw after a few more moves in R. Mamedov-Kir. Georgiev, Dubai 2 0 0 S . 20 . .t:l.d3 .!::i.xd3 2 1 .�xd3 f5 22.tlJgS �xg5 2 3.�xgS + 'ith8 24.�e 7 l::t g 8 2 S .�f6 + l::t g 7 26.�xa6 .txa6 2 7 ..!:f.dl �d3

28.�d8+ l:!'.g8 29.°iVf6+ l:!'.g7=; B2) 13 .te2 is an alternative intro­ duced in the mid-eigthies, because 1 3 .es leads to a draw, whereas this is relatively fresh: 1 3 .te7 1 4.0-0 0-0 1 S.l:!'.b3 •

•.•

-

The P o i s oned Pawn w i th 8 . \Wd2

�cs+ 1 6 ..te3 'iVes 1 7.�f4 �cs+ 1 7 . . . tt:Jxe4?! 1 8.tlJxe4 'i¥xe4 1 9.Ld6 .tlxfl + 20.@xfl .if6 2 l .�f3 'lWc4+ 2 2.°iWe2 �xe2+ 2 3 .@xe2;t. 1 8.'ithl

B2 l ) I prefer the move 1 8 ... tlJg4, which accurately equalises and leads to a draw after a sharp fight: 1 9.h3 es 20.tlJa4 �a7 2 1 .hxg4 exf4 22.�c4+ 2 2 .ti:Jb6 .te6 2 3 .tlJxa8 �xb3 24.axb3 �xa8 25 . .l:la l = . 22 ... 'ith8 23.tlJb6 dS 24.exdS cxdS 2S ..ixdS .bi.b8 26.tlJxc8 l:!'.bxc8 27.l:th3 2 7 .l:!'.xf4 l:rxf4 2 8 .'i¥xf4 l:!'.f8 2 9 .'i¥e3 l:!'.fl + 3 0 .@h2 �c7 + 3 l . g 3 �xc2 +=. 2 7 ...'ifb6 28.c4 h6= ; B 2 2 ) If Black cannot play for equality, he has to choose 1 8 ... ds , after which White will have an attack on the king and full compensation for the sacrificed pawn, but Black will have the chance to defend and keep his extra pawn: 1 9.eS tlJd7 1 9 . . . tlJe4 2 0. tlJxe4 dxe4 2 1 ..l:!.c3 (2 1 .c4 l:!'.f5 2 2 .�c2 g5 2 3 .l:!'.g3 @h8 24 . .tc l l::t.xfl + 25 .�xfl .td7 2 6.'i¥xe4 .tlf8 2 7 .i.d3 +- Palkovi-Magnusson, Budapest 1 98 7) 2 1 . . .'i¥d5 2 2.�e3 c5 23 . .l:rdl 1/2-'12 Luther-Stratil, Uzhgorod 1 9 8 8 . 20.ti:Ja4 °iVa7 2 1 .�c3 2 1 .l:!.bf3 c5 2 2 .c4 .tb7 2 3 .l:!'.g3 .l::!.f5 24.i.h6 .l:Ixfl + 2 5 . .ixfl g6 2 6.�d3 tlJxe5 2 7 .�e2 .id6 2 8.�f4 dxc4+- Brinck Claussen­ Holst, Copenhagen 2 0 0 5 . 2 1 ...tll c S 22.tlJxcS .txcS 23.°iVh3 g6 24. .tlg3? This looks like an intuitive move, but in 2S

Winning w i th the Najdorf S i c i l i an

such positions, one needs to calculate accurately. As White cannot sacrifice on g6 anyway, the rook should have gone to f3 , where it fights for the f-file, which is extremely important. 24...'i¥g7 25.�d3 a5? 26.'i¥g4 .id4 27 ..l:!.gf3 .td7 28.'i¥h4!± Rodriguez Cespedes-Ernst, Subotica Interzonal 1 9 8 7 . B 3 ) 1 3 . .txf6 gxf6 1 4.Ji..e 2 'iVas 1 s.o-o �e7 1 6 .Whl

1 4.tt:'ie6 fxe6 l 5.fxe6 tt:'ib6 1 6 . .!:!.xf6 itxf6D 1 7 . .ixf6 gxf6 1 8 . .ihS + Wd8 A crazy position, where Black is a rook up, but he has no moves, as his pieces are virtually paralysed. 1 9 .e7 + Wd7 ! 2 0.'l!Ve l Wxe 7 2 1 ..l:!.xb6 .te6 22 . .l:!.xb 7 + Wd8 2 3 .tt:'idS .ixd5 24.exdS .l:!.g8 25.'iVb l It seems White is about to give mate, but Black starts active operations in time, which forces White to settle for perpetual check. 25 ... 'i¥f2 26 . .!:!.bS + .!:!.xb8 2 7.'i¥xb8 + Wd7 28.'i¥b7+=. 10 ... h6

White has compensation for the pawn, but Black is slightly better because of his centre and the bishop pair; C) 1 o ..te2 is not so dangerous. White has not yet decided which pawns to advance, the e- or f-pawn, and so he plans to castle quickly. But the move has its minuses: Black will not just stand and wait, but will continue developing and will thus be more prepared for White's attacking actions, when they come. 1 0 ...tt:'ibd7 1 1 .0-0 'i¥c5 1 2.Whl Ji..e 7 1 2 . . . h 6 ! ? l 3 . .th4 .te7 . 1 3.fs e5

26

The move in fashion. Ever since 1 0 . . . tt:'ifd7 was refuted by 1 l .f5 ! in Keres-Fuderer, Gothenburg Interzonal 1 9 5 5 , the continuation 1 0 . . . dxeS 1 1 .fxeS tt:'ifd7 has been standard proce­ dure. Initially l 2 .�c4 was the most common reply but White has failed to crack 1 2 . . . 'iY a5 , so recently White pre­ fers 1 2 .tt:'ie4 when 1 2 . . . h6 ! 1 3 . .th4 ( 1 3 . .tbs ! ? is an exciting alternative) 1 3 . . . 'i¥xa2 1 4 . .l:!.d l ! leads to wild com­ plications. 1 1 .�h4 1 1 .�xf6 gxf6 is a sideline, but is inter­ esting, because it has not been analysed as deeply as the main lines, so one can hope to find something new.

Chapter 1

A) 1 2 .exd6! ? After this capture Black has a choice: either to follow Vallejo (Del Rio Angelis-Vallejo Pons, Spain tt 2 0 0 6) , or to play an interesting novelty. I think that in either case, Black has an acceptable posltlon, but after 1 2 . . . 'iYxd6 White can give perpetual check, as we will see, so we will also ex­ amine the move 1 2 . . .fS , which leads to a sharp battle and an unclear position: A l ) 1 2 ...'i¥xd6 1 3.4.Je4 'ii'd8 1 4.'ii'c 3 Jl.e7 1 s.lte2 1 5 .I'.i'.d 1 4.Jd7 ( 1 5 . . . �d7) 1 6.�e2 'iVb6 1 7 .0-0 fs =F. 1 5 ...t2Jd7 1 6.fS The only way for White to get compensation for the sacrificed pawn. 1 6.0-0?! bS 1 7 .�f3 �b7 1 8 .4.Jd6+ �xd6 1 9 .�xb7 l:ta7 2 0 .�c6 'ii'b 6 2 1 .Wh l b4 2 2 .'iYd2 �cs 2 3 .�a4 'ii'a s 24.�c6 'i¥b6 2 5 . l:!.fd l ( 2 5 .lta4=) 25 . . . 0-0 26 . .l::!.b 3 ltxd4 2 7 .'iYxd4 'i¥xd4 2 8 . .l:ixd4 4.Jb8 2 9 .�a4 a5 3 0 .fS = . 1 6 ... es

There is no way back, so White must go forward fearlessly. With the black king in the centre and the majority of his pieces unmoved, the following sacrifice is very dangerous: 1 7.4.Je6 fx.e6 and now: A 1 1 ) 1 8 .�hS + d l 'i¥xh4+: . 1 6 ... tll d 7 1 7.�e2 �d6=F ; B 2 ) Since the bishop will be hanging in the subsequent play, White has a good chance here to bring the bishop back: 1 5.�fl! ?N tll c 6 1 6 .e6 1 6 .tllx c6 'i¥xc6 1 7 .�e2 �cs 1 8 . 0-0 0-0 + . 1 6 ...�xe6 1 6 . . .fxe6 1 7 .tll x c6 bxc6 1 8 .�d3 �e7 1 9.�g6+ 'it>d7 2 0 .'i¥c3 �f6 2 1 .'iYcS �e7 = . 1 7.tllxe6 fxe6 1 8.�d3 0-0-0 1 9.0-0 �d6 20.'i¥e2 She8 2 1 .c4 tll aS 22Jk3 d4 23.Sc2 �cs+ 14...�xe6!

14.e61?

The dangerous white pawn needs to be eliminated, so it cannot cause Black trouble in the future. Thus, 1 4 . . . �e7 ? ! 1 S . exf7 + @xf7 1 6 .�xe 7 'i¥xe 7 + 1 7 .�e2i . 31

Winning w i t h the Naj d o rf S i c i l i a n

@f8 1 9 . .l::!.xb4 �xa2 2 0 .tt:lxa8 ! �a l + 2 l .@f2 �xh l 2 2 .tll b 6-t) l 8 . tt:lxa3 tt:lxb7 1 9 .tt:lbS .l::!. a4 with some counter­ play. 1 7.tt:lxe6 axbSD After Black's inac­ curacy on move 1 6 , White has a good choice between two continuations: B 1 1 1 ) 1 8.tt:lc7 + Wf8

1 5.tt:Jxe6

It is interesting that the move 1 5.lhb7!?N has so far not been seen in practice, because 1 5 . tt:lxe6, which has been played in all the games, does not give White anything clear. The game can continue: A) 1 5 ... �cS ! ? 1 6.tt:lxe6 fxe6 I 7 .�d3 0-0 1 8 .@dl es 1 9 .�e l e4 2 0 .�g3

1 9.Wdl ! ! .l::!.a4 20 . .l::!. e l Wg8 2 1 .tt:lxbS 'iVxa2 22.tllc 3 'iVal + 23.We2 .l::!.e4+ 24.tt:lxe4 "lia6+ 25.c4 'iVxb7 26.tt:lxcS tt:lxc5 2 7.°iVxdS White is slightly better, but objectively speaking, such positions are extremely difficult to win and are close to a draw; B l 1 2) 1 8.tt:lxcS 'tixc5 1 9.°iVe2+ Wf8 2 0 . .l::!. x d7 'i¥b4+ 2 1 .Wd l ! °iVd4+ 22.Wcl "lial + 23.Wd2 °iVd4+ 24.°iVd3 °iVxh4 25 . .l::!. fl f6 25 . . . �gS+ -

The mate threat has to be met. With the following knight sacrifice, Black de­ flects the white rook, and after this, the b2-square is freed for the black queen: 20 . . . tt:ld7 2 1 ..l::!.xd7 �b2 2 2 .�xe4 dxe4 2 3 .�b3 + �xb3 24.axb3 a 5 = ; B) 1 5 ...tt:ld7 B 1 ) 1 6.�bS The white knight needs the square bS and for this, White does not even begrudge his bishop. Now: B l 1 ) 1 6 ... �cS? ! Black should take on bS and sacrifice his queen: 1 6 . . . axbS 1 7 .tt:lxbS tt:Jcs ( 1 7 . . . �b4 1 8 .tt:lc7 + 32

2 6 .@e l !! .l::!. e 8+ 27 .@f2D d4 2 8 .Wg l ! f6 29.'i¥xd4;!; . 26.Wcl .l::!. e s 2 7.°iVxdS 'iVgs + 28.Wb2 "lixd5 29 . .l::!.xdS Wf7 3 0 .J:!.f3;j; B 1 2) 1 6 ... axbS 1 7.tt:lxbS .

Chapter

I

-

The P o i soned P a wn w i t h 8 . Vf d 2

2 2.'il'b4 �e3+ 23 .@g2 �xa3 24 . .l:rxd7 .l:rc3 25 ..l:rxd4 .l:rxc2+ 2 6.@f3 hd4 2 7.'i!Yxd4 .l:rxh2 ! ? (2 7 .. Jha2=) 2 8 .a4 .l:re8t. 22 ....l:rxa3 23 . .l:rel tll f6D 24.°iYcS .l:rfl=F the three minor pieces are stron­ ger than the queen, and the weak white king settles it; B l 2 2 1 2) 2 1 .tllb S ! -

1 7 ... �e7 ! ! I had found this brilliant sacrifice and hoped to use it, but have not been able to play it. Black only gets two bishops for the queen, but he has a very strong initiative, as we shall see: B 1 2 1 ) 1 8.�xe7 'M!Vxe7 1 9.tll c 7 + @f8 20.tl'ixa8 �g4+ 2 1 .@fl �f6 + 22.@g3 'ifes + 23.@xg4 2 3 .°YWf4 'i{{c 3 + 24.@f2 'iYxc2+ 2 5 .@g l 'i{{d l + 2 6 .@f2 °YWc2+ 2 7 .@g3 'i{{c 3 +=. 23 ... tl'if6+

24.@f3 °YWhs +o 2 s .@e3 'i{{ g s + o 26.@d3 °YWg6+ 0 2 7.@d4 °YWg4+D=; The white king has no way out of per­ petual check, because the white queen stands badly and is vulnerable to a fork vith the king. B l 2 2) 1 8.tll xa3 �xh4+ 1 9.g3 �gs B l 2 2 1 ) 20.'M!Vc3 0-0! and now: B 1 22 1 1 ) 2 1 .0-0 d4! 22.'M!Vxd4 The srrong pawn must be eliminated, even at e cost of the knight on a3 , which will elp the black pieces land a decisive blow the white king: 2 2 .°YWf3 ? �e3+-+;

2 1 ... �h3 ! A very important moment. Black stops his opponent castling, but he has only two minor pieces for the queen, and so he must play actively and create threats. 22.@fl 2 2 .tll c 7 .l:rxa2 2 3 .tllx dS li:Jf6 24.li:le7+ @h8 . 22 ...tll f6 23 . .l:rel li:le4+ 24 . .l:rxe4 dxe4 2S.li:Jd6 e3+ 26.@£3 hS ! The black bishop needs g4 to promote the black pawn, and there is no better way than this. 27 . .l:rbS �g4+ 28.@g2 �e?=F B 1 2 2 2) If White allows castling, as we know, he comes under a terrible at­ tack, so he prevents it with 20.°YWb4! �e7D 2 1 .°iYbSD

33

Winning w i th the Naj d o rf S i c i l i an

B l 2 2 2 1 ) 2 1 ...�xa3 !?+:t 22.0-0 itd8 t. White is pinned and all his dark squares are weak, whilst Black has two strong bishops. His posi­ tion is preferable. 1 2 ... 4Jc6 ! 1 3.lbxc6 bxc6 1 4.°iVxc6 + @dS 1 S.iJ.. d 3 1 5 .�xa8? �xc 3 + .

1 5 ... l:ta7! 1 6.°iVb6+ 'i¥xb6 1 7.l:txb6 and Black's position is more pleasant, as e has activated his two bishops and �te's position contains weaknesses on the dark squares; :\2) 1 1 .ile2N Here various moves .:iave been tried, but I have not found 2.:1)' advantage anywhere. I have there­ � re given this standard move, which mns at completing the development of e white pieces, opening the way to tling, and also sets a trap. -

-

T h e P o i soned Pawn w i t h 8 . �d3

A2 1 ) 1 1 . .. lbxe4? 1 2 .'ifxe4 'ifxc3 + 1 3 .�d2 d 5 1 4.'iYf4 .id6 1 5 .W!Yxd6 'ti'xd4 1 6 .fxe6+- ; A22) 1 1 . .. 4Jc6 1 2.lbxc6 It favours White to exchange on c6, so that after castling, Black cannot himself exchange on d4, bringing the white queen to the same diagonal as the king, with chances of a queen exchange. If 1 2.0-0?! tbxd4 1 3 .°iYxd4 ile7 ! ( 1 3 . . .°iYc5 ? 1 4.'ifxc5 dxc5 1 5 .ilxf6 gxf6 1 6 .fxe6 fxe6 1 7 .tba4;t) l 4.�e3 0-0 1 5 .'ti'd2 b5 1 6.ttJd5 'ifd8 1 7 .fxe6 fxe6 1 8 .tbxe7 + 'ifxe7+. 1 2 ...bxc6 1 3.0-0 l 3.ild2 'i¥c7 1 4.0-0 exf5 1 5 .@h l ile7 1 6.exf5 0-0 1 7 .'ifg3 l:te8 1 8.ild3 �f2=. 26.l:tb8 @c7 with a draw, Gao Rui-Andriasyan, China tt 2 0 1 2 . A4) 1 1 .�d2 This is the principled and strongest reply to my favourite move 1 O . . . iVa5 .

A4 1 ) 1 1 . .. iVc? 1 2.�e2 1 2 .fxe6 fxe6 1 3 .�e2 tbc6 transposes. 1 2 ... tLic6 1 3.fxe6 1 3 .tbxc6 bxc6 1 4. 0-0 exf5 This idea has been seen several times in these lines; the point is not to give iVhite the choice of when to exchange on e6, opening the f-file. Now if White replies l 5 .exf5 , then the f-file remains closed, and instead the e-file is opened. But that shouldn't be a problem since Black has already castled. 1 5 _j)_e3 ( 1 5 .exf5 d5 =F ; 1 5 .@h l j)_e7 1 6.exf5 0-0 1 7 .iVg3 @h8 1 8 .j)_d3 I:i.e8=F)

1 5 . . . l:tb8 1 6 .l:[xb8 iVxb8 1 7 .iVc4 iVa8 1 8 .exf5 j)_e7 1 9 .iVf4 0-0 2 0 .g4 h6 2 1 .h4 tLih7=F. 1 3 ...fxe6 1 4.tbxc6

We have already seen what happens af­ ter the recapture with the pawn on c6. In all cases Black is OK, but even so, if one looks at it from a purely practical viewpoint, it is very hard for Black to play those lines if he does not have good analysis checked sufficiently deeply with a strong computer : A4 1 1 ) 1 4 ... bxc6 1 5.0-0 1 5 .e5 dxe5 transposes. 1 5 ... �e? 1 6.e5 dxeS 1 7.'tWh3 With 1 7 .tbe4 ! ? White has compensation for the pawn, but it is not more than enough to equalise, since Black can play the position quietly: 1 7 . . . 0-0 1 8 .tLixf6 + j)_xf6 1 9 .�e4 j)_d7 2 0 .h4 j)_e8 2 1 .h5 'iWd6 2 2 .�e3 iVd5 2 3 .'iWg4 e4 24.l:tb4 c5 2 5 .�c4 iYxh5 2 6 .j)_xe6+ @h8 27 .l:txe4 - Black has an extra pawn and every chance of win­ ning, Goh Weiming-Lu Yijie, Kuala Lumpur Open 2 0 1 0 . 1 7 ... 0-0 1 8 ..1d3 a5 1 9.tbe4 tLixe4 20.�xe4 and now: A4 1 1 1 ) Black has two extra pawns, but for the moment, he has some pieces undeveloped, and needs to think about how to bring them into play as quickly as possible, even if this is at the cost of a pawn: 2 0 ... g6 2 1 .�e3 and now: 2 1 . ..l:tf5 In case of 2 1 . . . ..ta6 2 2 . l:txf8+ .l::!.xf8 2 3 .'li'xe6+ @g7 24.'li'xc6 'li'xc6 43

Winning

w

i th the Naj d orf S i c i l i an

2 S .i[xc6 i[b4, Black's position is slightly more pleasant, but chances are equal. 2 2 . g4 After 2 2 . i[xfS exfS 2 3 .�b6 �d6 24.llfd l �e6 Black can­ not be worse, because his pawn line on the e- and f-files is very strong. But Black has one problem: how to develop the light-squared bishop, and then bring the rook into play. 22 .llxfl + 23 ..llxfl •••

23 .....ia6 If 2 3 . . . �d6 24.gS ld:b8 2 S .c4 c S . 24.ld:f7! 24.�xg6 hxg6 2 S .'iVh6 �gs 2 6 .�xg6 + �g7 2 7 .�xe6+ Wh8 2 8 . llf3 ..ixe3 + 2 9 ..l:he3 �a7 3 0 .�h6+ Wg8 3 1 . � g 6 + �g7 3 2 .�xc6 i[b? 3 3 .�e6+ �f7 3 4.�xeS �ds =F . 24 ... Wxf7 2 S .�xh7+ We8 26.�g8+ Wd7 2 7.�xa8 ..ic4 28.�xg6 jldSD Black should cut off the queen's path to the kingside, because if the white queen gets there, his position will be winning. If 2 8 . . . ..ixa 2 2 9 . ..ie8 + Wd6 3 0 .�a6 + - . 29.gS

44

It is interesting that the computer as­ sesses the position as absolutely equal, and gives the same assessment after al­ most every move. In my opinion, White is slightly better here, because of his connected passed pawns and more active pieces; A41 1 2) 20...ld:xfl + 2 1 ..llxfl and now: A4 1 1 2 1 ) 2 1 . .. g6 2 2.�g4 �cS + ! 2 2 . . . ld:b8 2 3 .h4 �d7 24 . ..ie3 .ll b4D 2 S .hS -+ . 23.Whl and now: A4 1 1 2 1 1 ) 23 ... .llb 8 Black tries to ex­ ploit the weakness of White's back rank, but this fails, because White starts an at­ tack on the king with the move h4, which at the same time makes luft for the king. 24.h4! 'iVg7D 25.hS gSD 26.�xc6 26 . ..ixgS .i::l'. b4

27 .c4! A nice decoy. 2 7 . . . .llxc4D (it is a shame that 2 7 . . . i[e? does not work, be­ cause of the cosmic reply 2 8 .i[g6 ! ! and the subsequent variation 2 8 . . . hxg6 29 .�xe7 �xe7 3 0 .�xg6 + Wh8 3 1 . �h6+ Wg8 3 2 .llf6 +-) 2 8 .�xh7+ �xh7 2 9 .�xc4 �xhS + 3 0 . �h4 �xh4+ 3 1 . ..ixh4 i[d4. 26 ... ..id6 2 7.�xaS e4 28 . ..id2!;:!;; A4 1 1 2 1 2) 23 ...�g7! 24.�xc6 llb8 2S .h4! �d6 26 . ..ie4! ;:l;; White is a pawn down, but his position is clearly better, on account of his strong and active pieces, the weak black king and all his hanging pawns, plus White's passed

C hapter 2

c-pawn, which will soon start to ad­ vance. A4 1 1 2 2 ) 2 1 . .. �c5 + 2 2.@h l g6D 23.'i¥g4! In this position, the queen stands very well on g4, where it helps the advance of the white h-pawn, and also attacks the black pawns at e6 and g6, tying down the opponent's pieces. 2 3 ... 'i!'g7 24.�xc6 �a7 24 . . . J:l'.b8 2S . ..txas ;t.

-

T h e P o i s on e d Pa wn with 8 . \Wd 3

'iYcS + D 2 2 .@h l .l:!.f8D 2 3 .'iVg 7 + �e7 24.�xe S ;t . 1 7 . ..te3 �xe5 1 8 .�d4 'iYg5

25 ...teS ! �e7 26.'iVa4!;t. A4 l 2) Let's see what happens after the other recapture on c6: 1 4 ... 'iiixc6 1 5.0-0 ..te7

1 9.I:Ixf6 As is well known, the knight is the king's best defender. When one starts an attack, one should always neutralise the enemy knights, so as to strengthen the attack as much as possible. A4 1 2 1 ) 1 9 ... gxf6? 20.ltJe4 'iVg6D 20 . . . 'iffS ?? 2 1 ..l:rfl ! + - . 2 1 .�xf6 d5 D 2 1 . . . .l::i'. g 8 ? 2 2 . ..ths 'iYxhS 2 3 .�xe7 'iii g 6 (23 . . . l:!.g6 24 . ..t gs +- ) 24 . ..tgs dS 2 S .�a3 �g7 2 6 . ltJf6 + @f7 2 7 . .l::!.f l +- . 22 ...txe7 'iYxe4D 23.�a3

1 6.e5 ! Without the sacrifice of the e-pawn, White's preceding moves make no sense. 1 6 ... 'i¥c5 + 1 6 . . . dxeS ? 1 7 Jhf6 White's beautiful sacrifices de­ stroy the enemy bastions and lead to a dear advantage. 1 7 . . . ..txf6 D 1 8 . ..thS + g6 l 9 . ..txg6+ hxg6 2 0 .'i¥xg6+ @d7D (2 0 . . . @e ? ? ? 2 l .ltJe4+- ) 2 l . 'iYxf6

23 ... 'iiie 5D 2 3 . . . Vixe2 24 . ..tgS ! ! @d7 2S .�e7+ @c6 2 6.�f4! ! +- . 24.�h4! °iYd4+D 25.�£'2 'iYe5D 26.�g3 �d4+ Or 2 6 . . . °iVgS 2 7 .�b4!±. 2 7.@h l +- ; A4 1 2 2) 1 9 .....txf6 ! 20.�xf6 �xf6 2 0 . . . gxf6 ! ? 2 1 .ltJe4 Wies 2 2 .ltJxd6+ @f8 2 3 . ltJc4 �cs + 2 4 . @ h l bS 2S .'i¥f3 Wg7 2 6 .�xa8 ( 2 6 .�g3 + @f8

45

Winning with the Naj d o r f S i c i l i a n

2 7 .�f3 d8 20.tll e 4 l:rb8 2 1 ..l:!.d l .l::f.b 2 2 2 . gxh6 gxh6 23 .c4 'iWb6 24.�xeS;l;. 1 7.gS and now: B 1 1 ) 1 7 ... tllxe4? l 8 ...tf3 dS 1 9 .tll xe4 dxe4 20 ...ths + 'it>d7 2 1 .Ilfl 2 1 .0-0 ! ? in the majority of cases, castling and getting the king out of the centre is considered good, but here we have an exception to the rule, and the king was much more comfortable in the centre. 2 1 ..JHS D 2 1 ...e3? 2 2 .�as +- ; 2 1 . . .hxgS ? 2 2 . .l:!.dl 'it>c7 23 . .l:!.f7 'iWcs 24.'iWg 3 + eS 2 S .�xgS +- . 22..lhfS �xf8 23 . .l:!.dl 'it>c7D 24.'i¥g3+ eSD 25.'iVxeS+ �d6D 26.'i¥xg7+ ..td7D -

-

T h e P o isoned Pawn w i t h 8 . � d 3

Vugar Gashlmov

2 7.gxh6 and now:

B l 1 1 ) 2 7 ... J:1f8? 28.jlc3 ! ! e3 29 ...tes ..txeS 3 0.iVxe S + @cs 3 1 ..l:!.ds +- ; B 1 1 2) Black needs to offload his e4pawn, which prevents him starting counterplay. However, sacrificing it still doesn't save him: 2 7 ... e3 28.jlxe3 iYhl + 29.'it>d2 'i¥xh2+ 2 9 . . . �dS + 3 0 .'iWd4+- . 30.'it>cl 'li'xhs 3 1 .'i¥d4 ..ta3 + 32.'it>b l �bS + Black has an extra piece, both players have open kings, but the white pawn on h6 is very strong, and Black has to give back the piece, to avoid mate. If 3 2 . . . .l::rd 8 3 3 .�f4+ 'it>c8 3 4.h7 �cs 3 S .h8� �xh8 3 6.�xcS + ..tc6 3 7 .�fs + .l:!.d7 ( 3 7 . . . �d7 3 8 .�as+-) 3 8 . l:!.d6+- . 3 3 .'it>al ..tb2+ 34.'li'xb2 �xb2+ 35 .'it>xb2± 59

Winning w i th the Naj d orf S i c i l i a n

B l 2) 1 8.gxh6 Now Black needs to solve the problem of the white pawn on h6, but in addition, his king is very weak and comes under checks from the white pieces. B l 2 1 ) 1 8 ... tt.Jes

20.0-0 ti.Jes 2 1 .Whl �gs 22 . .t:!.bJ ;t 1 6.g5 hxg5 1 7.tt.Jxe6

1 9 .hxg7 This cannot really be called a queen sacrifice, because the white pawn promotes in a few moves. 1 9 ... l:!:xh3 20.gS'tW+ Wd7 2 1 ..l:!.b3 bS 22.'ti'g7 White threatens �gs and ti.JdS , whilst the bishop on e 7 is not easy to defend, but Black finds an exchange sacrifice, after which he is slightly worse but has compensation. 22 ... .!:!.£'3 If 2 2 . . . .l:!.xc3 2 3 .�xc3 White is slightly better. 2 3 .�xf3 tllxf3 + 24.We2 tt.:lxd2 2S.Wxd2;t ; B l 2 2 ) 1 8 . . . gxh6 1 9 .'ti'xe6 tt.:lf6 20.°tWb3 tllxe4 2 1 .�f3 �h4+ 2 1 . . .�fs 2 2 . .l::i. g l .l::i.f8 2 3 .l::r g 7 �h4+ 24.We2 0-0-00 (the only move not to lose at once. The knight is pinned, and the other pieces have to defend it, so the king needs to escape the centre to avoid mate) 2 S .�xe4 1:!'.de8D 2 6.'ti'xb 7 + 'ti'xb 7 2 7 . .l::i. bxb 7 �xe4D 2 8 .tt.:lxe4 .l::i.xe4+ 2 9 .Wd3 dS 3 0 .c3;!;. 22.We2 tt.:lxc3+ 23.�xc3 �g4 24.�xhS 'ti'e4+ 2S.Wd2;t; B 1 2 3) Also playable is the exchange sacrifice 1 8 ... .l:txh6 1 9.�xh6 gxh6 , when White retains a slight edge:

60

1 7.. �c6 .

The black queen hangs, but Black has a beautiful possibility to put the queen on another square, where she will be at­ tacked but not able to be taken because of the pin, and from where the queen can be transferred to e S . 1 7 ... 'ti'cS ! ?N A) 1 8.tt.:lxcS �xh3 = ; B) 1 8 . .l:txb7 tt.:lc6 1 9.ti.JdS 1 9 .tt.:lxcS �xh3 . 1 9 ...tt.JxdS 20.tt.:lxcSD From this move, mass exchanges start, leading to an equal endgame. 20 ... �xh3 2 1 .exdS 2 l .�c4 dxcS 22 .�xdS + Wh8 2 3 .�xc6 .!:!.ab 8 = . 2 1 . .. tt.:ld4 22 . .l:txe 7 dxcS 23 . .l:tgl .!:!.ab8 24.�e3 tt.Jxc2+ 2S.Wd2 tt.:lxe3 26.Wxe3 .!:i.be8=; C) 1 8 .°tWfS ! 'iYxfS 1 9.exfS �xe6 20.fxe6 bS 2 1 .�f3 .l:ta7 2 2.a4 g4 23.�g2 bxa4

Chapter 2

24.h3 The black pawn on g4 is very strong. White needs either to exchange it or force its advance. The exchange is not favourable for Black because it opens the h-file, and Black can be mated, whilst after g3 , the pawn will be undefended. 24 ... g3 24 . . . gxh3 2S . .i::!. x h3 +- . 2 5 .0 - 0 l:te8 26.tlJd5 tLlxd5 2 7 .�xd5 ;!;

-

The P o i soned P awn with 8 . \Wd3

2 l .�g6 is threatened, and if Black then takes . . . �xe6, then after the move �h6 White gives mate. Black has to react and there is only one way to do this: 20 . . . �d8 2 1 .tLlxd8 �xfS 2 2 . tLlxf6+ gxf6 2 3 .tLlxc6 �xe4 24.l:rg l �xc6 2 S . l:rxg4+ �f7 = ; A 2 ) 1 9.l:rg l ? ! �f8D H e needs to de­ fend g 7 , since the threat was �gS . In addition, Black attacks the knight on e6 and obtains the advantage: 2 0 .tLld4 �xfS 2 l . tLlxc6 tLlxe4=F ; A3) 1 9.0-0 �fS

1 8Jlf1

A) The white pawn on e4 was hang­ ing, and needs to be defended, whilst this move may also help the white knight reach dS . l 8.Vi'fs l::[ e 8 A l ) 1 9.h4 g4!? White was trying to open the h-file, which would be ex­ tremely dangerous for Black, and the text is a typical device for avoiding this. 1 9 . . . �f8 2 0 .hxg S �xe6 2 1 . 'iWf4 tLlbd7 0 2 2 .�h4 �f7 2 3 .gxf6 tLlxf6 24.�hS + �e7 2 S .�xe8 �xe8 2 6 . �d l . 20.tlJd5

The knight on e6 is hanging, and it is not easy to see how White can defend it, so White is ready to sacrifice it for the sake of the attack: 20.tlJd5 0 �xe6 2 1 .tLlxf6 + 0 gxf6 2 2.�g6 + 0 �g7 23.ld:xf6 0 tlJd7 White's attack looks very strong and in order to repulse it, Black has to return the piece and com­ plete the development of his pieces. If 2 3 . . . �xa2 2 4 .l::[ b 3 �xb3 2 S .cxb3 �xe4 2 6.�c4+ dS 2 7 .�f7 + �h7 2 8 . Vi'hs + �g8 with equality. 24.lhe60 tlJe5 2 5 .lhe s + .lhe8 26.'tWxg5 .Ue6 2 7.'tWdS+ .Ues 28.�g5 �xe4 29.�e3 and the resulting posi­ tion is equal, because the black knight on eS is not weaker than the white bishops; A4) 1 9 .tlJdS �d8 2 0 .tlJxd8 �xfS 2 1 .tLlxf6+ gxf6 2 2 .tLlxc6 61

Winning w i t h t h e Najd orf S i c i l i an

A4 1 ) 2 2 ... �xe4 2 3 . tll xb 8 .ixh 1 24.@f2 l::r axb8 2 5 .l::r xh l l::r e4 2 6 .�d3 , Brkic-Palac, Zagreb 2 0 1 0 . The ending is very interesting, because the black rook and two pawns are fighting two bish­ ops, which is always interesting. Gener­ ally, these positions are not worse for the side with the rook, and in this case, the computers assesses the chances as equal. Still, I think White can fight for the advantage. It does not surprise me that White did eventually win, as I reckon he will do so in every other game, on average, in such positions; A42) 22 ...l::rxe4!N 23.ti:JM 2 3 .tll x b8 �g4 24.tll d 7 l::t xe2 + 2 5 .@fl @£7 . 2 3 ... l::r xd4 24.l::r f l �g4 2 4 . . . �xc2 2 5 .�c l . 25 ..ixg4 l::r xg4 26.l::rxb7 tll c6 27.l::rxf6 tbeS =; B) 1 8.0-0 This move again leads to a forced draw and the sides have no way to avoid this. 1 8 ... dS 1 9.exdS tllxdS D 20.tbxdS 2 0.�g4?! �cs + 2 1 .tllxcS D 'MYxcS+D 22 .@h l tll f4 23 . .ixf4 'MYc6+ 24.'MVg2 ..txg4 2 5 .tll dS �h3 26.tll e 7+ @h7 2 7 .tll xc6 �xg2 + 28.@xg2 tllxc6 29 .�xgS=. 20 ...'IWxdS D This game, be­ tween two top players, one a leading ex­ pert on the variation, confirms the draw­ ing tendency of this type of position. 2 I ...td3 2 1 ...tg4 .l:!.xfl + 22 .l::rxfl '1Wxd2 23 .'1Wf3 ..tf6 24.'1Wb3 @h8 2 5 .'MYh3 + @g8 2 6 .'1Wb3 = . 2 1 . .. l::rxfl + 22.llxfl �cs + 23.�e3 �xe3+ 24.'iVxe3 'IWxe6 62

2 5 .kc4 11Wxc4 2 6.'1We 8 + @h7 2 7.'IWhs + @gs with a draw by perpet­ ual in Gashimov-Karjakin, Nice rapid 20 1 0.

Back to the position after 1 8 .l::r f l . Here Black has four continuations. Many games have been played, between strong players, and have finished in draws, in many different ways. 1 8. g4!? ..

Although here Black had other ways to equalise, Grischuk showed how to do so best. See his next game against Gashimov, at Linares 2 0 1 0, given below. A) 1 s ... nes 1 9.tbds �dso

20.l:!'.xf6 2 0 . tll x d8 �xh3 2 1 .tll x c6 tll x ds + . 20 ... �xf6 D 20 . . . gxf6 ? 2 1 ...tg4!±. 2 1 .tllxf6+ 2 1 .�g4 tll d 7 . 2 1 ...gxf6 22.'iYfs �xe6 23.'1Wg6+ @f8 24.'1Wxf6 + i.f7 2 5 .�xgS l:!'.xe4 26.'1Wh8+ �g8 2 7.'1Wf6 + �f7=;

Chapter 2 - The P o i soned P awn w i th 8 . � d 3

B) 18 ...dS?! is the only continuation where White, after a forcing spell of play, obtains a small advantage: 1 9.exd5 li:Jxd5 20.tLlxdS �xd5

2 1 .li:J c 7 ! 2 1 . .l:l:xf8 + �xf8 2 2 . tb c 7 Axh3 23 .tLlxdS b S 24.c4 1i..d 6 2 5 . .l:l:b3 Ae6 26 . .l:!.e3 �xdS 2 7 .cxdS . Black has an extra pawn, but the two strong bish­ ops give White compensation, and a draw is the most likely outcome, Krivoborodov-Womacka, Schwarzach 2 0 1 0 . 2 1 ...1i..xh3 22.tLlxdS Black is slightly worse, but because of the re­ duced material, White does not have great winning chances. 22 ... ..ixfl ? 2 . . . �f6 ? ! 23 . .l:.f3 1i.. g 2 24.tbxf6+ gxf6 5 . .l:!.g3 �c6 2 6.h4t . 23.li:Jxe7+ @£7 24.�xfl .l:l:e8 25 . ..ixg5 b5 2 6 .a4 _ 6 .Wd2 ! ? .l::i. x e7 2 7 .1i..x e7 Wxe 7 8 .�g2 .l:l:a7 2 9 . a4t . 26 ... li:Jc6;;!;: Kurnosov-Nepomniachtchi, Irkutsk _010; C) Also good is 1 8 ... li:Jxe4!?N

1 9 . .l:l:xf8+ �xf8 20 . .l:l:b6 �e8D 2 1 .tLlxe4 �xe6 22.�d3 �g6 2 2 . . .1i.. e 7 23 .tLlxgS �xgS 24.�xgS tLld7 25 . .l:!.xd6 - an interesting fighting position with mutual chances. White has the two bish­ ops, but his king is in the centre and his pawns are broken. 2 3 . .l:!.xb7 tbc6 24.tLlxgS 'i¥xd3 25 ...ixd3 �xa2! The pawn capture is obligatory, else White has the advantage. 26.i::i.b 2 1i..d5 2 7.c4

2 7 ...fill 1 ! ! The fearless bishop finds the only square in the back of the enemy po­ sition, where it can avoid the chasing of the white pieces. 28.�7+ Wh8 29 ..l:l:b3 g6 30.�xg6 Wg7 3 1 ...ic2 �e7 32.li:Je4=. 1 9.�xg4D

1 9 .tLldS ? �xdS ! . 1 9...tbxg4D

And now the long-awaited Gashimov­ Grischuk game. I think both players had analysed the position very thoroughly and knew the final assessment of the position, but Gashimov decided to test his opponent all the same. 20..l:!.xfS+ 20.tbxf8 ! ? �xf8D and now: A) 2 1 .l:!.xf8+ Wxf8 22.'ti'h8+ @£70 2 3 .tLldS 2 3 .�hS + Wg8 (23 . . . Wf8 24.°iVh8+=) 24.tLldS °iVd7 2 5 .h3 tbc6 2 6 . hxg4 'i!Vxg4 2 7 .'i!Ve 8 + Wh7 2 8 . tbf6 + gxf6 2 9 .�f7 + 'iY g 7

63

Winning w i th the Naj d o r f S i c i l i an

3 0 .'iYhs + b8 2 2 .l:!:f4 fS 2 3 .exf6 gxf6 24.b4 eS 2 5 .bxcS l:txd4 2 6 .l:tfxd4 exd4 2 7 . 'Wixe7 l:!:e8 2 8 . '1Wf7 1 -0 Topalov-Anand, Wijk aan Zee 1 9 96. 77

Winning with the Najdorf S i c i l i a n

1 6 ..igs .l:Iae8 1 7.'i¥g4 �h8? Black has solved the problem of castling, success­ fully developed his pieces, and is him­ self ready to strike a blow; F 3 3 ) 1 4. .l:Ihe l ? ! .ie7 1 S .'i¥g4 gs 1 6.�g3 l 6 . .ie3 0 - 0 - 0 � 1 6 ... hS 1 7.'i¥e2 h4 Black has an excellent posi­ tion! F4) 9.fs .ie7 1 0.'i¥f3 In the event of 1 0. 0 - 0 ? ! eS l I .t2Jf3 0-0 Black is at the very least not worse. 1 0 ... 0-0 1 1 .�e3 1 1 .0-0 �d7 1 2 .�e3 bS l 3 .a3 tbxb3 Black has the advantage. 1 1 ... eS 1 2.tLlde2 tt:Jxb3 1 3.axb3 bS 14.g4 b4 1 S.tlJa4 �b7? Black has eliminated the dangerous light-squared bishop, devel­ oped his piece, and is attacking the e4-pawn. Soon the central break . . . d6-dS will follow and Black's advan­ tage will be indisputable. G) s .'i¥e2?! tt:Jcs 9.�gs .ie7 1 0.f4 h6 1 1 .�xf6 l 1 ..ih4? tbfxe4+ . 1 1 . ..�xf6 1 2.0-0-0 'i¥c7 1 3 .fS 0-0=F White has given up his strong bishop and weakened his dark squares, whilst Black at the same time has developed his pieces to active squares and will soon advance . . . bS-b4, with a clear ad­ vantage. 8...ttJc5 9.f4

A) The slow play which arises after castling cannot be favourable for White, because his previous moves were ambi­ tious and aggressive. It is clear why cas­ tling is less popular than other moves. 9.0-0 �e7 1 0 . .l:Iel h6 1 1 .�h4 and now: A l ) 1 1 . .. 'i¥c 7 ? ! 1 2 .f4! 0 - 0 Here White is at a crossroads. He can play 1 3 .'i¥f3 and sacrifice the queen, but as we will see, this is not dangerous for Black, whilst the other move 1 3 .es is very interesting and leads in a few 78

1 S.exf6 �xf3 1 6.fxe7 .l:Ife8 1 7.tt:Jxf3 Three pieces for the queen; this is one of the most interesting and difficult po­ sitions to assess. It seems to me that it is dynamically equal. Black should some­ where play . . . d6-dS , closing in the bishop on b3. The weakness of the white e4-pawn, king and f4-pawn will then have its say. Black will sacrifice the exchange on e 7 , and try to exploit the weakness of the diagonal g l -a 7 . For ex­ ample: 1 7 ... b4 1 8.tlJa4 tbxb3 1 9.axb3 'i¥xc2 20.tLlb6 .l:Iab 8 2 1 .tLlc4 dS 22 ..l:Iacl 'i¥xb3 23.tLld6 'i¥xb2 24.tbxe8 .l:Ixe8 2S.fS aS Despite the fact that the computer assesses the position in Black's favour, such positions are abso­ lutely unclear and tend to be won by whoever does not make the final mis­ take, Rublevsky-Sutovsky, Kragujevac tt 2009; A l 2) 1 3 .eS ! ? dxeS 1 4.fxeS tt:Jfe4 1 S ..ixe7 tLlxc3 1 6 .�d6 'i¥xd6 1 7.exd6 tt:Jxd 1 1 8 . .l:Iaxd 1 �d7 leads us to an in­ teresting endgame, where White prob­ ably has a small advantage. But Black too has his ideas: he wants to play . . . f7-f6 and . . . e6-eS , and put his king on e6, whilst White wants meanwhile to start an attack on the kingside.

Chapter 4

-

Whi te Retreats the B i shop to b 3

A2) 1 1 ... 0 - 0 1 2.f4

1 1 .0-0

A2 l ) A real computer move, which probably only a computer could find. Usually in the Sicilian, the queen goes to the d8-aS diagonal, whilst the d7 -square is reserved for the knight or the light­ squared bishop. 1 2 ... 'i1Vd7 1 3.eS 1 3 .fS bS 1 4 .fXe6 fXe6 1 S . tbfs tbxb3 1 6 . tbxe 7 + 'ifxe7 1 7 .axb3 i.b7=. 1 3 ...dxeS 14.fxeS tbds 1 s.�xe7 tt:Jxc3 1 6.bxc3 'i1Vxe7 1 7.J::[ e3 bS 1 8.tbc6 In the event of l 8 . .l:f.g3 tbe4 1 9 . .l:[g4 i.b7 20.�e l tbcs 2 1 .�g3 B 22.exf6 l:rxf6 23 .h3 'ilk'f7, at the very least Black is not worse, mainly because he will soon exchange off the bishop at b3 , which would otherwise cause Black many problems. 1 8 ... 'ilk'd7 1 9.'iVd6 tLlb7 20.tbe7+ @h7 2 1 .�4 .:I.es 22.tLlxcS fucS=F Black has a clear advantage on ac­ count of his superior pawn structure and better pieces; A22) It is also possible to play 1 2 ... .:1.eS ! ? , reaching a new position, for example 1 3.fS tbxb3 1 4.axb3 �d7 with equal play. B) 9.'iVe2 Ji..e 7 1 O.f4 h6 1 1 .�6 i.xf6 1 2.0-0-0 'if c7 transposes to 8 .'ilk'e2 . 9.. .te 7 1 O.'iff3 .

If 1 0 . 0 -0 tbcxe4 l l . tbxe4 tbxe4 l 2 .Ji..xe7 'ilk'xe7 l 3 . °iVd3 dS=F. 1 0...�c7

White has a choice of which side to cas­ tle. If he castles kingside, then he avoids the counterattack on the queenside, but also loses the chance himself to attack on the other flank. 1 1 .0-0-0 bS !=F Black begins an indirect attack on the pawn on e4, by attacking its defender and freeing the square b7 for his bishop, which will then attack the e4-pawn. A) 1 2.i.xf6 i.xf6 1 3.g4N In such po­ sitions, it is hard to recommend any­ thing, since in bad positions, there are no good moves. Neither the g2-g4 push nor the knight sacrifice are sufficient for equality: 1 3 .tDcxbS axbS 1 4.tLlxbS tbxb3+ 1 S .'l?Hxb3 'i!k'cS 1 6 .tbxd6+ @f8 1 7 .es i.e7 =F ; not 1 3 .tt:Jfs ? exfS 1 4.tbds °iWd7 + , or first 1 3 . . . tbxb3 + ! ? 1 4.axb3 exfS l S .tLldS 'ilk'b7 1 6 .exfS 0-0+ as in Istratescu-Akopian, Mamaia Wch-jr 1 99 1 . 1 3 ...:tbs 1 4.@b l b4 1 s.tt:Je2 ..ib7 1 6.tbg3 i.h4+ ; B) 1 2 . .:1.he l Ji..h 7 1 3.fS ? ! tbxb 3 + 1 4.axb3 b4!N After this strong move, White is obliged to sacrifice a piece, since he has no other moves. The com­ plications are only good for Black 1 4 . . . eS 1 S .Ji..xf6 Ji..xf6 1 6 .tLldS °iWaS 1 7 .tbxf6+ gxf6 1 8 .tLle2 'ilk'a l + 1 9 .@d2 'lWas + 2 0 .@cl 'lWal + 2 l .@d2 �as + 2 2 .@c l with a draw in Berndt79

Winning w i t h t h e Naj d orf S i c i l i a n

Areschenko, Germany Bundesliga 2 0 1 0/ 1 1 . 1 5.fxe6 bxc3 1 6.exf7+ �xf7 1 7.bxc3 l:the8=F. 11 .. 0-0 .

Here White has a choice: either to de­ velop his last piece, or to begin the at­ tack at once. In my opinion, White lacks the time to involve his last piece, and he should go for the complications. 1 2.fS

A) After 1 2 .l:tae l t2Jxb3 1 3 .tLlxb3 bS 1 4.eS �b7 1 S .'tWg3 dxeS 1 6 .fxeS lLlhS 1 7 .�h4 �xgS 1 8 .'!WxgS g6 1 9 .a3 aS 2 0 .tLlxbS �b6+ 2 1 .tLl3d4 �a6 22 .c3 �xbS 2 3 . l:tf3 �c4 24.g4 �dS 2 S . l:tf2 tLlg7 2 6 .l:te3 tLle8 Black is winning, Palac-Kurnosov, Istanbul Ech 2 0 0 3 . B ) 1 2 .l:tadl

15 ... �d7 ! N A strong move, indirectly defending the hanging pawn on e6, which cannot be taken because of 1 6 . . . �c8 , after which White loses a knight. After 1 S . . . b4? 1 6.t2Jxe6 �a7 + 1 7 . .te3 �b7 1 8 .tLldS tLlxdS 1 9 .l:txf8+ .txf8 2 0 .exdS �xdS 2 1 .tLlc7 �b7 2 2 . �f3 .l::!. b 8 2 3 .�ds + 'tWxdS 2 4 . tLlxdS Black has a minimal advantage, Ramnath-Sandipan, New Delhi 2 0 1 2 . 1 6 .�hl �cs 1 7 . .te3 �cS=F 14 ....tdSI 1 5.tLldS 1 6 ..txdS+ t2Je6 1 7.�xf6

exd5

1 7 . .txa8 tLlxgS is disastrous for White, Gunther-Repkova, Ceske Budejovice 1 9 94. 17... l:i.xf6 1 8.e5 �a7+1N

1 2 . . . h6 ! ?N (the immediate 1 2 . . . bS was the old move) 1 3 .�h4 bS 1 4.eS �b7 1 5 .�e2 dxeS 1 6 .fxeS t2Jfe4 1 7 .tLlxe4 �xe4 1 8 .�xe7 �xe7 1 9 .b!f4 �g6 and Black is slightly better, as White has no attack, whilst Black will soon begin to press on the queenside. 1 2 ... bS 1 3.fxe6 fxe6 1 4.tLlfS

A very attractive move, but not so effec­ tive, although it is hard to recommend anything stronger. 1 4. �h3 t2Jxb3 1 5.axb3 80

After the mistaken 1 8 . . . dxe S ? White does not play 1 9 . .txa8 ? ? as in Lefebvre-Berbatov, Aix-les-Bains Ech 2 0 1 1 , on account of the riposte 1 9 . . . tLld4, which is good for Black, but 1 9 . .txe6+! �xe6 2 0.�xa8±. 1 9.@h1 dxe5 20..txaa g6 21 .�e4 gxf5 22.�xfS °fie7 23.l:i.ae1 �b7 24.'i!Yd3 t2Jf8

An unclear game, in which White has a rook and pawn for two pieces, but Black's king is exposed and the white pieces are very actively placed.

Chapter 4

-

Whi t e R e treats the B i shop to b 3

Conclusion In this chapter, we have been looking at one of the sharpest lines of the Najdorf, which begins with 6 .�c4. Our study shows that if Black chooses the accurate moves, he can first complete the development of his pieces and prevent White from developing the initiative, associated with his rapid development and a quiet attack. White has two ways to develop his attack: firstly, by advancing his f-pawn to f5 and creating threats on the f-ftle and the a2-g8 diagonal, bu we have seen that in this case, Black puts his knight on c5 and solves all his problems. The second method for White is to attack with pieces, and without his f-pawn, by playing his queen to f3. But then after the exchange of a pair of minor pieces, White's attack is weakened and Black is ready to seize the initiative. We can conclude that with accurate play, Black has no problems and he can play boldly, after a careful study of this chapter.

81

Chapter 5

6.�c4 e6 7 .0-0 : Wh ite Castles Kingside 1.e4 c5 2.tbf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.tbxd4 tbf6 5.tbc3 a6 6.�c4 e6 7.0-0

In this chapter, we will analyse the most dangerous plan: kingside castling. The idea of 7 . 0-0 is to complete the rapid development of the kingside and begin an attack as soon as possible. There is a significant difference between this move and 7 . ..tb3 : after the latter, Black immediately brings his knight to d7 and c5 , and eliminates Fischer's favourite bishop, whereas after castling, Black has to play . . . b7-b5 to drive the bishop to b 3 , and can only then start trying to eliminate it. But the move . . . b7-b5 also has its minuses: firstly, the weakening of the a8-h l diagonal can cause Black a lot of trouble, and also another point that is often overlooked - after cas­ tling, White prepares a sacrifice on e6, if Black tries to play . . . tl'ibd7 at once. 1 .e4 c5 2.tl'if3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.tt:Jxd4 tl'if6 5.tt:Jc3 a6 6.�c4 e6 7.0-0

For other alternatives for White, see the next chapter. 7... b5

As mentioned in the introduction, Black has difficulties after 7 ... tl'ibd7 8 . .l:!.e l (even 8 ...txe6 fxe6 9 . tl'ixe6 is an option) , for example 8 . . . b5 9 . ..tdS ! , 8 . . . �c7 9 .�xe6! or 8 . . . ..te7 9 .�xe6 ! . 82

8.�b3

C h a p t e r S - 6 . �c4 e 6 7 . 0 - 0 : Wh i t e C a s t l es King s i d e

Black has a choice: h e can either develop one of his bishops or take the highly poisoned pawn. Let us first examine the continuations which develop the pieces. In such positions, one often gets trans­ positions, if both . . . ile7 and . . . il..b 7 are played, but this is not the case here. White has an interesting bishop sacri­ fice, after which he has the initiative, and has very good compensation.

bination 1 9.tiJdS+ .!:!.xd8 20.l!Ye6+ @g6 2 1 .l::!.'. g 3+ @h7 22.�f5 + @gs 23.'iYe6+=; A 1 2 ) 1 0 ... l!Yb6? 1 1 .tiJd5 i.xd5 l l . . .�c6 1 2 .il..h 6 ! ± . 1 2.exd5 tiJbd7 1 3.a4 l::!.'. c8 14.axb5 l!Yxb5

8 ..te7 ..

A) If 8 ...i.b7 White can strike at once: A 1 ) 9 .il..xe6 fxe6 1 0.ttJxe6 : A l l ) 1 0 ... �cS ! ? 1 1 .tiJd5 il..x d5 1 2.exd5 @£7

Given that White has a piece less, in order to pose real problems to the opponent, he needs to exploit all his resources. Looking at the position, it is obvious that apart from the rook on a 1 , all of his pieces are ready for action, and the move a2-a4 will open the third rank for his rook, as well as starting a second front on the queenside: 1 3.a4!?N tiJbd7 14.l::!.'.a 3 After 1 4. .l::e 1 there followed 1 4 . . .b4 ! , taking control of the important square a3 , and on 1 5 . .td2 �b7 1 6 .'t?Ve2 h6 1 7.M .l::e 8 White forced the draw with 1 8 .tiJd8+ l::!.'.xd8 1 9.'t?Ve6+ @g6 2 0 .h5+ @h7 2 1 .°tWfS + in Klima-Czakon, Ostrava 2005. 14 ...h6 1 5 ..l::!.'.e l 't?Vb7 1 6.axb5 axb5 1 7.l!Ye2 l::!.'.c8 1 8.l::!.'.c 3 l::!.'.e 8 and here again White should resort to the drawing com-

1 5.�e l ! @£7 1 6.tiJg5 + @g6 1 7.�a5 l!Yc4 1 8.f4 h5 1 9 .f5 + @h6 and now 20.c3 ! maintains White's clear advan­ tage. Black runs out of good moves and White is threatening to play his queen to e6 and f7 . The immediate 2 0 .�e6 would fail to 20 . . . �d4+, 2 1 . . .�eS and 2 2 . . . �e8 ; A 1 3) 1 0 ... �d7 1 1 .tiJdS @f7 D (the only move; after anything else, White has a clear advantage) 1 2 .tiJgS + @g8 D 1 3 .tiJb6 �e7 1 4.ltJxa8 �xa8 1 5 . .!:!.e 1 h6 1 6 .tiJh3 .txe4 1 7 .f3 �xc2 1 8 .l:!.xe7 �xd l 1 9 . .l:!:c7 @h7 20.tiJf4 dS 2 1 .tiJe6 �e2 22 . .td2 .

White is slightly better, on account of his active pieces. A2) 9.1::!.'.e l tiJbd7 83

Winning w i th the Naj d o rf S i c i l i a n

A3 2) 1 1 .�xf6 'li'xf6 Taking with the queen is stronger, since it defends once again Black's one weakness, the square e6. 1 2.a4 b4 1 3.tlla 2 and now: A3 2 1 ) 1 3 ... tlics 1 4.tll x b4 as 1 S.tllb c6! es 1 6.�dS exd4

1 O.�xe6 This i s the only dangerous move for White. For 1 O .�gS see line A3 with 9 .�g s . 1 0 ... fxe6 1 1 .tllxe6 'li'c8! 1 2.a4 b4 1 3.tllds Wf7 1 4.tlld c7 h6 1 S.�e3 �xe4 and Black defends, without great problems; he just needs to complete his development and ex­ ploit his material advantage; A3) 9.�gs tllb d7 1 0 . .l:!.el h6 (not to be recommended is 1 0 . . . tll c S 1 1 .�dS ! or 1 O . . . 'li'b6 l l .a4! b4 1 2 .tll d S exdS 1 3 .exdS +) and now: A3 1 ) 1 1 .�h4 gs (again 1 1 . . . tll c S 1 2 .�dS !) 1 2.�g3 tlies is unclear, for instance : 1 3 .tll f3 �c7 1 4.tll d 2 hS 1 S .h4 gxh4 1 6.�xh4 tllfg4 1 7.a4 b4 1 8.tll a2 'li'cs 1 9.'i¥e2 tllg6 20.�g3 h4 2 1 .'li'xg4 hxg3 22.�xg3 �h6 23.tllf3 �f4 24.'li'g4

24 ... We? ! 2 S .tll c l �xc l 26 . .l:!.axc l .l:!.ag8 2 7.g3 tlieS 2 8 .tll xeS .l:!.xg4 2 9 .tllxg4 fS 0 - 1 Ehlvest-Dvoirys , Podolsk 1 99 3 ;

84

Apart from the 1:1a 1 , all the white pieces are taking part in the attack, and once the rook gets involved, Black is hardly likely to be able to defend. 1 7 . .l:!.a3 !N One can say that this move wins the game at once, whilst the move 1 7 .es only leads to complications: 1 7 . . . dxeS 1 8 . .l::i.xeS + Wd7 (this move loses the game at once; instead, 1 8 . . . tll e 6 contin­ ues the battle, with mutual chances) 1 9 .'iWg4+ Wc7 20 . .l:!.fs 'iWg6 2 1 .'iWf4+ 'iWd6 2 2 . .l::!.xf7 + Wb6 23 . .l:!.xb 7 + tllxb7 2 4 . 'iWxd4+ 'iWcs 2 S .'iWd3 �d6 2 6 .'iWb3 + 1 - 0 Golubev-Zagorskis , Karvina 1 99 2 . 1 7. . .d 3 1 8 . .l:!.xd3 ! tllxd3 1 9.'iWxd3 �e7 20.'iWb3! �a6

Chap t er S

-

2 1 .tll b S .l:hb8 22 .�c 6 + @ f8 23.°ifxbS+ .ids 2 4. .l:!.dl and White is winning; A3 2 2) A better defence is the imme­ diate 1 3 ... aS ! , not allowing White's sec­ ond knight to enter the attack: 1 4.tllb S ( 1 4.c3;\:; Nunn) 14 ... .l:!.cS 1 5 .tllx d6+ ..ixd6 1 6.°ifxd6 .l:!.c6 1 7.�g3 �xb2 1 8 . .l:!.abl °ifd4 1 9 . .ld'.bdl °iff6 20 . ..idS .t:.b6 2 1 ...ib3 .l:l:c6 = ; B) As we have already remarked sev­ eral times, the pawn on e4 is poisoned, and with his pieces undeveloped, Black cannot afford to grab material, and should certainly not take the pawn: 8 ... b4? 9.tll a4 tll xe4 1 0 . .l:!. e l dS 1 0 . . . tll f6 ?! opens the e-file for White: 1 1 .�gS d5 1 2 .�f3 �el l 3 .�xf6 ..ixf6 1 4.�xdS .l:!.a7 1 5 .tll c 6 tll x c6 1 6 .�xc6+ 'it>f8 1 7 .J::rad 1 ± . 1 l ...if4! and now:

B l ) 1 I . ..tll f6 1 2 . .l:!.cl ! White will ad­ vance the c-pawn, so it is better first to put the rook on c 1 and then do it, since Black has no useful moves and cannot develop his pieces normally. 1 2 ... �d6 1 3.�xd6 �xd6 1 4.tll fS± ; B2) If 1 1 ...�d6 1 2.l:!:xe4! dxe4 1 3.tllxe6 �xe6 1 4.�xd6 White has a strong attack and Black cannot castle, plus his pieces are not developed and it is not obvious how to bring out both rooks. Back to the main line after 8 . . . �e7 .

6 . �c 4 e6 7 . 0 - 0 : Whi t e C a s t l es K i n g s i d e

Here White has two main continua­ tions. 9.�f3

Since the l 9 9 0 's this queen move has ousted 9 .f4 as the most common line. We will also examine the advance of the f-pawn, which contains mutual dangers - Black must be careful because White immediately attacks the e6-pawn, but later he can himself hope to exploit the weakness on e4: 9.f4 A) 9 ... 0-0 and now: A l ) 1 0.fS

1 o ... b4! 1 1 .tll a4 es 1 2.tll e 2 �b 7 1 3.tllg 3 A l l ) Not 1 3 ... tllxe4?. Black has other moves which give him the advantage, whereas after he text the game ends in a draw : 1 4.tll xe4 �xe4 1 5 . � g4 dS 1 6.�h6 �f6 1 7 .�xg7 �xg7 1 8.f6 �g6 1 9.fxg7 'it>xg7 20 . .l:!.adl d4 2 1 .�xf7 85

Winning w i t h t h e Naj d o rf S i c i l i an

2 1 .. . .l::f.xf?! 2 1 . . .ti:Jd7? gives White the edge after 2 2 .�xg6 .l::f.xfl + 23 . .l::f.xfl hxg 6 2 4 . �f3 t . 22 . .l::f. xf7 + Wxf7 2 3 . .l::f. fl + Wg8 24.�e6+ Wh8 25.�xeS + Wg8 26.tllcS ti:Jc6 27.�e6+ Wh8 2 8 .ti:Jd7 �c7 2 9.�f6 + Wg8 30.�e6+=; A l 2) 13 ...ti:Jbd7 Now after 1 4.'U:fe l as 1 S .c4 �c7 1 6 .'i!Ve2 .l::f.fc 8 1 7 .i,gs tt:Jcs 1 8 . .l::!. a c l h6 1 9 .�e3 tt:Jcd 7 ! 2 0 .i,f2 .l::f. a 6 2 1 ..l::tc 2 �b8 2 2 . .l::f. e l �a8 23 .'iYd3 ? ti:Jg4 24.ti:Jfl ti:Jdf6 2S .ti:Jd2 ti:Jxf2 2 6 .Wxf2 �c6 2 7 . .l::f. cc l �a7 + 2 8 .We2 .l::!. d 8 2 9 .i,d 1 . . .

. . . Black gained a decisive advantage with 2 9 . . . dS !-+ in Anand-Ivanchuk, Linares 1 99 1 . Also after 1 4.�f3 �c6 Black is simply better, as White's pieces are very badly placed, and are almost all on the edge of the board. A2) 1 0.eS dxeS 1 1 .fxeS ti:Jfd7 Lead­ ing to a complicated and dynamic struggle. 1 1 . . .�cs is clearly worse. 86

White retains a clear advantage with 1 2 .i,e3 i,xd4 l 3 .�xd4 ti:Jc6 1 4.i,cs tlJxeS 1 S .i,xf8 'iYb6+ 1 6 .Wh l Wxf8 1 7 .�e l t. A2 l ) 1 2.�hS ti:Jc6 1 2 . . . �c7 is an al­ ternative. After the text White has a choice: A2 l l ) 1 3.ti:Jxc6? ! �b6+ 1 4.i,e3 and now: A2 l l l ) 1 4 ... �xe3+? is a mistake be­ cause it fails to a concrete idea. Black has a hanging bishop on e7 and the queen is very uncomfortable on e3, un­ der the attacks of the white pieces, so for this reason, it is better to take the dangerous knight on c6, rather than the bishop on e3 . 1 5.Whl 'iYgS 1 6.�f3 tllcs

1 7.tllxbS !N A very strong move, after which White retains an extra pawn and every chance of conducting the game to victory. Less strong is 1 7 . tlJe4 because Black's position is strategically superior, and exchanges always favour the side with the better pawn structure: 1 7 ... tt:Jxe4 1 8 .ti:Jxe 7 + 'U:fxe7 1 9 .�xe4 i,b7 2 0.'iYg4 'iYcS 2 1 ..l::f.a e l .l::f.a d8 22 . .l::f. e 2 �d4 2 3 .'iVhs �f4 24.Wg l 'i!Vd4+ 2 S .Wh l 'ifxb2 and Black has a large advantage, Stehno-Jedlicka, Czechia tt- 2 1 9 9 9 / 0 0 . 1 7 ... i,b 7 1 8.tll b d4 .l::f. a c8 1 9.ti:Jxe 7 + 'ifxe 7 20.�e3;!;;

C h apter S

-

A2 1 1 2) 1 4 ... 'lWxc6 1 5 . .l:i.f3 1 5 . .l:i.f4 'iYc7 and if 1 6.kd4 �c5 ; or 1 6 . .l:i.e l 'iYxeS 1 7 .Vi'f3 kg5 . 1 5 ... kc5 1 6 . .l:i.e l �b7 1 7.a3 .l::i'. ad8 1 8 . .l:i.g3 g6 1 9.°'lWh6 �xe3+ 20.J::!.exe3 2 0 .Vi'xe3 'ii'c 5 ! . After the exchange of queens, Black has a large advantage; White's pawn structure is bad, the pawn on es is cut off from its main army and in need of permanent defence, and the bishop on b3 is dead. White has a lot of work to do to make a draw.

20 ... tllc 5 The only move, but suffi­ cient; Black does not allow the enemy knight into e4 and always threatens mate on g 2 , pl us he threatens 2 1 . . . .l:i.d2 , after which White will not be able to defend the g 2-pawn. Black has an excellent position. 2 1 . .l:!.g4 The rook makes way for the other rook, so as to attack h 7 . White has no other ideas in this position. 2 1 ... ld:d7 The only move. The idea is simple - to meet ld:h3 with . . . f7-f5 and defend h 7 with the rook. (2 1 . . . .l:i.d2 ?? 2 2 . .l:!.h3 1hg 2 + 2 3 . @fl + - ) 2 2 .�a2 f5 23.exf6 ld:xf6 24.h3 ld:df7 Black wards off the white attack and now begins a counterattack against the white king. White will have to move his heavy pieces back to prevent mate. A2 1 2) 1 3.�e3 tllxd4 14.�xd4 �c5 ! 1 5.ld:adl

6 . �c 4 e 6 7 . 0 - 0 : White C astles Kin g s i d e

1 5 ...'iYb6 ! First, Black wants White to have to defend the bishop with tll e 2 . Then the knight will not be coming to e4, which is very important. 1 6 . .l:i.f4 In the event of 1 6 .tll e 2 'lWc7 ! White can­ not defend the e5 -pawn. 1 6 ...'lWc7 1 7 . .l:i.g4 �xd4+ 1 8 . .l:i.gxd4 tlixe5 Black has won a pawn anyway, and White's problem is that his two minor pieces can neither take part in the attack on the black king, nor defend the e5 -pawn. A22) 1 2.�e3?! tlixe5 1 2 . . . �c7 ? 1 3 . .!::rxf7 ! . 1 3.°'lWh5

�

.

White has sacrificed a pawn for a very strong initiative, and in such positions, Black needs to exchange a pair of mi­ nor pieces, to ease the pressure and damp down the enemy's attacking chances. A22 1 ) 1 3 ...'t:!f c7 1 4. .l:i.ae l At first sight, White has sacrificed a knight for two pawns and his next move regains the knight, so it appears he should be 87

Winning w i th the Naj d orf S i c i l i a n

better with his extra pawn. But the black pieces imperceptibly come to life and the story changes, as Black now as­ sumes the initiative, and White must play very accurately to emerge from a difficult position. 1 4.tLldxbS axbS 1 5 .tLlxbS 'ti'c6 1 6 .'ti'xeS �b7 1 7 . .l:!.f2 tl:ld7 1 8 .'ti'hS tl:lf6 1 9 .�e2. As we have said, Black has managed to seize the ini­ tiative, and now this becomes clear to the naked eye, as the powerful march of the h-pawn starts. 1 9 . . . hS ! 2 0 .h3 tl:le4 2 l .tLld4 'ti'd7 22 . .l:!.f3 �f6=F. 14 ... tllb d7 1 s ...tf2 ..td6 1 6.tlle4 ..tb7

One can say that this is hardly a sacri­ fice, but the harsh reality of White's problems. However, even after the sacri­ fice, he will not manage to equalise. Other continuations are also insuffi­ cient. 1 7 .tl:lxe6 fxe6 1 8.tll g S tll f6 1 9 . tll xe6 tll xhS 2 0 . tll xc 7 + tll c4 2 1 .tLlxaS �xa8=F ; A2 2 2) 1 3 . . . tl:lbc6 1 4.tll x c6 tll x c6 Here White has two continuations, but Black can hold the balance with accu­ rate play in both cases. 1 S . .l:!.f3 The main choice, but White also has the interesting option of a knight sacrifice: 1 5 . .l:!.ad 1 'ti' aS 1 6. tLldS exdS 1 7 .�xdS b4?? (instead of this move, which loses immediately, he should have played 1 7 . . . ..te6 , to return the piece and obtain slightly the better position) 1 8 . .l:!.xf? 88

�e6 1 9 . .l:!.xe7 �xdS 2 0 . .l:!.xdS 'ti'xa2 2 I ..l:!.c7 'ti'c4 2 2 .h3 and White won in Enjuto Velasco-Aguilar Sevilla, Calpe 2004.

A2 2 2 1 ) 1S ...b4? 16 . .l:!.h3 h6D Since in the opening White is trying to obtain the advantage, and he has not previ­ ously managed to create any great prob­ lems for Black, one always suspects that there should be some improvement earlier on. This led to the idea of the following bishop sacrifice, after which White has two pieces hanging, but Black cannot take either of them. 1 7 ...txh6!N 1 7 . .l:!.dl °'li'aS 1 8 .tLldS exdS 1 9 . .l:!.g3 d4 2 0 .�dS (20 . .l:!.xg 7 + Wxg7 2 l .�xh6+ Wh7 also leads to a draw by perpetual check after 2 2 .�g s + ) 2 0 . . . �gS 2 1 .�xgS 'i!VxdS.

And now White forced the draw with 2 2 . ..tf6 °'li'xhS 2 3 . .l:!.xg7 + in Short­ Kasparov, Novgorod 1 9 9 7 .

Chapter 5

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6 . �c 4 e 6 7 . 0 - 0 : Whi t e C astles K i n g s i d e

1 7...g6D 1 8.'iWf3 bxc3 1 9.'iWxc6 cxb2 20.Ilfl Ila? 2 1 .'iW c3 ! �f6 22.Ilxf6 b l 'iY+

A picturesque position. Black has two queens and an extra exchange, but he has to return all the material to avoid mate: 23.I.tfl 'li'xfl + 24.\¥/xfl f6D 2S.�xf8 'l!Vxf8 26.'iWd3 I.tg7 2 7.J::!.h4! With ideas of I.ld4 and 'ifh3 . White has the advantage on account of the weak black king and pawns; A2222) 1 5 ... g6 1 6.°iYh6 f6 ! 1 7.Ildl

important moment. Black has a choice, which way to move the queen, but luckily for him, both are of virtually equal strength. After each move, Black obtains a different structure, but in both cases, he has sufficient counterplay for equality. A22 2 2 1 ) 1 7 ... °iYeS 1 8.tbe4 tbeS ! 1 8 . . . tbaS ?? loses: l 9 . .id4 tbxb3 20.�xf6 �6 2 1 .t2Jxf6+ .ixf6 22.I.txf6 tbcs

2 3 .�e3 (White could have started a winning king chase with the brilliant 2 3 . Ilf7 ! ! @xf7 2 4. 'tWxh 7 + \¥/f6 2 s . I.tfl + @es ( 2 5 . . . \¥/gs 2 6 . g 3 ! ) 2 6 .�c7 + @ds 2 7 .Ild l + \¥/c4 2 8 .b3+ @b4 2 9 .a3 + \¥/xa3 3 0.'tWxcS+ b2 3 1 .�d4+) 23 . . . 'ife7 24.lldfl jib7 2S . .l::!: f7 and White also won in Todorovic-Lazic, Belgrade 1 988. 1 9.Ilh3 I.If? 20.�cs as 2 1 .a3 �xcS + 22.tbxcS White has compensation, as his pieces are very active, but Black has no special weaknesses, and just has problems completing his development. If he manages it, he will have an extra pawn, or he may return the pawn and equalise. A2 2 2 2 2 ) 1 7 ...'iWc7!

An

1 8.\¥/hl ! ? Prophylaxis! The king always prevents White establishing a danger­ ous attack, because if necessary, Black can exchange dark-squared bishops and queens on the same diagonal.

89

Winning w i th the Naj d o rf S i c i l i an

If 1 8 .nh3 nf7 1 9 .a4 ( 1 9 .ltJdS ? exdS 2 0 .�xdS �xh3 2 1 .�xf7 + Wxf7 2 2 .'iYxh7 + We6 2 3 .�xh 3 + fS 24.'iYh6 ttJeS - Black is winning and only needs to take due care, Karhunen-Eklund, Finland tt 1 990) 1 9 . . . �f8 2 0 .'M¥h4 Black has an extra pawn and is begin­ ning to activate his pieces. 1 8 ... ttJeS 1 9.�f4 'iYb6 20.�xeS fxeS

2 1 .ngJ After 2 l .J::i:xf8+ �xf8 22 .°iWh3 na7 2 3 .ltJe4 .l:!.f7 24.ltJgS .l:!.e7 25 .nfl White has good compensation for the pawn, but Black also has his pluses, and he is ready to give back one pawn, in return for activating his bishops. 2 1 . .. nf7 22.ttJds ! 'iYa7 2 3.ttJxe7 + 2 3 .nxg6+ draws: 2 3 . . . hxg6 24.'iYxg6+ @f8D 25 .'M¥h6+ We8 2 6 .°iWh8+ �f8 2 7 .ltJf6+ We7 2 8 .ltJg 8 + = . 2 3 ...'M¥xe7 24.ngd3 �d7 ! 2S.'iYe3 naf8 26.h3 �cs 2 7.'iYxeS White is slightly better, but has no clear advantage, since Black only has a single weakness on e6. A2 2 2 3 ) 15 ...�d6 ! 1 6.nhJ h6D

90

1 7.�xh6 In case of 1 7 .ng3 'iYeS ! 1 8.'iYxeS tDxeS 1 9 .�xh6 ttJg6 Black is slightly better after the exchange of queens, because White's play was based on the attack. Black can neutralise this and remain with the better pawn struc­ ture. 1 7 ... 'iYcS + 1 8.'iYxcS �xc S + 1 9.�e3 �xe3+ 20.nxe3 nds The posi­ tion is equal. In fact, I would even pre­ fer Black. A2 3 ) 1 2.'iYg4 Or l 2.'i!Vf3 . 1 2 ... ttJxeS! 1 3.'iYe4 �cS ! 1 4.�e3

14 ... ttJbc6! 1 S.0ixc6 .ixe3+ 1 6.'i!Vxe3 tllxc6=F With simply an extra pawn, Black should exchange queens and, most of all, activate his bishop. 1 7 . .l:!.ad 1 �e7 l 8 .ltJe4 �b7 1 9 .ttJgs nae8 2 0 . .l:!.de l ttJd8 2 1 .'iYg3 h6 2 2 .ltJe4 .ixe4 2 3 .nxe4 ttJb7 24.ng4 g6 2 5 .c3 Wh7 2 6 .�c2 and Black won in Goncharov-Aveskulov, Alushta tt 2004. B) 9 ...b4 1 o.ttJa4

C hapter S - 6 . � c 4 e6 7 . 0 - 0 : White C a s tl es K i n g s i d e

B l ) Not 10 ... ttJxe4? 1 1 .fS ! eS 1 2.�xf7+! Or also 1 2 .�dS ! ? ttJf6 1 3 .jixa8 �d7 l 4.b3 when White sim­ ply has an extra exchange and an abso­ lutely winning position. 1 2 ... 'it>xf7 1 3.ttJe6 'lllVe 8 1 4.°iVdS 'iib s 1 S.'l!Vxe4 and White is winning ; B 2 ) 1 0 ... 0 - 0 1 1 .eS dxeS Also good may be l l . . . ttJe4 ! ? l 2 .�e3 �b 7 1 3 .�g4 dxeS 1 4.fxeS �gs 1 5 .�e2 ttJd7 1 6 .�ad l �xe 3 + 1 7 .�xe3 'li'e7 1 8 .ttJf3 ttJdcS 1 9 .ttJxcS ttJxcS 20.�c4 .i:rad8 and Black consolidated in Markovic-Babula, Moravia tt 2 0 0 2 / 0 3 . 1 2.fx.eS tt:'ids Here, Black has a natural alternative in l 2 . . . ttJfd 7 , hitting the eS -pawn. Now 1 3 .l:[xf7 l:[xf7 1 4.ttJxe6 'i!VaS seems insufficient for White. An­ other plausible move is l 2 . . . ttJe4, as was already played in Emma-Najdorf, Zarate Open I 9 7 2 .

B3) Black has several continuations, but the strongest becomes obvious, once one understands White's threat, which is to advance the e-pawn, open­ ing lines and exposing the weakness of the black king. But the following move makes this threat difficult to execute. 1 O ... 't!Vc7! 1 1 .eS dxeS 1 2.fx.eS 'iWxeS 1 3.�f4 'lllVe4 14.°iVd2 'l!Vb7 l S . .i::lael �d7

1 6.ttJfS exfS 1 7.ttJcs Not 1 7 . .l:!:xe7+ 'it>xe 7 1 8 .ttJcS 'iW b6 -+ . 1 7 ... 'i¥b6 1 8.'it>h l ! 'lllVxcS 1 9.�d6 0-0 20.�xcS �xcS 2 1 .l:tes �b6 22.'t!Vd6 �d8 23 .l::texfS �xfS 24. .!:[xfS ttJbd7 and now, purely on material, it may appear Black is winning, but when one looks at the position more closely, we under­ stand that the white queen is quite good in the fight against the three black minor pieces, whilst the advance of the h- and g-pawns gives him real drawing chances. 2S.g4! h6 26.h4! ttJe4=i=. C) 9 ...�b7 1 0.eS I O .jie3 ! ? . 1 0...dxeS 1 1 .fxeS �cs 1 1 . . . ttJfd 7 ? 1 2 . .i:rxf7 ! . 1 2.�e3 was another main line for a very long time, but is currently hardly ever played anymore. •

1 3.'l!Vg4!N For some strange reason, in­ stead of this active move, White has previously played 1 3 . 'it>h I in this posi­ tion, after which Black has no prob­ lems, whereas after the aggressive queen move, Black starts to have trouble because of the weakness of his king. 1 3 ... 'it>hs 1 4.l:[f3 ! 'i¥c7 l S.'lllVhs g6 1 6.'lllVh 6 'iVxeS 1 7.�xdS exdS 1 7 . . . 'iWxdS 1 8 .�e3 'li'hs 1 9 .'li'xhS gxhS 2 0 .�h6±. 1 8.�e3 'it>g8 1 9 . .!:[e l lia7 20.ttJb6i;

9 ... �c7

Here Black has two good continuations, although I slightly prefer 9 ... 'iW c 7 , be­ cause it suits my chess tastes more, and 91

Winning with the Naj d o r f S i c i l i a n

because it was the choice of Boris Gel­ fand, in the game which proved to be the best of the Kazan Candidates' cycle. The alternative is 9 ... 'i¥b6 and now:

A) 1 0.�gS? ! The bishop on gS does not do anything special, and so this move is not the best for White. A l ) 1 0 ...'i¥xd4? 1 1 .eS

1 1 ...dxeS !N 1 2.'i¥xa8 'i¥b6 ! 1 3.a4! 'i¥c7 1 4.�xf6 gxf6D 1 S .'i¥f3 The queen must move away, since Black threatens . . . �b7 and then . . . �cs , trap­ ping it. But White manages to evacuate it in time. 1 S ... b4 1 6.tt'le2 hS ! A very strong move, the idea of which is sim­ ple: the white knight is aiming for the square hS , from where it will attack the f6-pawn and not allow Black to castle. But once the pawn reaches h4, White will not be able to put the knight on hS . 1 7 . .t!.acl White wants to open the c-file, because he has no other ideas, and if

92

Black manages to play ... itb7 and acti­ vate the knight with . . . tt'ld7-cS , then he will stand better. Hence White must hurry. 1 7 ... itb7 1 8.'i¥h3 h4! The com­ puter assesses the position as equal, but in my opinion many players would pre­ fer Black, as he has clear play with the threat of . . . .l:!.g8 and it is not clear how White can defend the square g2; A2) 1 0 ... 0 - 0 1 1 ..t!.adl In the event of 1 1 .e S ? dxeS 1 2 .tt'lfs exfS 1 3 .itxf6 �b7 1 4.tt'lds itxf6 1 S .tt'lxb6 itxf3 1 6. gxf3 .l::!. a 7 Black simply has an extra pawn and a winning position. 1 1 ... tt'lbd7 and now: A2 1 ) 1 2.'i¥g3 tt'lhS ! 1 3.'i¥h4 �xgS 1 4.'iVxgS tt'lhf6 1 5 . .t!.fe l itb7 1 6.l:i.e3 tt'les 1 7 . .tl.g3 tt'lg6

1 8.h4! Not 1 8 .tt'lfS ? b4 1 9 . .t!.xd6 'i¥c7 2 0 .eS exfS 2 1 .h4 bxc3 2 2 .�xf6 'iVxeS 23 . .t!.xfS 'iVe l + 24.'ot>h2 cxb2 0 - 1 Shabalov-Nakamura, Miami 2 0 0 7 . 1 8 ... @hs 1 9.hS h6 20.'iYe3 tt'lxhS 2 1 ..tl.xg6 fxg6 22.tt'lxe6 'iVxe3 23.fxe3 J::i. fc8 24. .t!.xd6 tt'lf6 Black is better any­ way, as he has an extra exchange, al­ though White has a pawn and active pieces for it; A2 2) 1 2 . .t!.fe l �b7 1 3.°iVg3 After 1 3 .°iVh3 tt'lcS l 4 . .tl.e3 ( 1 4.eS ? dxeS l S . .t!.xeS .t!.ad 8 +: ) 1 4 . . . b4 1 S . tt'la4 tt'lxa4 1 6.�xa4 °t{gaS 1 7 .�c6 °t{gxgS !N ( 1 7 . . . itxc6 l 8 .tt'lxc6 'iVxgS l 9 . tt'lxe7 +

Chapter 5

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Wh8 i s known to b e unclear) l 8.�xb7 !1a7 1 9 .�c6 l:!.c7 Black is simply a little better. The opposite bishops suit him. It is strange that so far, no black players have headed for this position. 1 3 ...4:Jh5 14.iVh4 �xg5 1 5.'i!'xg5 ti:Jhf6 1 6.'i!'e3 l:tab8 Black is better, because the white attack is not dangerous, and Black has easy play: all his pieces are developed and stand well. B) 1 0.�e3 ! White develops his bishop with tempo, as Black must spend another move with his queen, whilst White has already developed all his pieces and is ready for active opera­ tions. Plus the black queen will occupy b 7 , where the black bishop would like to go. 1 0 ... 'i!'b7 : B l ) 1 1 .'i!'g3 0-0 1 2.�h6 I do not like 1 2 .f3 , and was very surprised to see it in a game by Ivanchuk himself. Admit­ tedly it was a rapid game, but it shows that Vasily Mikhailovich was not in his best form: 1 2 . . . �d7 1 3 . .!:f.fd 1 4:lc6 1 4.4:Jxc6 �xc6 1 S .4:Je2 .l:!.fc8 1 6 . .l:!.d2 b4 1 7 .c4 as 1 8 .�c2 a4 1 9 .S:i.d3 4:Jd7 20 .4:Jd4 tt:Jes 2 1 .�fl �e8 22 . .l::r c l b3 2 3 .axb3 axb3 24.iVe l �d8 2 S .'i!'d l and Black won in Ivanchuk-Le Quang Liem, Beijing rapid 2 0 1 1 . 1 2 ... tt:Jes

Here White has two main continua­ tions, both of which give the game a sharp character. White is slightly ahead

6 . � c 4 e6 7 . 0 - 0 : Whi te C astles Kings i d e

in development, but if Black manages to exchange a pair of minor pieces, then he will solve his problems. B l 1 ) 1 3 .l:tfe l Wh8 1 4.�g5 Or 1 4.�e3 ! ? ti:Jf6 1 S .a3 ti:Jbd7 ( 1 S . . . 4:Jxe4 leads to a large white advantage: l 6 .4:Jxe4 �xe4 1 7 .�gs 'i!'b7 l 8 .�xe7 �xe7 1 9.ti:JfS ±) 1 6 . .i::l. ad l tt:Jcs 1 7 .eS 4:Jce4 1 8 . 4:Jxe4 4:Jxe4 1 9 .'i:Wf4 gS 2 0 .�g4 dxes 2 1 .tt:Jf3 fs 2 2 .Wk'hs 4:Jf6 2 3 .�h6 4:lg4 with move repetition. 14 ... 4:Jf6 1 5 . .l:radl After l S .'iYh4 Black can try 1 S . . . 4:Jbd7 ! N (here I had a sim­ ple and strong idea: to make a develop­ ing move and strengthen the ti:Jf6 . Pre­ viously, Black has played less well here) 1 6.l:Iad l tt:Jes 1 7 .'i:Wh3 4:Jg6! 1 8 .a3 �d7 with an unclear position. It is very important that the black knight already stands on g 6 , and assists in the defence. In such positions, the square f4 is very important, and the battle revolves around it, with Black wanting, if he can, to exchange dark-squared bishops and play on the dark squares. 1 5 ... 4:Jbd7

B 1 1 1 ) After 1 6 .�xe6? fxe6 1 7.4:Jxe6 Black was already slightly better with 1 7 . . JH7 ! ? 1 8 . tiJdS tt:Jes 1 9 . lLiec7 4:\xdS 2 0 .lLixa8 ltJf6 whereas 1 7 ... .l:rg8 ! + would have been even stronger, Wyss-Gopal, Zurich 2 0 0 9 ; is B 1 1 2 ) Another possibility 1 6 .4:Jd5? ! exd5 1 7 .4:Jf5 and now: 93

Winning wi th the Naj d orf S i c i l i an

B l l 2 1 ) 1 7 ... tt:Jes 1 s . ..th6 ! g6 1 9.tt:lxd6! ! l 9.�g 7 + ? @g8 led to a draw in Werner-Nagy, Budapest 2 0 0 3 . The text move i s much stronger. 1 9 .....txd6 20.�xf8 ..txf8 2 1 .�xeS We have reached an unclear position, where again I prefer Black, even though his dark-squares are weak and White's dark-squared bishop has no opponent. B l 1 2 2 ) A new move here is 1 7 ... tt:lhSN , for example : l 8 .�h4 ..txg5 1 9 .�xhS h6 20 . ..txdS �b8 2 1 .h4 g6 2 2 .�f3 tt:les 2 3 .�g3 ..tf6 24.�f4 h5 25 . ..txa8 �xa8 2 6 . l:l:xd6 jie6 and I prefer Black's position, as he has two pieces for the rook. Admittedly, White has two extra pawns, but the main thing is that the black pieces are more active; B l l 3 ) 1 6 .l:l:e3 Now Black has a choice: B l 1 3 1 ) 1 6 ... �b6 1 7.f4 lUhS ? ! 1 8.�h4

B 1 1 3 1 1 ) 1 8 ... �xgS ?? 1 9.fxgS g6 20.@h l ? Even after this White has the advantage, but it is the start of a series of mistakes, as a result of which White grad­ ually loses a winning position. 20.g4! tt:lf4 2 1 .l:l:f3 ! ilb7 22.l:l:xf4 es 23 . .ld.f2 exd4 24 . .ld.d3+-. 20 ... �b7 2 1 ..ld.h3 tllcS 22.g4 b4 23.lUdS exdS 24.gxhS �c7 and Black won in Iruzubieta Villaluenga­ Topalov, Elgoibar 1 992; B 1 1 3 1 2) Best is 1 8 ... tllxf4! 1 9.�xf4 es 20.�g3 ..txgS 2 1 .�xgS exd4 22.tt:lds �cS ! After 2 2 . . . �d8 2 3 .�xd8 .ld.xd8 24.l:l:xd4t White has the advan­ tage in the endgame. His pieces are ac­ tive plus his rooks are very well placed. He can play .l::!. c 3-c7 when the chance arises. Black will have to play . . . @g8 be­ cause the f7-pawn is very weak, and Black also has a weak pawn on d6. White has the idea of a2-a4, giving Black extra problems with the a- or b-pawn. 23.l::r g3 d3 + 24.@fl �d4! 25.l:l:dxd3 �es 26.�xeS tt:lxeS 2 7.l:l:d4

We have reached roughly the same end­ game, but with the difference that the black knight already stands on e 5 , plus Black has an extra tempo, having played . . . ..te6 , and will begin to develop his rooks. Even so, White is slightly better and Black has to fight for equality; B l 1 3 2) In my opinion, 1 6 ... b4 is strongest. It is always nice to drive the 94

Chapter 5

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opponent's pieces out of the centre, where they control many important squares, and also defend the pawn on e4. After Black's pawn move, White has to find another way to defend his e-pawn. B 1 1 3 2 1 ) 1 7 .tba4 The idea of this is simple: White keeps the e-file open for his rook, which will stand well on e 1 , and if the black bishop moves to e 7 , White will play tbfs . 1 7 ...h6 1 7 . . . tbxe4 1 8 . l:txe4 �xgS 1 9 . l:tee l �d8 20 .Wk°xd6t. 1 8.'Wh3 We have reached a position with roughly equal chances; B 1 1 3 2 2 ) 1 7.tbce2 tbxe4 1 8.l:txe4 �xgS Here the white rook has nothing to do on the e-file. He needs to think up something concrete, for which the black pieces are fully ready. 1 9.l:txe6 Af­ ter 1 9 .l:tg4 !!2.f6 2 0 . 'ifxd6 . . .

. . . 2 0 . . . aS =F is a strong move, with the idea of bringing the rook into play via a6, while, most importantly of all, driv­ ing away the only active white piece. 1 9 ... tbcS? Better is 1 9 . . . tbf6 2 0 .l:txd6 llJe4 2 1 .Wk°f3 tbxd6 2 2 . �ds �g4 13 .!ilxb7 �xf3 24.�xf3 l:tae8=F and Black just has an extra exchange. 20.�dS ! ± and White was better, though the game was finally drawn in unn-Ftacnik, England tt 1 99 9 / 0 0 . B 1 2) I think White miscalculated when he sacrificed the knight. 1 3.tbfS ? _

6 . �c4 e 6 7 . 0 - 0 : Whi t e C as t l es Kin g s i d e exfS -+ 1 4.�dS tb c 6 l S .exfS �xfS 1 6 .'tWf3 �d7 1 7 .ld'.ae l ( 1 7 . .l::!.fe l �f6 1 8 .tbe4 �es is · similar, Tischbierek­ Hunerkopf, Munich 1 99 1 /92) 1 7 . . . �f6 1 8 .tbe4 �es 1 9 .tbgs tbf6 2 0 .�xg7 Wxg7 2 1 JheS dxeS 2 2 .'tWg3 Wh8 2 3 .'ifh4 �fS 24.f4 tbxdS and 0 - 1 in Delchev-Nikolov, Varna 2 0 1 2 ; B 1 3 ) After 1 3.l:tadl Black has a mass of possibilities: B 1 3 1 ) 1 3 ... tllc6

14.tbf3 !N A strategically strong move, since if you have a space advantage, then you should not exchange pieces. Black has no squares to which to de­ velop his cramped pieces and exchanges would help him. The computer says the position is equal, but White's play is easier. After 1 4.tbdS ( 1 4.tbxc6 transposes) 1 4 . . . �d8 1 S .tbxc6 'ifxc6 1 6 . .!:f.fe l Wh8 1 7 .�f4 as 1 8 .a3 Black still has to fight to equalize. He only has one problem, namely that his pieces are all on the back rank, and if he could re­ organise them, he would stand well: 1 4 . . . 'ifxc6 1 S .tbds �d8 . 1 4 ... WhS 1 5.�gS tbf6 ; B 1 3 2 ) 1 3 ...�f6?! i s not best i n my opinion, because Black still has pieces that are not developed, whereas the !fle7 is developed and stands ideally: B 1 3 2 1 ) 1 4.�e3 and now: B 1 3 2 1 1 ) 1 4... tbd7 ! ?

9S

Winning wi th the Naj d o r f S i c i l i an

1 S.tllxe6 fxe6 1 6.�xe6+ Wh8 1 7.�ds 't!Vb8 1 8.�xa8 �xc3 ! The correct move. White will exchange the bishop on f6 anyway, so Black spoils the white struc­ ture and reaches a very interesting posi­ tion of dynamic equality. After 1 8 . . . 't!Vxa8 1 9 .�d4!t Black's strongest piece must be removed, and then the pawn on d6 remains weak, as do the dark squares in Black's camp. 1 9.bxc3 't!Vxa8 20.�d4 I prefer White's position, as I don't think he is risking anything ; B 1 3 2 1 2) 1 4 ... � d 7 ? ! 1 S .f4! tll c 6 1 6.tllxc6 �xc6 1 7 .es dxeS 1 8.fxeS �e7 1 9.'t!Vg4 Alternatively, the knight can be brought into the attack on the king, via 1 9 .tll e 2 ! ? and then f4 and hS . 1 9 ... WhS 20.J::!.fl (20.tll e 2 !�) 20 ... fs 2 1 .exf6 tllxf6 22.'t!Vxe6 �ae8 23.'t!Vh3 �d8 24.�d4 �b6 2 S .tll e 2 �d7 26.'t!Vf3 't!Vb8 2 7.'t!Vg3 �c7 28.tll f4 .tle4 29.�cS �d8 and Black has compensa­ tion for the pawn. The draw was agreed in Golubev-Kempinski , Germany Bundesliga 2 0 0 1 / 0 2 ; B 1 3 2 1 3 ) With 1 4.�gS White ex­ changes off Black's only active piece and after that, the weakness of the d-pawn becomes clear. White has pres­ sure: 14 ... b4 1 S.tll a4 �xgS 1 6.'t!VxgS tll f6 1 7.f3 Following 1 7 . e s ! h6 l 8 .'t!Vf4 dxeS 1 9 .'t!VxeS White's position is slightly better, as he has active pieces, and is better developed, whilst the black

96

queen is very badly placed, blocking the development of the bishop on c8. 1 7 . . . �d7 1 8 .'t!Vas �xa4 1 9 .�xa4 �c8 20 . .!'.:!:f2 tll b d7 2 l .�xd7 tll xd7 2 2 .a3 bxa3 2 3 .'t!Vxa3 tll e S 24.b3 with an absolutely equal position, Danin­ Donchenko, Nuremberg 2 0 1 2 . B l 3 3 ) After 1 3 . . . @h8 ? ! 1 4.�gS ! White is simply better. The main thing is to exchange the bishop on e 7 , and the weaknesses of the black position will immediately become visible. White has all of his pieces well placed and is ready for decisive action. 1 4 . . . �xgS l S .'t!VxgS h6 l 6.'t!Vh4 tll c 6 1 7 .tll xc6 't!Vxc6 l 8 . �d4 as 1 9 .a3 .l:Ib8 20 . .l::!.fd l �a6 2 l .f3 Wg8 2 2 .'t!Vf2 't!Vc7 2 3 .h3 l::!.b 6 with an unclear position, in which the chances are about equal, Konguvel­ Jaracz, Dresden 2 0 1 2 ; B l 3 4) 1 3 ... tt:'id7 1 4.tllxe6 1 4.tll d S �d8 1 S . I:!:fe 1 . 14 ... fxe6 1 S .�xe6 + Wh8 1 6 .�dS 't!Vb8 1 7 .�xa8 't!Vxa8 ; B 1 3 S ) 1 3 ... �d7 After this strongest move, White has two ways to proceed: B 1 3 S 1 ) After 1 4.�fe 1 ! ? play assumes a more positional character in which chances are about equal, because nei­ ther side has any obvious weaknesses or problems: 1 4 ... �f6 1 4 . . . tll c 6??

l S .tll d S !± �d8 1 6.tll fS exfS 1 7 .exfS tll e S 1 8 . .l::!. x eS dxeS 1 9 .f6 g6 2 0 .tll e 7 + 1 -0 Kudrin-Moulin, New York 1 99 2 .

C hapter S

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1 5 .i.gS ! After this exchange White's position is slightly more pleasant, as his pieces are better and he can potentially exploit the third rank to bring his rooks via e3 and d3 , to the kingside for the at­ tack. 1 5 ... i.xg5 1 6.'1Wxg5 tllc 6 1 7 .l::r e 3 �a7 1 8.tllc e2 tll a 5 1 9.'1Wh4 tllxb3 20 . .l:!:h3 h6 2 1 .axb3 11Wc5 22 . .l:!:g3 'itih7 23.Uc3 11Wg5 24.'1Wxg5 hxg5 25.b4 tll f6 26.f3 The resulting endgame is roughly equal, although White has slight pres­ sure because of the pawn on d6. How­ ever, with accurate play, Black can easily equalise, Kruppa-Gavrikov, Irkutsk 1 986; B 1 3 5 2) More active and ambitious is 14.f4, with the idea of ramming the awn down to f6 , and exposing the Jack king, in order to make it easier for pieces to attack: 1 4 ... tll c 6!

3e needs to complete his development uickly and exchange some of the at­ cking pieces, since otherwise it will be very hard for Black to defend. B 1 3 5 2 1 ) l 5.tllxc6 i.xc6 1 6.f5 'itih8D 1 7.fxe6 1 7 .f6 ! ? i.xf6 1 8 . .l:!:xf6 .l:!:g8 9 . .l:!:f4 gxh6 2 0 .'1Wf3 .l:!:a7 2 1 ..l:rfl b4 _2.tll e 2 �bs 2 3 .l:tf2 aS ? 24.tll d4± -aer-Biriukov, St Petersburg 1 9 9 8 . 1 7 ...gxh6D 1 8.exf7 tllf6 1 9.tll d5-+ ; B l 3 5 22) 1 5.B tllxd4 1 6 ..l:!:xd4 i.f6 1 7 ..l:!:d3 Black is very tied up, with practi­ Gilly all his pieces on the back ranks. Here _

6 . � c 4 e 6 7 . 0 - 0 : White C a s t l es K i n g s i d e

he has two continuations: either continue with passive tactics, by means of . . . Wh8 , or to start harassing the enemy with counteractions, beginning with 1 7 . . . b4. As the variations below demonstrate, the move 1 7 . . . b4 is stronger. 1 8 .i.g5 ? ! B l 3 5 2 2 1 ) 1 7 ... 'itihS 1 8 .fxe6 ! fxe6D

1 9 .eS ! dxeS 20 .�e3 ! . 18 ...b4 1 9.fxe6 fxe6 20.e5 dxe5 2 1 .tlle4 �b5 22.tllc 5 �e7 2 3 .tll xe6 .l:!:g8 24.�e3 i.xd3 25.cxd3 tbc7 26.tll g5 and White is an exchange down, but his initiative is sufficient for a draw, Golubev-Zubov, Odessa 2 0 0 7 ; B l 3 5 2 22) 1 7 ...b4! 1 8.fxe6 fxe6

1 9 .tll d 5 i.b5 20.e5 2 0.�e3 ! 'itih8 2 1 .tllxf6 .l:!:xf6 2 2 . .l:!.xf6 tllxf6 23 . .l:!:dl tll x e4 2 4 . �h3 e S 2 5 .�dS �c6 26.�xe4 �xe4 27 . .l:!.xd6=. 20...'itihS!? 20 ... dxe S ? ? 2 1 .tll xf6 + +- Golubev-A. Lambert, Germany tt 1 99 7 / 9 8 . 2 1 .exf6

97

Winning w i th the Naj d o r f S i c i l i a n

gxh6 22.tll f4 �xd3 23.'iYxd3 .!hf6 24.�xe6+; or 20 ...�xd3 2 1 .tll xf6+ hS !! 22.'iYxd3 gxh6+: . B 2 ) 1 1 .a3 0 - 0 l 1 . . .tll b d7 ! ? i s also possible, and in some lines reaches the same position as after castling, but the text move has one small plus by com­ parison: after castling, Black can still de­ velop his pieces in various ways, whereas the immediate l 1 . . .tll b d7 de­ prives Black of these additional options. B2 l ) The move 1 2 . .ld:ae l has its pluses. The idea is simple: White is clearly prepared to attack, by advancing his g- and f-pawns, and in that case, the rook on fl is obviously well-placed to support the match of the f-pawn and help create threats on that file. This is a very important moment for Black, who must decide how to con­ tinue developing his pieces. He has two ways of doing so: first with l 2 . . . tll bd7 , which leads to a very complicated struggle, where Black has to play ex­ tremely accurately in order not to fall under a mating attack; and secondly, with the move I prefer, 1 2 . . . �d7 . B2 1 l ) 1 2 ...tllb d7 1 3.'iYg3

Here Hou Yifan played 1 3 . . . h8 and after 1 4.f4 tll c S 1 5 .eS tll fe4 1 6 .tllxe4 tll x e4 1 7 . 'iYh3 dxeS 1 8 .fxeS tll c S l 9 .ita2 'iYc7 2 0 .'iYhS �b7 2 l ..ld:xf7 .l::!.xf7 2 2 . 'iYxf7 .l::!. f8 2 3 .'iYhS �e4 24.b4 98

tll d 7 2 5 .tllx e6 Black was winning in Dauletova-Hou Yifan, Macau 2 0 0 7 . I think Hou Yifan understood that 1 3 ... tllhS !N was the way to play, but against a weaker opponent, she wanted to play for a win and almost paid the price. After the correct 1 3 . . . tll h S , White should repeat the position, or himself find some other way to continue: 1 4.'iYh3 tllhf6 1 S .f4 1 5 .'iYg3 = . 1 S tllxe4 1 6 .fs After 1 6 . tll xe4 'iYxe4 1 7 .tll xe6 tll f6 1 8 .tll g S �xh3 1 9 .tllxe4 tll x e4 2 0 . gxh3 �h4 2 l . .ld:e2 tll c S 2 2 .�dS .ld:ae8 2 3 .b3 White's position is slightly more pleasant, on account of the strong bishop on dS , but his kingside is weak. 1 6 ... tllxc3 1 7.fxe6 tll e4 and now: •••

The resulting position is very sharp: White is a piece down but has a strong attack, and now he has a choice of at­ tacking continuations. The first regains the piece, but as we will see from the variations, this does not offer White more than perpetual check, whereas the other option delays regaining the piece and gives White a strong initiative, which with best play on both sides should bring him a minimal advantage. B2 1 1 1 ) 1 8 .exd7 �xd7 1 9.'Whs tll f6D 20.'iYh4 .ld:ae8 2 1 .�gs �cs 22.c3 ds 23.'iYg3 hs 24.'i¥h4 gs 2S.�xf6 �xf6

Chap ter 5

-

6 . .£c4 e6 7 . 0 - 0 : Whi t e C a s t l es King s i d e we shall see. 1 S .'i1Yg2 tbaS 1 6.f4 lbxb3 1 7.cxb3 as 1 S.b4 axb4 1 9.axb4 g6 20.fs es 2 1 .tbds .idSD

26..ihf6 .l:he l + 27.'iVxe l gxf6 2S ..ic2 2 8 . 'iWg 3 + h8 2 9 . 'iVd6 .l::!. e 8 3 0 . 'iVxf6+ h8 1 8.�h4 tllg 8 1 9.l:lg3 'it'cs 20.llee3 h6 2 I .i.xe7 tll xe7 2 2 . �f4 l:lf8 2 3 .l:lh3 tll g 6 24.l:lxh6 + gxh6 2 5 .�xh6 + 'tt> g 8 26.i.xe6 'Ylfes 2 7.'ilfxg6+ 'iYg7 28.'iYhS fxe6 29.l:lg3 and White won in Short­ Ehlvest, Moscow rapid 1 994; C) 1 1 .a4 b4! After this strong move, Black has no problem, as he exchanges his b-pawn for the white e-pawn, and Black is at least not worse. l l . . .bxa4?! l 2 .llxa4 �d 7 ? (after l 2 . . . 'iYb 7 ! 1 3 .'Ylfg3 �d7 1 4 . .l:Ic4 White is slightly better)

1 3 . .l:Ic4 (after 1 3 .eS ! dxeS 1 4 . .l:Ic4 'i'aS l 5 . tll xe 6 �xe6 l 6 .'iYxa8 �xc4 1 7 .�xc4 �M l 8 .'ilfb7 ;t White is sim­ ply better, with equal material, two bishops and a threat of check on f7) 1 03

Winning w i t h t h e Najdorf S i c i l i a n

1 3 . . . �b7 1 4 . .igs ( 1 4. e S ! �xf3 1 5 .tt:lxf3 dxeS 1 6 .tt:lxeSi) 1 4 . . . .l:.!.d8 1 5 .es �xf3 l 6 .tt:lxf3 dxeS 1 7 .tt:lxeS h6 1 8 .�e3 �bS 1 9 . .l:.!.d4 �e8 2 0 .�a4 .l:.!.xd4 2 l ...txe8 tt:lxe8 2 2 .�xd4 �f6 2 3 . tt:le4 ..txeS 24 . ..txeS tt:lc6 2 S . ..tc3 and White has a minimal advantage thanks to the strong bishop on c 3 , and chances to create an outside passed pawn, Nisipeanu-Banikas, Novi Sad Ech-tt 2 0 0 9 . 1 2 .tt:la2

1 2 .....tb7 1 3.tt:lxb4 tt:lbd7 14.c3 tt:les 1S.'it'h3 he4 1 6.aS! The pawn on a6 needs to be fixed. 16 ...WhS 1 7...tgs dS 1 s.�g3 tt:lhs 1 9.'it'h4 tt:lf6 20.�g3 1/2-1/2 Nisipeanu-Karjakin, Warsaw Ech 2005. 1 0... 0-0

how White should develop the initia­ tive. But as an analysis of the games will show, as a result of the sacrifice, Black has great problems, because his king is unsafe in the centre of the board under the blows of the white pieces. 1 1 . .. exfSD 1 2.�xg7 l::tf8 A l ) 1 3 ...tgs One's eyes glaze over at the sight of so many interesting contin­ uations, but I think the most logical and probably strongest is to develop another piece with tempo in this way, after which the rook on a 1 can also come into play. Here Black has three continuations. After each, we will see that by returning the piece, he either obtains a double­ edged position or equalises. I will not give preference to any one move, but I can say with confidence that Black has adequate play in all lines. A l l ) 1 3 ... �dS 1 4.tt:ldS tt:lxdS 1 4 . . . tt:lhS ? 1 5 .�c3 !± ..tb7 1 6.tt:lxe7 tt:lxe7 1 7 .�h3 tt:lg7 1 8 .exfS f6 1 9 . ..th6 l::t f7 2 0 .�e6 tt:lg8 2 1 . .l:.!.ae l �c7 22 . ..txf7 + Wxf7 23 . ..txg 7 Wxg7 24 . .l:.!.e3 with an ongoing initiative in Solak-Karj akin, Dresden Olympiad 2 0 0 8 . 1 5.�xdS ..tb7 1 6.�h6

The alternative is 1 O ... tt:lc6 and now:

A) 1 1 .tt:lfS An excellent knight sacri­ fice, which is hard to find, because after Black takes the knight, it is not obvious 1 04

A l 1 1 ) 1 6 ... �d7 1 7.�xh7 f4!N Previously 1 7 ... 0-0-0 was played. After 1 8 . ..txf8 .l:.!.xf8 , now 1 9 .c3 ? ! didn't worry Black too much after 1 9 . . . f4

C h apter 5

-

2 0 . f3 tb e s 2 1 . .l:i.fd l �d8 2 2 . �fs �b6+ 2 3 .xh2 "iYc7 + 2 0 .\t>g l ± ; also good for White is 2 0 .�f4! ? °i¥c6 2 l .°i¥e 7 °i¥c8 2 2 .�xh6 ! "i¥xc2 2 3 .�ac l ± . 1 6 .�c5 1ie7 1 7.i.xe7 "i¥xe7 1 8.�xd5;;!;; ; A l 5 2 2 ) 1 2 ... tiJbd7 1 3 .�ad l 1 3 .tLlf5 ! ?;;!;; . 1 3 ...b4 1 4.tLla4

1 5.exf5 �ac8 1 6.tLld5 tLixd5 1 7.�xd5 tLla5 1 8.c3 My opponent has failed to cope with all the subtleties of the posi­ tion and has allowed me to carry out all of my plans. Here White has the ad­ vantage. 1 8 ... tLlc4 1 9 .i.c l �fd8 20.°iYg4 \t>f8 2 1 .�fd l 'f!Vc6 22.°iYe2 i.f6 2 3 .�e3 i.e7 24.g3 �f6 2 5.h4 �d7 26.a3 White is in no hurry, and strengthens his position to the maxi­ mum , while Black treads water. 26 ... �ddS 2 7.i.a2 tll b 6 2 8 .�xb6 "iYxb6 29.°iYh5 �c7

14 ... tLlxe4!N The best of the possibili­ ties in Black's arsenal. At the end of the variation, White has a small advantage, of course, but other moves are not en­ tirely satisfactory. We will examine all three possibilities. 1 4 . . . �xb3 1 S .axb3 tLixe4 l 6 . tLlf5 tLief6 1 7 . ttJxd6;;!;; ; 1 4 . . . °i¥a5 ? 1 5 .tLlg6! �fe8 1 6.tLlxe7+ Timofeev-Bu l:txe 7 1 7 . 1:Ixd6± Xiangzhi, Taiyuan 2 0 0 6 . 1 5.i.xe6 fxe6 1 6.tLlg6 �f6 1 7 .tLixe7 + "i¥xe7 1 8.f3 ttJg5 1 9.°i¥c4 tLif7 20.�xb4;;!;; ; A 1 5 2 3 ) 1 2 ... tLic6 Before the follow­ ing game, I analysed similar positions, and drew some definite conclusions about how I wanted to play. I wished to delay the move �b3 and only play it if absolutely necessary, and instead quickly found the plan of �d 1 and lLih4-f5 . 1 3 .�ad l "iYc7 1 4.tLlf5 �xf5

3 0.g4! 1 -0 Andriasyan-Arslanov, St Pe­ tersburg 2 0 1 1 .

1 30

Back to the position after White's tenth move.

A2) l O ... tLlc6 ! ? A 2 l ) 1 1 .�fdl !? I n general, i t i s not so important which rook comes to d 1 , but each choice has its small nuances.

c

The idea of ld.fd 1 is to leave the other rook on a l for now, because if Black ex­ changes bishops on b3 , the rook will be very useful on the a-file after the recap­ ture axb3 . In the case of ld.ad 1 , the point is that many Najdorf players are likely to look for complications, and will play the positionally dubious move . . . f7-f5 , in which case the rook on fl will be needed there, to defend the fl-pawn. A2 1 1 ) 1 1 ..JkS 1 2.�b 3 ! ? 1 2 .tll d S �xdS 1 3 .�xdS tll x dS ( 1 3 . . . 'tW d7 1 4.c3;!; Andriasyan-Nepomniachtchi, Ohrid tt 2 0 0 9 ; 1 3 . . . tll b 4? 1 4.�b3 !;i;) 1 4.ld.xdS "ffic 7 1 5 .c3 tll b 8 1 6.�gS ! f6 1 7 .�e 3 ;!; Polgar-Nepomniachtchi , Netanya rapid 2 0 0 9 . 1 2 ... h6 1 3 .tllh4 b5 1 3 . . . �h7 1 4.tll fs tll a s 1 5 .�ds ld.xc3 (this is less than a standard exchange sacrifice and more of a good exchang­ ing combination) 1 6 .bxc3 tll x dS 1 7 .ld.xdS �xdS 1 8 .exdS .tgs and Black has equalised, Timofeev-Naer, Sochi 2006.

1 4.tllf5 !N During the game, I did not like this move at all, and fortunately for me, my opponent chose another line, after which I equalised easily. But after 1 4.tll fS White obtains the advantage, maybe not a large advantage, but such positions are extremely unpleasant for Black, because he has no counterplay. 1 4. tll g 6 .txb3 1 5 .tll x e 7 + 'iiYxe 7

rer 7

- 6 . � e 3 e S : Kn i ght g o es to f3

l 6.axb3 tll b4 - Black is on the way to equalising, and has no special prob­ lems, Volokitin-Andriasyan, Moscow 2 0 1 0. 1 4 ... �xf5 1 5.exf5 tll a5 1 6.tlld 5 lbc4 1 7.c3;l; ; A2 1 2) 1 1 . ..'if c 7 1 2 .�b3 tll a 5 1 3.lbd5 1 3 .�gS ! ? ld.ac8 1 4.ld.ac l lbxb3 1 5 .cxb3 'ifb8oo. 1 3 ...tllxd5 1 4.�xd5 l::tac8 1 5 .c3 tllc4

At first sight, it looks as though White has a clear advantage, as he has ex­ changed one pair of knights and seized the square dS , but it is not so simple. The knight on f3 is not very good - it cannot take part in the fight for dS and Black always has good counterplay con­ nected with the advance . . . f7-f5 . Here, various moves have been played, but nobody has thought of the best con­ tinuation, which is shown by the com­ puter, although even then, the advantage is very small, and it is hard to win such positions against a strong player: A2 1 2 1 ) 1 6 .�xe6 ! ?N fxe6 1 7 ..itg5 ! ? After these two accurate moves, White has pressure. Earlier games saw: A2 1 22) 1 6.ld.ac l bS 1 7 .b3 tll x e3 1 8 . �xe3 'i\Ycs 1 9 .'1We2 'i\Ya3 = T. Kosintseva-Hou Yifan, Ergun tt 2 0 0 6 ; A2 1 2 3 ) 1 6.a4 �h8 1 7 .l::!.ac l �xdS 1 8 .ld.xdS fS 1 9 .exfS 'iiVc 6 2 0 . ld.cd l ld.xfS = Nepomniachtchi-Zherebukh, Moscow 2 0 1 2 ; 131

Winn i n g w i th the Naj d orf S i c i l i an

A2 1 24) 1 6.�gs jixds 1 7.lhds

1 7 ... f6!N After 1 7 . . . �xgS 1 8 .tLlxgS �e7 1 9 .tLlf3 bS 2 0 .l::r ad l White has a minimal advantage, but in general, such positions should end in a draw, Shaposhnikov-Aveskulov, Saratov 2 0 0 6. 1 S.jie3 fS 1 9.exfS l::rxfS = A22) 1 1 .l::r a dl l::r c 8 1 1 . . .bS ? ! 1 2 .�b3 l:i.c8 1 3 .�gS;\; Vachier-Lagrave-Cossin, Chalons rapid 2 0 0 8 .

1 2.�b3 The idea o f 1 2 .tll d S ! ? i s that this move will have to be played any­ way, so White tries to do it without wasting a tempo on �b3 . However, Black has a good reply, which is hard to find over the board but if Black has ana­ lysed the position at home, he will have no problem: 1 2 . . . �xdS 1 3 .jixdS �as 1 4.c4 tll x dS 1 5 .cxdS tll b 4! 1 6 .a3 tll c 2 ! = . 12 ...�c7 1 3.l:td3 bS 1 4.l:tfd l tt:Jasoo Black has equalised easily, EQUI­ NOX-SHREDDER, Pamplona 2 0 0 9 .

132

A3) 1 0 ...�c?! Black forces the white bishop to b3 , since as we know already, the exchange on e6 is unfavourable for White: A3 1 ) 1 1 .�xe6 fxe6 1 2.tllgS

Here, after 1 2 . . . �d7 ? 1 3 .�c4 dS 1 4.exdS exdS 1 S .�b3 h6 1 6.tll f3 �e6 1 7 .l::r ad l l::r d 8 1 8 .l::r fe l White is clearly better, Bakre-Nikolov, Kavala 20 1 0 . But Black can equalise with 1 2 ... �cS ! 1 3.tt:Ja4 �d8 ! = . A 3 2) 1 1 .�b3 and now: A3 2 1 ) 1 1 . .. l:tcS 1 2.l::r fd l tt:Jbd7 1 3.jigs bS 14.tt:Je l ! This may look like a standard knight transfer, but it is actu­ ally not used that often. However, if the move can beat so strong a player as Morozevich, then it probably deserves a closer look. 1 4. l::r ac 1 �c4 1 S .�xc4 �xc4 1 6.�xc4 l::r xc4 1 7 .tll d 2 l::r c 7 1 8 .tll f l h6 1 9 .�xf6 tllxf6 2 0 .tll e 3 l:rc6 2 1 .tll cdS tll x dS 22 ..l:i.xdS �gs gave Black an edge in the endgame in Zolotukhin-Giri, Olginka tt 2 0 1 1 . 1 4...�b7 If 1 4 . . . tll b 6 1 S .�xf6 �xf6 1 6 .tll dS . 1 S.�xf6 tt:Jxf6 1 6 .tt:Jds tt:JxdS 1 7 ,jixdS �xdS 1 8.l:txdS l:tc4 1 8 . . . fS 1 9 . .l:Iad l fxe4 2 0 .�xe4 .l:Ic4 2 1 .�e2 .ld.ac8 2 2 .a3 ! ;\; Akopian-Morozevich, Bursa Wch-tt 2 0 1 0. 1 9.l:tadl 1 9 .a3 fS . 1 9 ... l:tac8 20.a3 ! ;\; A very strong idea. White wants to play c2-c3 and transfer the knight via c2 to e 3 . c2-c3 cannot be

Chapter 7

played at once, because Black has . . . b5-b4, but now to some extent Black has to continue with . . . a6-a 5 , so as to keep the possibility of . . . b5 -b4. The subtle nuance is that then, after . . . b5 -b4, White captures axb4 and con­ trols the open a-file. 20 ...aS 2 1 .g3 b4 22.b3 .!:l4c5 23.axb4 axb4 24.�xcS �xc5 25.�al ;!;; A3 2 2) 1 1 ...bS 1 2.�fdl Here it is clear that . . . f7-f5 is no threat to White, and play will take place on the queenside, so his queen's rook should stay on a l .

-

6 . � e 3 e S : Kn i ght g oes t o f3

and has another on d6. White's only problem is how to transfer his knight from f3 to dS , Andriasyan-Naroditsky, Groningen 2 0 1 0 ; A3 2 2 1 3 ) 1 3.i.gS !N This move un­ derlines Black's mistake on the last move, and now he loses the fight for dS : 1 3 . . . l::t a c8 1 4.a4 b4 1 5 .�xf6;!;. A 3 2 2 2 ) 12 ... tt::l b d7! The knight should develop to here, but in order to play this move, Black has to calculate a long variation with a pawn sacrifice, and players would probably be afraid of this without prior home preparation. A3 22 2 1 ) 1 3 . .itxe6 fxe6 1 4.tt::l g 5

.. .

A3 2 2 1 ) 1 2 ... tt::l c 6?! This is not correct here, because the fight is over the d5-square, and on c6 the knight does not contribute. A3 2 2 1 1 ) 1 3.a4!? ..ixb3 1 3 . . . bxa4?? 1 4.�xe6 fxe6 1 5 .tt::l g 5 tt::l d 8 1 6 . l:rxa4±; Black's position is creaking, with weak­ nesses on a6, e6 and d6. After 1 3 . . . b4 1 4. tt::l d 5 �xd5 1 5 . ..ixd5 tt::l x d5 1 6.l::t xd5 ;!; White has managed to ex­ change the two defenders of d5 , and Black has further weakened his light squares. White has the advantage. 14.cxb3 bxa4 1 5.bxa4;!;; or 1 5.�xa4t; A3 2 2 1 2) 1 3.tt::l d s �xd5 1 4.�xd5 tt::lx d5 1 5 .l::txd5 tt::lb4 1 6.l::t d 2 '1Wc4 1 7 .c3 tt::l c 6 1 8 .'1Wxc4 bxc4 1 9 .b4 cxb3 . Both during the game and here now, I regard this ending as a little better for White. Black has a weak pawn on a6

1 4 . . . l:rfc8 ! 1 5 .tt::lx e6 '1Wc4 1 6 .�xc4 �xc4 1 7 .f3 ?! h6 ! f ; A 3 2 2 2 2) 1 3.�gs l::t ac8 1 4.a3 tt::l b 6 1 5 .�xf6 �xf6 1 6.l:rac 1 Lintchevski­ Aliavdin, Minsk 2 0 1 2 . =

Now let's see what happens after White exchanges on e6 right away. B) 1 O.i.xe6 fxe6 1 1 .tt::la4

1 33

Winning with the Naj d o r f S i c i l i an

1 I . .. l2Jg4! 1 1 . ..lbfdl ! ? 1 2 .°iVd3 (with 1 2 .c4 l2Jc6 1 3 .�b3 lbaS 1 4.°iVd3 .!d.c8 1 S . .!d.ac 1 White retains minimal pres­ sure, but Black has a very solid posi­ tion) 1 2 . . . bS 1 3 .l2Jc3 ( 1 3 .°iVb3 ?! bxa4 1 4.°iVbl .!d.xf3 ! 1 S . gxf3 i.g S = ) 1 3 . . . l2Jf6 = ; 1 i . . .l2Jbd 7 ? 1 2 .lbgs ± . 1 2.°iVd3 l2Jxe3 1 2 . . . b S ? ! 1 3 . lbb6 .Id.al 1 4.llJdS .Id.bl l S .lbxe l + 'lWxe l 1 6 . i.g S :t ; 1 2 . . . l2Jc6 1 3 .'iVb3 .!d.f6 1 4.i.b6 'lWe8 1 S .h3 l2Jh6 1 6 . .!d.ad l :t . 1 3.'iVxe3 b 5 1 4.l2Jb6 .!d.al 1 5 .llJdS .Id.bl

The knight on dS is hanging, and White has three possible continuations. The first is to exchange the knight for the black one, after which the position equalises out. White also has two indi­ rect ways to defend the knight, starting with 1 6.'iVd3 . But this has one draw­ back, namely the fact that on d3 , the queen will always come under attack from the black knight. The second idea is to put the queen on d2, where it will have the possibility of coming to aS if the chance arises. B l ) 1 6.lbxel+ 'iYxel 1 1 . .!d.fd l lbdl 1 8 . l'.:td2 l:Ic8 1 9 . .Id.ad 1 .l::!. c 6 = Aldokhin-Kurukin, Moscow 2 0 1 2 ; B 2 ) 1 6 .'iVd3 ti:\ d l ! 1 6 . . . 'iVd7 ? ! l l .lbxel+ 'iYxel 1 8 . .!d.fd l .!d.b6 . Now after 1 9 . .!d.ac l lbdl 2 0 .b4 l2Jf6 2 1 .c4 bxc4 22 .'iYxc4 h6 2 3 .a3 Whl 24.h3 .!d.a8 2 S .l2Jd2 aS 2 6.bS a4 petered out 1 34

into a draw in Adams-Leitao, Istanbul Olympiad 2 0 1 2 , but in my opinion White can still fight for an advantage with 1 9 .b4!N lbdl 2 0 .c4:t. 1 7.tbxe7+ 'iYxel 1 8 . .!d.fdl .!d.b6= Khairullin­ Mozharov, Moscow 2 0 0 8 ; B 3 ) 1 6.'i¥d2 and now: B3 1 ) 1 6 ... i.h4! ? 1 7.tbxh4! 'i¥xh4 1 8.ti:\e3! .!d.d7 1 8 . . . .!d.d8 ! ? . 1 9 .'i¥d3 ! d5 20.exdS exd5 2 1 .a4 d4 22.tbfs °'lWf6 23.tbg3 'i¥c6 24 . .!d.fe l J:ld5 25.axbS �xb5 26.'iiia 3 White is slightly better, as he has well-placed pieces and the knight on e4 is very strong, whilst Black has two weaknesses on eS and a6 ; B3 2 ) 1 6 ... tbc6?! 1 1 . .!d.ad l .!d.dl 1 8. 'iYc3 :;!; Ivanchuk-Topalov, Morelia/ Linares 2 0 0 1 ; tbc5 B3 3 ) 1 6 . . .tb d 7 1 7.J:lad 1 l l . . . �h4! ?. 1 8.tbxe7+ .!d.xe7

1 9 .tbxe5 !N This is better than the move in the game, because the exchange of the pawns on e4 and eS favours White, since he opens lines for his rooks, and Black has trouble defending the pawns on d6 and e6. 1 9 . .!d.fe l tbbl 2 0 . .!d.e3 'iVb6 2 1 .b4 �c6 2 2 .a3 .!d.f4 2 3 .'iVe2 .Id.cl 24.c3 'iVc4 2 S .'iYe l .!d.cf7 2 6 .lbgs l::r c 7 was seen in Melkumyan-Xiu Deshun, Golden Sands 2 0 1 2 . 1 9 ... tbxe4 20.'iiie 3 'i¥a8 2 1 ..!d.fe l d5 22.fJ:;!;; B34) 1 6 ...°'lWd7 1 7.tbxe7+ 1 7 .l2Je3 'iYc6 1 8.�d3 l2Jd7 t . 1 7 ...'iWxe7 1 8 . .!d.fdl

C'

l:tb6 l 9 .a4 l 9 .'i!Yg5 'i!Yxg5 2 0.fug5 l:tc8 2 l .l:td2 h6=. 1 9 ...bxa4 20.Uxa.4 l:txb2 2 1 .l:tb4 l:txb4 22.'i!Yxb4 tbc6=. 1 0 . tbc6 . .

Not 1 0 . . . h6? l 1 .ltJh4!.

1 1 ..ig5 1 1 .�e2 tbaS 1 2.l:tfdl tbxb3 and now:

1 3 .axb3 looks right, since the pawn captures towards the centre, and opens the a-file for the rook on a l , as well as retaining the possibility of playing c2-c4. However, l 3 .cxb3 also has some ideas: it opens the c-file, prepares b4-b5 , and sets up a space advantage and later a passed pawn. A) After 1 3.cxb3 Black has many op­ tions and all his continuations lead to a good position. The recapture with the c-pawn on b3 does not pose Black any problems.

er

7

-

6 . � e 3 e 5 : Kn i ght g o es to f3

A l ) 1 3 ...tbd7 1 4.tbd2 'li'c7 1 5 .l:tac l :fc8 l 6 .tbd5 'i!Yd8 1 7 .l:txc8 l:txc8

1 8 . _xe l + 'il'xe7 1 9 .tbc4 �xc4 2 0 . bxc4 tbc5 2 l .b3 l:lc6;l; Carlsen­ Ivanchuk, Morelia/Linares 2 0 0 8 ; A2) 1 3 'il'b8 1 4.�g5 b 5 1 5 .l:td3 h6 l 6 . .Lf6 �xf6 1 7 .l:tad l .2.e7 l 8 . tbd5 �xd5 l 9.l:txd5 'li'c7 2 0 . tbe l l:tac8 2 l .g3 f5 with counterplay, Leko-Shirov, Morella/Linares 2 0 0 8 ; A3) 1 3 ...'it'eS! 1 4.tbe l lbg4! 1 5 .tbc2 f5 ! oo Carlsen-Karjakin, Cap d'Agde rapid 2 0 0 6 . B ) 1 3 .axb3 'fii c 7 1 4.kgs l:tac8! 1 4 ... tbh5 ? ! 1 5 .tbxe5 �xg5 1 6 .'fiixh5 kf6 1 7 .tbf3 �xc3 l 8 .bxc3 'fiix c3 1 9 .tbd4 l:tfe8 2 0 .'li'a5 l:f.ac8 and White has some advantage, but winning such a position in practice is close to impos­ sible, Kamsky-Gelfand, Kazan 2 0 1 1 . 1 5.kxf6 .txf6 1 6 .l:tacl 'fi/c6 1 7.tbds .td8 1 8.c4 fS = 1 9.exfS ? ? .txfS ? 1 9 . . . .txd5-+. 20.h3 'it'e8 2 1 .l:tc3 �g6 22.tbh2 kh4 2 3.tbf3 �d8 24.'it>h2 'it>h8 and the game was soon drawn in Kamsky-Gelfand, Kazan rapid 2 0 1 1 . •••

1 1 ...tbd71

l l . . .tba5 1 2 .�xf6 �xf6 1 3 .tbd5;l; D. Petrosian-Ter Sahakyan, Yerevan ch-ARM 2 0 1 1 . 1 2 ..txe7 'il'xe7 1 3.ttJd5 'il'd8

135

Winning with the Naj d o r f S i c i l i an

1 3 . . . ilxdS ? ! 1 4.'iWxdS ! tl'if6 1 5 .1Jii/d 3 .l::!. a d8 1 6 . .i:rfe l tl'ias 1 7 .]Lds 1Jii/ c 7 l 8 .c3 t Almasi-Bu Xiangzhi, Beijing blitz 2 0 0 8 . 14.'ii' e 21?

If 1 4.c3 tl'ia5 . Black wants to exchange the strong light-squared bishop on b3 and advance ... f7-f5 , after which he will have no problems. This is clear from the variations below, and from the games of the top GMs: A) 1 5 .l:[e l ! ? .i:rcs 1 6 .h3 b5 ! 1 6 . . . tl'ib6 ? ! 1 7 .tl'ixb6 1Jii/x b6 1 8 .�xe6 fxe6 1 9 . .i:re2t Anand-Leko, Wijk aan Zee 2 0 0 6 . 1 7.tl'ih2 tl'ic4 1 8.ilxc4 bxc4 1 9 .b4 cxb3 20.axb3 �xd5 2 1 .'iYxd5 .i:rxc3 1/2-1/2 Svidler-Leko, Morelia/ Linares 2 0 0 6 ; B ) 1 5 .ilc2 .i:rcs l 5 . . . tl'ic4! ? l 6.b3 tl'ia3 1 7 .tl'ie3 tl'ixc2 1 8 .'iYxc2 .i:rc8 1 9 . 1:1fd l l:[c6 2 0 . .i:rac l bS = 1/2-1/2 Carlsen-Anand, Wijk aan Zee 2 0 0 7 . 1 6 .h3 tl'ib6=

1 4 ... tl'ia5 ! ? and now: A) 1 5 .l:[fdl ! ? .i:rcs 1 6.tl'ie3 tl'ixb3 1 7.axb3 'iYe7 1 8.tl'id2 1 8 .1Jii/ d 3 .i:rc6 l 9 .b4 .l:ifc8 2 0 .c3 g6 2 1 .l:[aS °iVd8 2 2 .1Jiii c 2 @g7 23 . .l:id2 h6 24.l:[al 1/2-1/2 T.L Petrosian-Areschenko, Rijeka Ech 2 0 1 0 . 1 8 ... l:[c6 1 9.tl'idc4 g6 20.°iVd2 t2Jf6 2 1 .tLlxd6 'iY c 7 2 2 . °iVb4 l:[dS 2 3.tl'idc4 l:[d4 24.c3 .i:rxe4 25 .'iYa5 ]Lxc4 26.'iYxc7 .i:rxc 7 2 7.bxc4 Akopian-Sjugirov, Rijeka Ech 2 0 1 0 . White has the advantage: the black rook is misplaced on e4 and it is extremely hard for Black to bring it back into play. White also controls the open file; B) 1 5 .. Jks 1 6.tLle3 1 6 . .i:rd2 bS 1 7 . .i:rfd 1 tl'icS 1 8 .h3 tl'iaxb3 19 .axb3 fS 20.exfS �xfS 2 l .tl'ie3 tl'ie4 2 2 . .i:rds 'l!Wf6 2 3 .tl'ixfS 'iYxfS 24.c3 J:i.f6 2 5 .1Jii/e 3 h6 2 6.b4 and White has some advan­ tage, as he has blockaded Black's weak pawns effectively and prepared to start taking them. Leko-Van Wely, Nice rapid 2 0 0 8 . 1 6 ... tLlxb 3 1 7.axb3 'iYe7 1 7 ... .i:rc6 1 8 .l:[d2 1Jii/e 7 1 9 . .l:tfd l t T.L. Petrosian-Sjugirov, Moscow 2 0 0 9 . 1 8.tLld5 'iYd8 1 9.tl'ic3 l:[c6t. 1 5.l:[ad1

1 4...tt:Jc51

I prefer this move, although 1 4 ... tl'iaS also has its pluses. The knight remains on d7 and may if appropriate move to f6, exchanging off the strong knight on dS , or else continue on to hS and f4. Moreover, there are always chances to start counterplay with the move ... f7-f5 : 136

The alternative is 1 5.l:[fdl , but the other rook is better. The king's rook be­ longs on the e- or f-file, whereas the rook on a 1 is not doing anything. 1 5 ... @hs 1 6.h3 f5 !N Black has made all the essential preparatory moves for this advance. He does not want to go over to deep defence, but prefers to attack, even at some strategic risk. 1 6 . . . bS l 7 . l:[d2 .i:ra7 1 8 . .i:rad l l:[d7 1 9.c3 tl'ias 2 0 .1Jii/e 3 tl'iaxb3 2 l .axb3 tl'ixb3 2 2 . l:[d3 tl'icS 2 3 . .i:r3d2 f6 was seen in Petrik-Zhou Jianchao, Khanty-Mansiysk Olympiad 2 0 1 0 . Now White should have played 24. 'if e3 , after which Black faces a

Chapter 7

-

6 . � e 3 e 5 : Knight g o es t o f3

tough defence. 1 7 .tt:lc3 fxe4 1 8.tllxe4 tt:lxe4oo

1 5 ... 'itih81

A) 1 5 ...b5 ! ? 1 6.tt:le3 and now: A l ) 1 6 ... .t:.cS ! ? 1 7.�d5 'ti'f6 1 7 . . . �xd5 1 8 .tt:lxd5 tt:le7 = . 1 8.�xe6 'ti'xe6 1 9.tt:ld5 f5= ; A2) 1 6 . . . tt:lxb 3 ? ! 1 7.axb 3 'iYc7 1 8 . .l::. d 3 tt:lb4 1 9 . .l::. d2 'ti'e7 20 ..1::. fdl .l::.ad8 2 1 .l:!.al 2 1 .tt:lf5 �xf5 2 2 .exf5 J:!.fe8 2 3 .c3 tt:lc6 24.'iVe4 tt:la5 2 5 .'iVd5 'iVf6 2 6.J:!.e2 J:!.c8 2 7 .tt:ld2 'iVxf5 In this position, White has a large advantage, but Black managed later to outplay his opponent, Folgar-Anand, Wijk aan Zee 2 0 0 8 . 2 1 ...'ti'b7 22.c3 tt:lc6 23.tt:ld5 ;!; ; A 3 ) 1 6 ...tt:lxe4!?N i s strong because it quickly exchanges off his weak d6-pawn for the pawn on e4, and equalises the chances, whilst other black continuations are not bad, but al­ ways leave White with some slight and unpleasant pressure. 1 7.'tid3 �xb3 1 8.axb3 tt:lg5 ! = ; B) I n case o f the immediate 1 5 ... J:!.cS ! ? 1 6 .h3 b5 1 7 . .l::. d 2 t/je7 1 8 .t/jxe 7 + iVxe7 1 9 .�xe6 fxe6 20.J:!.fd l J:!.c6 2 1 .tt:le l .l::i.b 8 2 2 .tt:ld3 tt:lxd3 23 . .l::. x d3 b4 24 . .l::i. l d2 a5 2 5 .'ii d l J:!.bb6 White has minimal pressure, but since the defender has only one weakness, it will be impossi­ ble to win without his assistance, T.L.

Tlgran L. Petrosian

Petrosian-Andriasyan, Yerevan ch-ARM 20 1 0. 1 6.h3 f5 1 7.t/jc3

1 7...tt:l xb3!

A) 1 7 ...fxe4? This was not why Black played 1 6 . . .f5 . After this weak move, White manages to exchange a pair of minor pieces, and all the drawbacks of the move 1 6 .. .f5 , which we know about, become obvious: 1 8.tt:lxe4 tt:lxe4 1 8 . . . tt:lxb3 1 9 .axb3 d5 2 0 .tt:lc3 'iYd6 2 1 .J:!.fe l 'iVc5 2 2 . tt:lxe5 tt:lxe5 2 3 .'iYxe5 'iWxf2 + 2 4 . Wh2 J:!.ae8 2 5 . .l::i. e 2;!; Almasi-Brkic, Sibenik tt 2 0 0 8 . 1 9.�xe6 tt:lc5 20.�d5 ;!; ; B) 1 7 . . . 'iV d 7 1 8 .�xe6 1 8 . J:!.d2 �xb3 l 9 . axb3 tt:le6 2 0 .tt:ld5 l:!.ae8 137

Winning w i th the Naj d o r f S i c i l i an

2 l .exf5 .l:!.xf5 2 2 .c3 and now 2 2 . . .e4 is an excellent tactical nuance, which Black exploits to achieve an advantage, Vachier-Lagrave-Bu Xiangzhi , Cap d 'Agde rapid 2 0 0 8 . 1 8 ... tt::l xe6 1 8 . . . 'iYxe6 1 9 .exf5 .l:!.xf5 20 . .l:!.d5 ;\; . 1 9.ti:JdS .l:!.ae8 20.c3;\;; C) 17 ...'iWe7 1 8.gxe6 1 8 . .l:!.fe l .l:!.ae8 1 9 .�xe6 't!Vxe6 20.exf5 .l:!.xf5 2 1 .ti:le4 tt::lxe4 2 2 .'iYxe4 .l:!.ef8 2 3 .°iWd5 �c8 24.�xd6 .l:!.xf3 2 5 .gxf3 ti:ld4 26 . .l:!.xd4 exd4 2 7 .'iYxd4 'i¥xc2 , Predojevic-Brkic, Moscow 2 0 0 8. White has an extra pawn, but his king is weak and his pawns very weak. Play is for two results, and he will either win or draw. The chances are about 5 0- 5 0 . 1 8 ... 'iWxe6 1 9.exfS .l:!.xf5 20 . .l:!.dS ;\; , for example 20 ...ti:le7 2 1 . .l:!.d2 dS 2 2.b4± ; D) 1 7 ... .l:!.cS?! I was shocked when my opponent played this, as I knew he had stronger moves, and frankly speak­ ing, I had nothing prepared against these moves. So I was pleased when this appeared on the board, as I knew how to respond to it: 1 8.gxe6 ! tt::l xe6 1 9 .exfS .l:!.xfS Necessary was 1 9 . . . ti:led4 2 0 .°iWe4 and White is slightly better 20.l/Wd3 l:I.f6 This leaves Black a pawn down and his position is close to lost. Also after 2 0 . . . ti:lcd4 2 l .ti:lxd4 ti:lxd4 2 2 .ti:le4 dS 2 3 .tt::l g 3 .l:!.g5 24.c3 tt::l e 6 2 5 .'tWxd5 �xd5 26 . .l:!.xd5 tt::lf4 2 7 . .l:!.d7 White is winning, Balogh­ Kempinski, Warsaw 2 0 0 8 . 2 1 .'it'xd6 l/Wxd6 22.l:.xd6 ti:led4 23.tt::lxeS ti:Jf3+ 24.gxf3 tt::lxe5 25 . .l:!.xf6 gxf6 26.l:[dl tt::l xf3 + 2 7. @fl Andriasyan-Sjugirov, Belgorod 2 0 1 0 . White has an extra pawn, the active king and the better­ placed pieces. These factors should be sufficient to win. 1 8.axb3 138

1 8. h61 ..

After this strong move, this position has not been seen again. It is not obvious how White can fight for an advantage. He should seek an advantage in other lines. 1 9.exf5

White has several alternatives, but they all lead to equal positions: A) 1 9 . .l:!.d2 l/We 7 2 0 . .l:!.fd l .l:!.ad8 2 1 .ti:Jd5 'it'f7 oo ; B ) 1 9.'iYd3 fxe4 2 0 .tt::lxe4

2 0 . . . d5 t; C) 1 9 . .l:!.fe l 'tWe 7 2 0 . exf5 ..txf5 2 1 .ti:le4 (2 1 .ti:Jd5 'iYf7 2 2 .ti:le3 ..te4 1/2-1/2 D. Petrosian-Andriasyan, Yerevan ch-ARM 2 0 1 1 ) 2 1 . . . .l:!.ad8 2 2 .c4 ..tg6 2 3 .ti:lg3 a5+:t. 19 ...gxfS 20.tbe4 d5 21 .ti:Jc3

2 l .tt::l g 3 �d6+:t . 21 ...d 4 22.ti:Jxe5

Chapter 7

-

6 . � e 3 e 5 : Knight g o es to f 3

22 ... 'tWf61 23.tbxc6 dxc3 24.tbd4 l:!.ae8 25.'tWf3 cxb2 26.'il'xf5 't/Vxf5 27.tbxf5 l:!.xf5 28.l:!.b1 l:!.e2 29.l:!.xb2 l:!.d5=

This position is equal.

Conclusion This chapter was devoted to the move 7 . tbf3 , with which White hopes to obtain a small but stable positional advantage. By comparison with 7 .tll b 3, this is a positional line and appeals to positionally-inclined play­ ers, who dislike long forcing variations and wish to deprive their oppo­ nents of any play. The black players tend to be more aggressive and not to like such posi­ tions, which explains why White achieves such a high percentage of wins with such a quiet and unassuming system. But if Black has strong nerves, and does not succumb to the provocation, but just quietly awaits the right moment to become active, then he will be fine. This becomes clear when we look at the variations and the games of the top players. The lesson is clear: one must bide one's time as Black, and the game will be fine!

1 39

Chapter 8

6.ite3 e5: Knight goes to b3 1 .e4 c5 2.tll f3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.tll xd4 tllf6 5.tll c3 a6 6.�e3 e5 7.tll b 3

In this chapter, we will look at the knight retreat to the left flank, which will intro­ duce play with opposite castling and promises a sharp struggle. This is a move for those who like sharp and uncompromising play. We have chosen to concentrate on the line with 1 O aS , with which Black weakens his structure but obtains good attacking chances in return. . . .

1 .e4 cs 2.tl:if3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.tl:ixd4 tl:if6 S.tl:ic3 a6 6.�e3 es 7.tl:ib3 �e7 8.f3

Here White has two main continua­ tions, which often transpose. By start­ ing with 'iYd2 , White retains the option of pushing the pawn to f4, departing from the heavily-analysed lines and heading for fresher territory: 8.'iYd2 0-0 9.0-0-0 9.f3 �e6 1 0 . 0-0-0 as transposes to 8 .f3 . Here Black has an excellent way of meeting White's idea of 'iYd2 and f2-f4: 1 40

9 . aS ! ? Now we reach positions similar to the main variations we will examine with 1 O . . . a S . But now Black can pose his opponent fresh problems, which are .

.

c

not so easy to solve. White must decide what to do about the advance of the a-pawn - should he let it come further, when Black will obtain a strong attack on the white king, or should he block it? In the latter case though, the differ­ ence is that White has not shielded his bishop on e3 with the move f2-f3 . A) 1 0.a4: A l ) 1 0 ...�e6 1 1 .f4 'i¥c8 1 2 .'itibl tllc 6 1 3.fS

1 3 ... tt:Jxe4! 1 4.tbxe4 �xf5 1 5 .i.d3 tt:Jb4 1 6.i::l: hfl .ig6 1 7 . ..tgs �xg5 1 8.'iYxgS d5 1 9.tbc3 �xd3 20.cxd3 d4 and Black has a large advantage, Ashwin-Li Chao, Dubai 2 0 0 8 ; A2) 1 0 ... tbg4!?N Of course, Black should exploit the fact that White has not played f2-f3 . It seems to me that af­ ter 1 O . a4, the dark squares have been weakened in White's camp, and it makes all the more sense to eliminate his dark-squared bishop, which is the main defender of those squares. 1 1 .tlJdS tbxe3 1 2.fxe3 tbc6+% . B ) 1 0 ...tbs I t may look as though White has stopped the a-pawn, but this is a myth, since Black can continue the pawn's advance by tactical means, again based on the fact that White has not played f2-f3 and not defended his e4-pawn: 1 0 ...a4 1 1 .tbxa4N Since tak­ ing on a4 with the bishop brings White nothing, we should analyse other

rer

8 - 6 . � e 3 e5 : Knight g o es to b 3

although the knight capture is no panacea either. Black needs to know exactly how to react to this move, how­ ever ( 1 1 .�xa4 tbxe4 1 2 .tbxe4 .l:f.xa4 1 3 . tbxd6 l:rxa2 1 4. 'itib l .l:f.a8 ! t) . 1 1 ...tt:Jxe4 1 2.'i¥e2 i.d7oo; C) 1 0.'itib l The king move is princi­ pled and leads to double-edged play. Here Black pushes the a-pawn all the way, while White starts pushing his g-pawn, to fight for the d5 -square. 1 O ... a4 1 1 .tbcl a3 1 2.b3 and now Black has two continuations. I like both very much, as both lead to interesting play with counterplay and sacrifices. Black has good compensation in all lines: C 1 ) 1 2 ... �e6 1 3.h3 1 3 .f3 transposes to 1 0 . . . a5 . 1 3 ... .l:f.a5 1 4.g4 d5 1 5 .g5 moves,

1 5 ... d4 It seems to me that 99% of play­ ers would play 1 5 . . . d4 here without thinking, but great was my surprise when on my monitor I saw the move l 5 . . . tbxe4! ?N, which I thought led to a slightly better ending for White. But taking the knight ( 1 6.tbxe4) is met by the quiet move 1 6 . . . 'lWc7 ! , after which Black turns out to have a very strong initiative. 1 6.gxf6 i.xf6 1 7.'iYel tbd7? He should have played 1 7 . . . 'lWc 7 , with complications. 1 8.tlJdS l:!:xd5 1 9.exdS i.xd5 20.l:tgl �c7 2 1 ...tgs l:tc8 22.c4 dxc3 2 3.l:txdS and White is winning, Ivanchuk-Shirov, Motril tt 2 0 0 8 ;

141

Winning with t h e Naj dorf S i c i l i an

C2) Since White has so weakened his dark squares, Black should eliminate his dark-squared bishop if the chance comes, hence the move 1 2 ... t2Jg4!? 1 3.tlJdS t2Jxe3 1 4.'iVxe3 t2Jc6 1 5.�c4 �e6 1 6 .t2Jd3 Wh8 1 7.'i¥b6 °ifd7 1 8.t2Jxe7 'ifxe7 1 9 .i.ds �xdS 20.exdS t2Jd4 2 1 .l:Ihel °if d7 22.tlJb4

2 2 ... J:Iac8 2 2 . . . °ifc8 ! +: . 2 3 .l:Id2 h6 24.c4 °ifc7 25.°ifxc7 l:Ixc7 26.tlJc2 and an equal endgame has been reached, Liu Guanchu-Naer, Beijing tt 2 0 1 2 . 8 . �e6 9.'iYd2 0-0 1 0.0-0-0 as 1 1 .�bS ..

White has a wide choice of continua­ tions and in all of them there are games by top players, who have tried to fight for the advantage, in many different ways. But no precise path to an advan­ tage has been found, although Black has his problems, of course. A) 1 1 .°ife l °ifc8 and now:

1 42

A 1 ) 1 2 .a3? ! A very interesting move, but not best. When my opponent played it, I remembered the right idea for meeting it, but not the correct move order, and so failed to reach the posi­ tion I was aiming for. 1 2 ... a4 1 3 .tlJd2 and now: A l l ) 1 3 ... dS ? ! 1 4. exdS tlJxdS 1 S. tlJxdS �xdS 1 6 . tlJe4 �xe4 1 7 .fxe4 tlJd7 1 8 . Wb 1 t2Jf6 1 9 .�gs 'i¥c6 2 0 .�d3 .l:.fd8 and White has the advan­ tage, with very easy play. His light­ squared bishop is very strong, and Black's problem is that he has no counterplay and must just stand and await what White will do, Zherebukh-Andriasyan, Aix-les-Bains Ech 2 0 1 1 ; A l 2) 1 3 ...bS?!N A very extravagant move, involving a double pawn sacri­ fice, and a very strong attack. It seems to me that if White is not prepared for it, then he risks getting mated very quickly, but with correct play, he gets the advantage: 1 4.�xbS °ifc7 1 4 . . . °ifb7 1 5 . tlJc4;!; . 1 5 .'iVe2 1 5 .g4 l:IcSg?. 1 5 ... l:Ic8 1 6 .°iYd3 t2Jbd7 1 7.i.xa4 J:Ixa4 1 8.'1::lxa4 dS 1 9.exdS '1::lxd5 20.tlJc3 '1::lxc3 2 1 .°ifxc3 'i¥xc3 22.bxc3 l:Ixc3 23.l:Ihe l ;!; ; A 1 3 ) 1 3 ... t2Jbd7 This move looks very good. And when you know Black's idea, involving the sacrifice of the bS -pawn, then you want to play this move automatically. But now White manages to bring out his last piece. A 1 3 1 ) 1 4.f4 Only one game has been played with this move, and not on a very high level, but Black found a very strong rejoinder. For this reason, I tried to analyse other moves for White, but these also fail to bring him any advan­ tage. 1 4... exf4 1 5.�xf4

Chapter 8 - 6 . � e 3 e S : Kn i ght g o es to b 3

• • ,.

1 5 ... 0ih5 ! 1 6.i.e3 1 6.g3 jif6 - . 1 6 ...i.f6 ! - ; A 1 3 2 ) 1 4.i.b5N 1 4 . . . 'iYc7 1 5 .g4 .l:rfc8 1 6.gS ltJhS t ; A 1 3 3 ) 14.b l

Not one step back! Black sacrifices a pawn, but opens his pieces and begins an attack on the white king, which lacks pawn protection. 1 9 ... dS ! 20.exdS axb2 2 1 .'it>xb2 �a3+ 22.'it>b 3 ! As the saying lSS

Winning w i th the Najd orf S i c i l i an

goes, 'If you want something done, then do it yourself! ' . The white king marches boldly out to face his enemies. If 2 2 .Wb l ! ? l:raSoo. 22 ... �d6 23 . .l::[ a l l:i.xa 1 24. .i::r xa 1 t2Ja6 25 ...ixa6 bxa6 26.c4 tLld7oo

dS 1 5 .exdS tLlcxdS 1 6.tLlxdS tLlxdS 1 7 . tLlcS �xcS 1 8 .�xcS l::[ d 8 oo Durarbeyli-Papaioannou, Aix-les-Bains Ech 2 0 1 1 . 14.tLlxb5 a4 1 5 .tLlcl d5 ! 1 6.g5

11 .. tt:JaG .

1 2 'ife2 .

White has to decide how to continue the attack, but out of three alternatives, two bring him a bad position: A) 1 2.Wb l ? ! tLlc7 Now White has to decide which bishop to keep, or whether to retain both. In all three cases, the position is roughly equal, with play for both sides. A l ) 1 3.g4

It is interesting that White voluntarily gives up his light-squared bishop, which defends all the light squares on the queenside. Without it, White will struggle. 1 3 ... tt:Jxb5N 1 3 . . . 'ifb8 ! ? l 4.a4 156

1 6 ...tt:Jxe4! A splendid piece sacrifice, after which White has to be very careful and play extremely accurately, to achieve equality. 1 7.£Xe4 d4 and now 1 8.tLlxd4 1 8 .'ife l l::!: c 8 � ; or 1 8 . . . 'iVaS :::: ; 1 8 .�xd4 exd4 1 9 .tLlxd4 �g4t; 1 8 .�f2 'ifb6 1 9 .'iVd3 ( 1 9 .tLlxd4 exd4 2 0 .�xd4 11Wc6oo) l 9 . . JHc8oo . 1 8 . . .exd4 1 9.�xd4 �g4 20.tLle2 �xg5 2 1 .�d3 f6 ! ?oo - a non-standard deci­ sion, but very appropriate and strong. The move neutralises the white bishop on d4, defends his own bishop on gS and opens fl for the other bishop. A2) White can first insert 1 3 ...ib6 �b8 and now: A2 1 ) 1 4.a4 tt:Jxb5 1 4 . . . .l::[ c 8 ! ? . 1 5.tt:Jxb5 .i::r c s 1 6.tLlc3 Ira6 1 7.�e3 .i::r ac6 1 8.g4

Chapter 8

1 8 .. Jhc3 ! A standard but nonetheless nice exchange sacrifice, which prom­ ises Black a strong advantage. White has no satisfactory defence against the nu­ merous threats. 1 9 .bxc3 b 5 ! 20.axb5 a4 2 0 . . . �xb S ! + . 2 1 .tLld4 exd4 22.cxd4 d5 23.Wal dxe4 24J:lbl 'iVd6 25.'iYc l l::txc2-+ Petr-Zakhartsov, Pardubice 201 1 ; A22) 14.�xc7 'iVxc7 1 5.g4 1 5 .a4 .l:!.fd8 1 6 .tll d S tLlxdS 1 7 .exdS �d7 ! =F . 1 5 ... l::tfdS A22 1 ) 1 6.g5? ! t2Jh5 1 7.t2Jd5 ? �xd5 1 8.exd5 a4 1 8 . . . fS ? It is strange that af­ ter playing so magnificently up to now, Black should miss the simple move l 8 . . . a4, which promises him an extra pawn and a winning position. 1 9 . gxf6 �xf6 2 0 . .i::l. h g l l::t f8 2 1 . l::t g 4 t2Jf4 2 2 .tLld4 exd4 2 3 .'iVxf4 d3 24.�xd3 �xb2 2 5 .'iVe4 �f6 2 6.'iVxh 7 + . As we know, when there are opposite-col­ oured bishops on the board, the attack gains in strength. White went on to win in Tiviakov-Shytaj , Bratto 2 0 0 7 . 1 9.tt:Jcl 'iVa5 ! :+ ; A222) 1 6.'iVe2

Black has an excellent position, and can continue quietly with the move l 6 . . . �f8 , but he also has an alternative, involving a pawn sacrifice, which gives him a strong attack: 1 6 ...a4! 1 7.�xa4 �c4 1 8.'iVf2 d5 1 9.exd5 t2Jxd5

-

6 . Jl e 3 e S : Kni ght g o e s to b 3

1 9 . . . �b4 ! ? 2 0 .d6 l::t x d6 2 1 . l::t x d6 'i¥xd6 22 .�bS �xbS (Black can ex­ change both bishops for knight, and damage the pawn structure around the white king. As we know, queen and knight are an excellent attacking duo. 2 2 . . . �xb3 ! ? 2 3 . cxb3 .txc3 24.bxc3 e4!oo) 2 3 .tllxbS 'ifa6 24.a3 'ifxbS 2 5 . axb4 �xb4oo Bologan-Freitag, Izmir tt 2 004. 20.t2Jxd5 �xd5 2 1 .�b5 White has an extra pawn, but his pieces are extremely badly placed, scattered over the whole board, and completely lacking any coordination, whilst Black has two bishops and excellent piece co­ ordination. It is hardly surprising that he has a very strong move available: 2 1 . ..e4!=F; A2 3 ) After 1 4.i.a4 Black has a choice: either to play l 4 . . . l::t a 6 and con­ tinue the battle, with equal chances, or to play 1 4 . . . dS , a more concrete move, after which there follows a standard queen sacrifice and chances for both sides: A 2 3 1 ) 1 4 ... d5 1 5 .i.xc 7 �xc 7 1 6.exd5 .l:!.fd8 1 7 .dxe6 .l:!.xd2 1 8.exf7 + Wxf7 1 9.t2Jxd2 l::td8 20.a3 Wg6 2 1 .�b5 �xa3 22.�d3 +

2 2 ... l::tx d3 ! 2 3 .cxd3 �b4 24.t2Jde4 'iYd7 25.l::thfl i.xc3 26.t2Jxc3 In most cases, two rooks are stronger than a queen, but in this concrete case, be-

157

Winning wi th the Naj d o r f S i c i l i an

cause of the weakness of the white king, the position is obj ectively equal, Svidler-Naer, Moscow ch-RUS 2 0 0 6 ; A2 3 2) With 1 4... .l:!.a6 Black declines to play with an extra queen and prefers an unclear position: 1 5.�£'2 .l:!.cs t l 5 . . . lLla8 ! ? l 6 . .ie3 lLlc7=. 1 6.lLlb5?! lLlxb5 1 7 .�xb5 a4! 1 8 .llJcl .l:!.a8 1 8 ... d5 ! ?=F . 1 9.g4 a3 20.b3

2 0 ... ..txg4 ! 2 1 .fxg4 lLlxe4 22. �fl lLlc3 + 2 3 .@ a l d5 24.i..d7 �d6 2 5 .i..xcS �xb6 26 ...tf5 e4 2 7.lLle2 lLixe2 2 8.�xe2 �f6 + 29.c3 -+ Anisimov-Kornev, St Petersburg 2004; A24) 1 4.g4 lLlxb5 1 5 .llJxb5 a4 1 6.llJcl .l:!.cst 1 7.tll e 2?! 1 7 .g5 lLld7 -+ . 1 7 . . .d 5 1 7 . . . .l:!.a6 ! ? . 1 8.g5 tll d 7 and now:

A24 1 ) 1 9.exd5 ? �f5 20 . ..tc7 .l:!.xc7 2 1 .tllxc7 �xc7 22.d6 �xd6 23.tll g 3! White is lost, but this move is strong, in that it poses maximum problems to 158

Black, and gives some practical chances of making a draw, as happens in the game. 2 3 ... ..tb4 24.°iYxb4 �xc2 + 25.@al tll c 5! 26.a3 and now 26 ...�c6 ! is winning , whereas 2 6 . . . lLlb3 + 2 7 .@a2 �xd l 2 8 . .l:!.xd l °ifc2 only led to a draw in Sebag-Vachier-Lagrave, Cap d'Agde rapid 2 0 0 8 ; A242) 1 9 . ..tf2 d4 2 0 . .ig3 tll b 6 2 l .tll bxd4 tll c4 2 2 .°ifc l .l:!.a6 2 3 .tll xe6 �b6 ! :+ Instead of the automatic capture on e6, which also gave a clear advan­ tage, this move wins at once. The knight is going nowhere and the capture on b2 is threatened; White cannot defend. B) I do not like the plan with 1 2.g4?! , which gives up the light-squared bishop, since this bishop is very impor­ tant in such positions and it is hard for White to manage without it: 1 2 ... tll c 7 1 3.g5 tll xb5 1 4.tll xb5 1 4.gxf6 lLlxc3 1 5 . fxe 7 tll x a2 + 1 6 .@b l 'ifxe7 1 7 .°ifxd6 °iff6+.

1 4...a4!N A good tactical resource, which gives Black the possibility of seizing the initiative, instead of obtain­ ing an equal but more passive position. 1 5 .gxf6 1 5 . tll c 5 dxc5 1 6 . °ifxd8 �xd8 ! ? l 7 .gxf6 �xf6 l 8 .tll c 7 .l:!.ac8 l 9 .lLlxe6 fxe6=F. 1 5 ...axb3 1 6.cxb3 1 6.fxe7 ? ? bxa2 !-+ . 1 6 ... �xf6 1 7.@bl � d7 1 8.tll c 3 .l:!.a6 oo ; and not l 8 .lLlxd6 ?!

Chapter 8

-

6 . � e 3 e S : Kn i ght g o es to b 3

better, having full compensation for the sacrificed pawn. C l 2) 1 3 ... .!:!'.c8 1 4.ilxa5 �xb3 1 4. . . tLlcS ! ? 1 5 .tLlxcS 'ifa7 ! l 6.�b4 dxcS 1 7 .ila3 'ifb6 1 8 .�a4 .!:!'.a5 !--+. 1 5.axb3

I 8 . . . .!:!'.xa2 ! I 9 . tLlc4 ( 1 9 . �xa2 ? 'ifa4+ 2 0 .�b l ilxb3 2 I .'it'd3 .!:!'.d8-+) 1 9 ... 'ifxd2 2 0 . .!:!'.xd2 .!:!'.a6=F ; C ) White has to remove his queen from the d-file, because she does noth­ ing there. The queen has two good retreats, but first we will analyse 1 2.'it'fl ? ! , with the idea of putting the bishop on b6, so as to pressurise the black queenside. 1 2 ... 'it'bS

1 5 ... d5 ! This version of the pawn sacri­ fice, with .!:!'.c8 , is more to my taste: 1 6.exd5 �c5 1 7.'iYe2 ild4� C2) 1 3.�b l ?! t2lc7 14.a4

C l ) 1 3.�b6?! White has done what he wanted, and put his bishop on b6 to start pressure. The aS-pawn hangs, and it becomes clear that standard defensive measures are not good, so we will look at two black continuations, which I think are interesting. C I I ) The first of these is the pawn sacrifice 1 3 . . . a4! ?N 1 4 . .ixa4 .!:!'.c8 1 5 ..ibs .!:!'.xc3 1 6 .bxc3 t2lc7 1 7 . .ixc7 �xc7 with big compensation for Black. White can also play 1 4.t2lxa4, but then Black replies 1 4 . . . dS , after which he is

Black has a pleasant choice. He can ei­ ther bring his rook to the c-file, after which Black fights for the advantage, or play the long-awaited 1 4 ... d5 !?N, and obtain the advantage at once: l 5.tlJxd5 t2icxd5 1 6.exd5 t2ixd5=F ; C3) 1 3.g4 a4!N Black can play more quietly, with 1 3 . . . t2lc7 , preparing the move . . . d6-d5 , and I don't see any spe­ cial way to prevent that, but of course he can also play more sharply, offering a pawn sacrifice, after which he has a strong initiative. Now: 1 59

Winn i n g with the Naj d o r f S i c i l i an

C3 l ) 1 4.�xa4?! .!:!.cs A wonderful move, after an excellent sacrifice, with a simple idea: after any white move, there follows the standard sacrifice on c3 , and Black will have a clear advantage.

but Black's position is very threatening and White is forced to take the pawn and suffer a strong attack. 1 2 �b8 ...

A) 1 2 ... tt:'ic7?! is a strategical mistake, after which White achieves the impor­ tant exchange of two minor pieces, and has a large advantage: 1 3.tt::l cs tt::lxb5 1 4.'i¥xb5 1 4.Ci:JxbS dS ? ! 1 5 .Ci:Jxe6 fxe6 1 6 .S:i.f2 ;!;. 14...'iYcs 1 5.Ci:Jxe6 fxe6

C3 1 1 ) 1 5.jlbs .l:!.xc3 1 6.bxc3 Ci:Jc7 1 7 _jld3 .l:!.xa2 1 8.Ci:Jd2 �e8+:; C 3 1 2) 1 5 .S:lb6 .!:!.xc3 1 5 . . . Ci:Jb4 =F . 1 6 .bxc3 'iYcS 1 7.S:lb5 'i¥xc3=F; C 3 1 3 ) 1 5 .g5 tt:'ih5 1 5 . . . Ci:Jxe4 ! ? 1 6 .fxe4 .l:!.xc3 1 7 . bxc3 b S 1 8 . Ci:JaS bxa4 1 9 .Ci:Jc6 �cl 2 0 .Ci:Jxe 7 + 't!Vxe 7 � . 1 6 .S:lbs .!:!.xc3 1 7 .bxc3 tt:'ic7=F C3 2) 14.tt:'ixa4? Taking this way makes no sense, because Black easily regains it and obtains a large advantage: 1 4 Ci:Jc7 1 5 .tt::l c 3 tt:'ixb5 1 6.tt:'ixb5 .!:!.xa2=F; C3 3) 1 4.tt:'id2 tt:'ic7- 14 ... a3 1 5 .b3 Ci:Jb4=F . 1 5 .S:lxa4 b5 1 5 . . . �xa2 ! ?+ . l 6.i.b3 b4 1 7 .tt:'ie2 •..

1 7 ...dS =F At first, White did not take the pawn and tried to keep lines closed, so as to stop Black developing an attack,

1 60

1 6.l:!.d3 ! .!:!.a6 1 6 . . . 't!Vc6 1 7 . .!:!.hd l @f7 1 8 .a4 .!:!.fc8 1 9 .Wb l t. 1 7.a4 1 7 .l:!.hd l ! ? Ci:Je8 l 8 .�b3 @ f7 1 9 . g 3 �c6 20 .a4 Ci:Jf6 2 1 .Ci:Jbs ± . 1 7 ... .!:!.£7 1 s . .!:!.hd1 i.f8 1 9 .�b3 �es 20.Wbl l:!.c6 2 1 .g4 l:IcS 22.�b6 tt::l d 7 2 3.�gl tt:'if6 24.l:!.3d2 .!:!.c6 25.Ci:Jbs l:!.d7 26.h4 'i¥f7

2 7.i.h2! +- Lastin-Dvoirys, Moscow ch-RUS 1 99 9 . An instructive game. All the white pieces occupy ideal positions, and Black's position is sad to look at;

Chap ter 8

B) 1 2 ... 'iWc8?! 1 3 .tll a4 tll b4 1 4.@b l 'lWc7 1 5 .a3 tll c 6 1 6.tllb 6 J::la d8 1 7 .tll d S �xdS 1 8 . exdS tll b 8 1 9 .g4± ; or 1 9 .�c4± It matters little how White chooses to win the game. He can play g4, aiming to give mate, or follow the more technical path of just exchanging queens and converting the technically winning ending.

-

6 . .£ e 3 e S : Kn i ght g oes t o b 3

26.�xf4 exf4 27.�xf4 i.xd5 28.h4 �e6 Black has sacrificed the exchange for excellent practical chances. However, at home in front of the computer, it is al­ ways easy. If White succeeds in defend­ ing, he has some chances to seize the ad­ vantage himself: 29.tll e 2! �b4 30.l::[h dl �xd2 3 1 .'iWxd2! ; B) 1 7.�xbSN tll xbS 1 8.�xbS

1 3 .g41

1 3 ..JkS 1 3 tll c 7 1 4.�a4 .i::r c 8 1 5 .gS tll h s 1 6.@b l b5 ! Our beloved . . . b7-b5 once again, opening lines against the white king. White cannot prevent this or its consequences : A) 1 7.tll xbS t2Jxb5 1 8 .�xbS 1 8 .�xbS ? ! 'iWc7--.. 1 8 ... a4 1 9.t2Jcl l::!: as 20.c4 •••

1 8 ... �xc3! This is not the standard ex­ change sacrifice we are used to, but only an exchanging operation, after which White will have rook and two pawns against two minor pieces. 1 9.'iWxb8+ �xb8 20.bxc3 a4 2 1 .@cl axb3 22.cxb3 fS 2 3.gxf6 tll xf6 and now either 24.�gS! or 24.c4!. To my surprise, the computer assesses this position as equal. From a human standpoint, I would con­ sider it better for White. 1 4.@b1

20 ... l::!:xbS ! 2 1 .cxbS �c4 22.'iYg2 'iWxbS 23.l::[ d2 d5 24.'iVg4 �b8 25.exdS tll f4

As always, White faces the question of whether or not to play g4-g5 . As we said earlier about such positions, there are pluses and minuses: 14.gS We will examine the move 1 4... l2Je8 , where the black knight heads to c7, to eliminate the main blockader, the i.bS . But there is also the sharp 1 4 . . . tll h S , leading to a fierce fight, with mutual chances: 1 5 .@b l tll c 7 1 6 .�a4 bS transposes to the line 1 3 . . . tll c 7 given above. 161

Winn i n g wi th t h e Naj d o r f S i c i l i an

pieces are more active and his pawn structure somewhat better, and in addi­ tion, it is not obvious how to defend the pawn on d4. 1 8.WVe2 a4 1 9.CiJcl aJ=F; C) 1 5.f4 CiJec7 1 6.�xa6 CiJxa6 1 7.f5 �c4 Lively play has started, with Black attacking on the queenside and White on the kingside, but it obvious even to the naked eye that Black's attack is stronger and faster. A) 1 5 .�xe8 .l:he8 1 5 . . Jhc3 ! ?N 1 6.jlxf? + �xf7 1 7 .bxc3 WVc8 !�. 1 6.f4 exf4 1 7 ..ixf4 'i:Vc8 oo ; B) 1 5 .'it>b l CiJec7 1 6 . .ic4? .ixc4 1 7.WVxc4

1 7 ...b5!N 1 7 . . . a4 1 8.CiJcl a3 1 9.b3 CiJe6 2 0.'iVd3 CiJb4 2 1 .'i1Yd2 Ii.a6 22 .CiJdS CiJxdS 2 3 .exdS CiJd4 24.�xd4 exd4, Karjakin-Grischuk, Odessa rapid 20 1 0 . White has the advantage, because his

Sergey Karjakln

1 62

C l ) 1 8.'iVe l ?! b5 !N 1 8 . . . WVc7 1 9 .f6 �f8 2 0 .Wb l bS 2 1 .'iVf2 a4 22.CiJaS �e6 2 3 .�b6 'iVd7 24.CiJdS �xdS 2 5 .exdS a3 2 6 .CiJc6 axb2 - a sharp po­ sition, but one where Black's chances are slightly better, Ter Sahakyan-Yilmaz, Chotowa Wch-jr 2 0 1 0 . 1 9 .f6 b4 20.CiJe2 2 0 .CiJdS �d8=F . And now 20 ...a4+:; or 20 ....idS !?+; C2) 1 8.'iYd2N This was the only move, which by accurate play retains equality. The idea is that after fS -f6 , the black pawn on d6 will hang. 1 8 ... b5 1 9.f6 �d8 This is the moment where we feel the difference between the queen retreats. 1 9 . . . �f8 2 0 . fxg7 'it>xg 7 oo . 20.'i1Yxd6 b4 2 1 .'iVxb8 �axb8 22.CiJa4 .ib5 23.CiJbc5 CiJxc5 24.CiJxc5 .ib6 2 5 .�d5 �c6 26.�hd l �bc8 26 . . . h6 ! ?oo. 2 7.jlgl h6oo We might say that all the pieces are pinned. White has an extra pawn, but this is an irrelevance when one looks at the black pieces. Of-

Chapter 8

ten such positions end with White re­ turning the pawn and equalising. 1 4...tt:Jc7 14 ... a4 1 5 .tll xa4 ttJb4 1 6.gS ti:Jhs 1 6 . . . tll e 8 ! ? 1 7 .'t!Vd2 tll x c2 1 8 . .l:Ic l tllx e3 1 9 . .l:!.xc8 �xc8 2 0 .tll b 6 tll c 7 2 1 .tll x a8 't!Vxa8 2 2 .iile2 tll g 2 and Black has a winning position, which he con­ verted confidently in Ter Sahakyan­ Gopal, Martuni 2 0 1 0 . 1 7.tllc 3

1 7 ... .l:!.xc3 ! Our favourite companion, the exchange sacrifice, after which forc­ ing play ensues, and White obtains some advantage. 1 8.bxc3 tllxa2 1 9.Wb2 tllf4 20.°iVd2 dS ! 2 1 ..l:!.al ! d4! 2 l .. .�a3 + ? 22.Wb l d4 2 3 . .l:i.xa2± . 22.�xd4 exd4 2 3 . .l:!.xa2 dxc3 + 24.'i¥xc3 .l:!.xa2+ 2S.Wxa2 �xgS 26 ..l:!.dl hS;\;

-

6 . � e 3 eS : Kn i ght g o es to b 3

In the game, White incorrectly accepted the sacrifice, and obtained a bad posi­ tion which he was unable to defend: 1 6 .tllxbS ?! tllxbS 1 7.�xbS 1 7 .'t!VxbS 't!Vc7 =F . 1 7 ... a4 1 8 .ttJd2 dS l 8 . . . 't!Vb7 ! ?:f. 1 9.gS

1 9 ... .l:!.aS ! 20.gxf6? A terrible mistake, after which White can resign with a clear conscience, although it was hard to find the only possible defence: 2 0 .�a6D �a3 2 1 .b3 ld.c6 ! 2 2 .gxf6 .l:!.cxa6 2 3 .exdS iilxdS 24.tll c4 axb3 2 5 . cxb3 .l:!.bS ! -+ . 20 ... .l:!.xbS 2 1 .b3 �xf6 22.exdS iilxdS 23.'t!Vd3 axb3 24.cxb3

1 5 .�a4

24...e4! 2S.tllxe4 �xe4 0- 1 The attack ends with a beautiful mate, Visser­ Klein, Amsterdam 2 0 1 1 . But White had another option, which gave him chances to equalize: 1 5 ... bSI

1 6.�xbSN tt:Jxb5 1 7.°ifxbS 'filc7

1 63

Winning with the Naj dorf S i c i l i a n

1 8 ..tb6

Or 1 8 .gS tLld7 1 9 .a4 .l::!. ab8 2 0 .'i¥e2 �c4 with an attack for Black.

Neither side can decline the repetition. If 1 9 .tLlxaS ? 'i¥a6 ! 2 0 .tLlc6 �xa2+ 2 1 .c l nxc6 2 2 .'i¥xc6

1 8...�b7

1 9.�f2

White has an extra pawn, and Black in return has excellently posted pieces and is ready to attack.

22 . . . tLld7 ! 2 3 .'i¥xd7 �gs + 24 . .l::t d2 'i¥xb6 2 5 .�bS 'lWf2+; or 1 9 .�xaS ?! 'lWxbS 2 0.tLlxbS .txb3 2 l .cxb3 �xa5 2 2 .tLlxd6 �xd6 2 3 .nxd6 h5 ! and Black has a slight advantage. 1 9...�c7 20 ..tb6 'ii' b7= .

Conclusion Looking at this chapter, we have obtained answers to many of the ques­ tions that interest us: can Black obtain sufficient play after 1 O . . . a5 to make up for the strategic weakening of his position? We can conclude that he has good enough play in all lines, and in several cases can take over the initiative. From this chapter, we can also identify various devices which are typi­ cal of the Najdorf: the pawn sacrifice . . . b7-b5, . . . a5 -a4 and . . . d6-d5 , and the standard Sicilian exchange sacrifice on c3 .

1 64

Part IV

Other White Moves

In this part, we will examine five minor alternatives on move 6 in five separate chapters. These are: Chapter 9

-

The Positional 6 .�e2

Chapter 10 - The Aggressive 6 .f4 Chapter 11 - Occupyi ng the Flank: 6.a4 Chapter 12 - The Fianchetto 6 .g3 Chapter 13 - The Poisonous 6.h3

1 65

Winning w i th the Naj d o rf S i c i l i a n

Chapter 9

The Positional 6.�e2 1.e4 c5 2.t2Jf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.t2Jxd4 t2Jf6 5.t2Jc3 a6 6.�e2

In this chapter, we will examine the move of the bishop to e2. This does not pretend to a large advantage, and the move is not the most principled; instead, White wishes to direct the game into positional channels, where his advantage will be minimal, but his position will be solid and reliable. White gives his opponent the chance to play 6 . . . e6 and then after 7 .a4, which is one of the strongest moves in the position, we reach a position typical of the Scheveningen Variation. I think the Scheveningen ap­ peals more to players who prefer a defensive formation and base their plans on coun­ terattack, and Najdorf lovers (myself included) are not so keen on it. Therefore, we will examine the move 6 . . . eS, instead of 6 . . . e6, for the above reasons. The tempting move 6 . . . eS has one drawback. Black weakens the strategically important square dS and practically all the subsequent play revolves around this square. The first plus of 6 . . . es is that it drives the white knight from the central square d4. The second is that Black gains a tempo for the development of his pieces, and his light-squared bishop can come to e6, where it will help in the fight for dS . In my opinion, after 6 . . . eS, White has two main plans: 1 . To play a2-a4 and not allow the advance . . . b 7 -bS and the activation of the black queenside. The subsequent part of the plan involves kingside castling and then White has two interesting ways to continue. The first is f2-f3 , after which long positional play ensues. The second involves the sharper and more aggressive f2-f4, the idea of which is either to exchange pawns on eS , or, if allowed, to push f4-fS . 2 . The other plan is the aggressive move g2-g4. With g4-gS White wants to start an indirect fight for the important square dS . After driving the knight away from f6 , White can play �g4 and try to exchange off the last defender of dS. 1 66

Chapter 9

1 .e4 c5 2.tllf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.tt:lxd4 tt:lf6 5.tt:lc3 a6 6.ile2 e5 7.tt:lb3 7.tll f3 Coming back with knight to f3 isn't the best solution. White's idea is to play .tc4 and ile3 or .tgS . But Black has the very strong move . . . h7-h6 , after which White has to develop his bishop on e3 , entering a position with an im­ portant tempo less, compared with 6 .h3 (see Chapter 1 3 ) .

-

T h e Posi t i on a l 6 . � e 2

C ) 8.h3 �e6 9.�e3 tll bd7 1 0.0-0 1 0 .'i¥d2 .i::r c 8 1 1 . 0-0 tt:l c s 1 0 ... .i::rc s l l .a4 ile7 = . .

7...�e7

In this position White has three main continuations. We will discuss all of them in some detail. 8.0-0

A) 8.�g5 The bishop's move is hardly being played currently. White players have tried everything, but it was not enough.

7 h6 : A) 8.0-0 .te6 If 8 . . . �e7 •..

8 ... �e6 9.�xf6 ilxf6 1 0.'i¥d3 tll c 6 1 1 .0-0-0

9 .�c4! (9 . .i::r e I .te6 !) 9 . . . 'i¥c7 l O . .tb3 White can fight for the advantage. 9.a4 9 . .i::r e 1 �e7 1 0 .ilfl 0-0 l 1 .h3 tllb d7 1 2 .tll d S .txdS 1 3 .exdS tllh 7 t . 9 ...�e7 1 o.ile3 0 - 0 1 I .tll d 2 'iY c7 1 2.�f3 tll b d7 1 3.as .i::r acS=. B) 8.a4 �e6 9 . 0 - 0 tll b d7 1 0 .�e3 .i::r c 8 1 1 .aS ile7 = ;

A 1) 1 1 . .. tll d4? ! is not an obligatory move. After it, Black faces difficulties. The best solution in the position is 1 l . . . 'i¥b6 , see line A2. 1 2.tll xd4 exd4 1 3.tt:lds .txd5 1 4.exdS 0-0 1 5.'i¥f3 167

Winn i n g w i t h t h e Naj d o r f S i c i l i an

A l 1 ) 1 S .. Jle8 1 6.�d3 J:les 1 7.@b l �as

Grande 2 0 04; 2 0 . . . g6? 2 l .b4!± V Onischuk-Dvoirys, St Petersburg 2 0 1 1 ) . 2 1 .gS �d8 22.J:lhe l t ; 1 6 .�d3 'i¥f6 A l 2 ) 1 5 .. �es 1 7 .�xf6 �xf6 1 8 . J:lhe l l:!.fe 8 1 9 . .l:!.xe8+ l:!.xe8 2 0 .f4 g6 2 1 .b4 Wf8 22 .@b2 @e7 2 3 .@b3 .l:lc8 24.g4 �h4 2S . .!:i.fl @d7 2 6 . I;lf3 l:!.h8 2 7 . .l:lh3 gf6 2 8 .gS �g7 29.l::r f3 . By means of splen­ did play in a roughly equal position, White gradually strengthened his posi­ tion move by move, and pressed Black, until the latter could not stand the ten­ sion and lost. Carlsen in his element in Carlsen-Karjakin, Nice blind 2 0 0 8 . A 2 ) 1 1 . .. �b6 ! 1 2.�xd6 After 1 2 . .!:i.hfl tt:Jd4 ( 1 2 . . . 0-0 1 3 .�b l .l:!.fd8 1 4.tt:Jds �xdS l S .°iYxdS t2J e 7 = ) 1 3 .t2Jxd4 exd4 1 4.tt:Jds �xdS l S .exdS 0 - 0 l 6 .�b3 �as 1 7 .@b l J:!.fe8 1 8 .�d3 bS 19 .�fs l:ta7 2 0 .°iYh3 g6 2 l .�d3 J:lae7 2 2 .�g3 .l:i.e l and we have a dead drawn position, Felgaer­ Gelfand, Khanty-Mansiysk 2 0 0 S . 1 2 ...�e7 1 3.tt:Jds 1 3 .�d3 'flxf2oo. 1 3 ... �xdS 1 4.�xdS 0-0 After 1 4 . . Jld8 ! ? the position is absolutely equal, for example: l S .°iYc4 .l::!. xd l + 1 6 .l:rxd l �xf2 1 7 .J:lfl �e3 + 1 8 .@b l 0-0 1 9 .�g4 g6 2 0 .�d7 t2Jd4 2 1 .t2Jxd4 exd4 2 2 .°iYd3 @g7 2 3 .a3 1/2-1/2 Smeets-Dominguez Perez, Wijk aan Zee 2 0 0 9 . 1 S.�d2 �xf2 1 6.�c4 .

1 8.g4! �xdS?! 1 8 . . . J:lae8 1 9 .h4 �xdS 2 0 .�xdS l:!.xdS 2 1 .gS �d8 2 2 .f4 J:lcS 2 3 .J:lhe l J:lxe l 24.J:lxe l @f8 2 S .a3 .!:lc8 2 6 .�xh7 �c7 27 .�fS± Bezgodov­ Kozlitin, Voronezh 2 0 1 0 . 1 9.�xdS J:lxdS 20.f4

Here, Black is slightly worse, but with the move 20 ... J:lcS ! ?N he reaches not such a bad position, where he can fight. The rook escapes from its troubles and returns home (20 . . . �h4 2 l .b4 J:lc8 2 2 .a4 l:!.c3 2 3 .@b2 fS 24.gxfS J:lxd3 2 S .cxd3 J:lxfS 2 6 .J:lc l J:lxf4 2 7 .J:lhfl �d8 2 9 . a S +2 8 .l:lxfl l:lxfl Morelia/Linares Radjabov-Shirov, 2 0 0 8 ; 20 . . . gs 2 1 .fxgS J:lxgS 2 2 .�fs J:le8 2 3 .J:lhfl �es 24.h4 J:lg7 2 S .hS h6 2 6 .J:lf3 and the endgame, despite the extra pawn for Black, is absolutely equal, Kiilaots-Areschenko, Cappelle la 1 68

Chapter 9

A2 1 ) 1 6 ... 'ifxd2 + 1 7 . tbxd2 Here White has some pressure, and his posi­ tion is a little more pleasant, as shown in the following game : 1 7 . . J:!.ac8 1 8 .�b 1 bS 1 9 .�dS J::r c 7 2 0 .t2Jf3 l:i:fc8 2 1 ..!::lhfl �f6 22 .c3 hS 23 . .l:tf2 . White has the advantage, as his bishop domi­ nates and his pawn structure is some­ what better, Hou Yifan-Ju Wenjun, Jiangsu Wuxi 2 0 1 1 ; A22) 1 6 ...°iYh4 1 7.'ife2 ld:ac8

1 8.a3 ! ld:c7 1 8 . . . �f6 ?

1 9 .Wb l ?! tbd4 2 0 .tbxd4 exd4 2 1 .g3 Here White also holds some advantage, for instance: 2 1 . . .°iYgS 2 2 . ld:hfl �e3 23 . .l::!.f3 1/2-1/2 Anand-Topalov, Morelia/ Linares 2 0 0 8 . However, it is not clear to me why Anand refrained from playing 1 9 .l:i:d? !N, as after 1 9 . . . bS 2 0 .�ds± White has a huge advantage. 1 9 .Wb l �f6 20.c3 On square h4 the black queen does not stand properly, as it nei-

-

T h e Posi ti onal 6 . ..@. e 2

ther helps its pieces nor supports an ex­ change of the rooks, and in this case the c7-rook doesn't help with the the de­ fence of the d-file either; A23) 1 6 ... 'ifb6!N The queen stands here best of all, defending pawn b7 and helping to exchange the rooks, after which the position becomes equal. 1 7.Wb l I:!.ad8 The main idea of this move is that Black can easily exchange both rooks. One important factor is that the pawn is on b7 and not on bS . In the latter case the c6-knight wouldn't be defended and White would always have the possibility of the unpleasant break a2-a4. B) 8.g4 A daring move, but one with an interesting idea. White wants to play g4-g5 and then put the bishop on g4 and exchange the light-squared bish­ ops. In a way this is similar to the varia­ tions connected with the move 6 .�e3 , but here White doesn't lose the impor­ tant tempo on the move f2-f3 and plays f2-f4 at once. 8 ... h6

B l ) 9.�e3 �e6 1 0.�f3 1 0 .h4 dS !N As we are taught as children, if the op­ ponent attacks on the flank, one should counter in the centre. This example am­ ply illustrates the truth of this postulate. 1 1 .tLlxdS tbxdS 1 2 . exdS �xdS oo ; 1 0 .tiJdS t2Jbd 7 ! l l .f3 �xdS 1 2 .exdS tbh7 1 3 .�f2 White just needs to play 1 69

Wi nning wi th t h e Naj d o r f S i c i l i a n

h2-h4 and his position will be normal­ ised, but all his dark squares are weak. For this reason, Black's move is obvious and strong, after which he has the ad­ vantage: 1 3 . . . �h4! :f Polgar-Karjakin, Benidorm 2 0 0 3 . 1 0 ... tt:Jbd7 In the main lines Black doesn't even have the slight­ est problem, but there is an interesting idea connected with the move 1 0 . . . as ! ? , namely l l . a4 tll a 6 . l 1 .'iWe2 .l::!. c 8 1 2.0-0-0

12 .l::!.xc3 ! This is a standard sacrifice, after which Black gets rich play on the queenside. 1 3.bxc3 �c7 14.h4 •••

1 5 .gS tt:Jxe4 1 6 .'ti'd3 fS ! :f . 1 5 ...tt:Jcs 1 6 . .l::!.del 'iWa4�; B2) 9.f4 tlJc6 9 . . . exf4 1 0.�xf4 tlJc6 l 1 .h3 �e6 1 2 .'tl!Vd2 dS 1 3 .0-0-0 dxe4 1 4. 'ti'e3 'tW c8 1 5 . tt:Jxe4 tlJxe4 1 6 . �xe4 0-0 1 7 .Wb l fS l 8 .'ti'e3 tlJb4 l 9 .�d3 fxg4 20 . .ie4 �fS 2 1 . tll d 4 �xe4 2 2 ."il'xe4 �c4 2 3 .b3 'tWf7 24.tlJe6 with a roughly equal position, but Black needs to be on his guard and to play concretely, Shirov-Van Wely, Tilburg 1 99 7 ; 9 . . . bS 1 0 .gS tt:Jfd7 1 1 .tlJdS �b7 1 2 .�d2 tt:Jc6 l 3 . gxh6 �h4+ 1 4.Wfl gxh6 1 5 .c4 bxc4 l 6.�xc4 exf4 1 7 . .l::!. c 1 .l::!. c 8 l 8 .�e2 tll f6 1 9 .�g4 tlJxdS 2 0 .exdS tll e S 2 l .�xc8 �xc8 22 . .l::!.c 3 and here Black has a winning position, due to the weakness of the white king, which does not have a single defender, whilst Black is attacking with his whole army, Bologan-Svidler, Tomsk 2 0 0 1 . 1 0.0-0 1 O.fS bS l l .�e3 �b7 l 2 .a4 b4 1 3 .tll dS tt:JxdS 1 4.°iYxdS 'tl!Vc7:f; 1 0 .gS hxgS 1 1 .fxgS tlJh7 1 2 .tlJdS tt:Jxg5 -+ Nisipeanu-Bruzon Batista, Moscow 2 0 0 1 . 1 0 ...exf4 1 1 ..ixf4 0-0=F; B3) 9.h4 bS 1 O . .if3 b4 1 1 .tlJdS tlJxdS 1 2 .'ti'xdS .l::!.a 7 l 3 .�e3 �e6 1 4.°iVd2 .l::!. b 7oo Matlakov-Korbut, St Pe­ tersburg 2 0 0 7 ; B4) 9 .l::!. g l �e6 1 0 .�f3 •

14 ...�c6 !N Black's standard sacrifice a couple of moves ago weakened the white king and spoilt his pawn struc­ ture. But White is also ready to start counteraction with the move g4-g5 , and for this reason, 1 4 . . . 'tW c6 is a very strong prophylactic move, which stops g4-g5 and transfers the queen to the ideal attacking square a4. 1 5.�d2

1 70

1 0 . . . aS !N This is an interesting move in this type of position, which is always

Chapter 9

approved by our 'iron friend' . The idea is simple: Black wants to push back the knight from b3 , and if White plays a2-a4, he loses control of the b4-square and gives it to the black knight, after which Black can carry through . . . d6-d5 with ease and comfort. I I .a4 tLlc6=F.

8 0-0 9.�e3 ...

A) If 9.'itihl b5 ! A I ) 1 0.a4 �b7 White must undertake concrete mea­ sures, as the pawn on e4 is hanging. He can exchange on bS and then a8, but this does not help the e4-pawn, and although the black b-pawn would then hang, the exchange of b-pawn for e-pawn favours Black. White therefore has to choose be­ tween the move f2-f3 , and the interesting jump tLldS . The former is very passive and leaves Black with an excellent game, so by a process of elimination, we come to the conclusion that: A I I ) 1 1 .tLldS is the strongest.

-

T h e P o s i t i onal 6 . Jl e 2

A I I I ) 1 1 ...b4! 1 2.tLlxf6+ 1 2 .tLlxe 7 + 'fixe 7 I 3 . f3 dS I 4. exd5 �xdS = Yakovenko-Naer, Krasnoyarsk 2 0 0 3 . 1 2 ...�xf6 1 3.f3 'fie? 1 4...te3

14 ... dS !N I 4 . . . tLld7 I S .c3 bxc3 I 6 . .l::i. c I .l::t ac8 I 7 .�xc3 'fib8 I 8 .tLlaS �xc3 I 9 .bxc3 �c8 2 0.'fids 'fib2 2 I .�d3 �xc3 2 2 . .l:Ic I �b4 2 3 .tLlc4 Jl.e7 24.'fias 'fib8 2 5 .tLlb6 �d8 2 6 .tLlxd7 �xd7 27 .'i:Yxa6 and White has the ad­ vantage, Asrian-Jobava, Yerevan zt 2 0 0 0 . 1 5.exdS �d8 1 6.�d3

1 6 ...�xdS ! If I 6 . . . �xdS I 7 .c3 ! ! . A fan­ tastic move! It is clearly a computer move. The bishop on d3 is in the line of the �d8 and this move weakens its de­ fence. But it is strong because it opens the c-file and White takes control of the square c S . 1 7 .a5 ! A very strong positional move, which does not allow Black to play . . . a6-a5 and strengthen his weak pawns.

171

Winn ing wi th the Naj d o rf S i c i l i an

Now his weak pawn on a6 is fixed and the b4-pawn remains without defence, moreover the development of the b8knight and a8-rook becomes difficult, as after �e2 the a6-pawn will be under attack. 1 7 ... �c6 1 8.�e2 tlJd7 1 8 . . . e4! ? 1 9 .fxe4 �xe4

2 0 . .l:!.xf6 ! ! . The only move that allows White to fight for the advantage! In case of slow play, Black will exchange the strong bishop on d3 and snap the initia­ tive. 20 . . . gxf6 2 1 .tlJd4 °iVd5 22 . .l:!.fl tlJc6 2 3 .tlJf5 i.xf5 24.�xf5 tlJe7 2 5 .°iVg4+ tlJg6 2 6.�b6 .l:!.e8 2 7 .�xb4 .l:le2 2 8 .�g4 .l:!.ae8 2 9.�d3 �d2 3 0 .b3 h5 3 l .�g3 h4 3 2 .�g4 - White has a very good position, due to his bishop pair and Black's weak pawns. 1 9.l:i:adl h6 Or 1 9 . . . e4 2 0 .fxe4 �xe4 2 1 . tlJd4 jlxd3 2 2 .l::rx d3 �xd4 2 3 . .l:!.xd4 .i::r e 8 24.�£'2 .l::!. e 7 25 ..id2 �xc2 2 6 .�xb4 �xf2 2 7 .r.i:xf2

2 7 . . . tlJc5 2 8 .h3;!;. Play takes place on both flanks, and the position has an open character. Because of this, White has an advantage with his bishop, and a chance to create a passed pawn. 20.�f2 h5 2 1 ..!::[fe 1 g6 the position is close to equality; Al 1 2) 1 1 ...tlJbd7?! 1 2 .tlJxe7+ �xe7 1 3 .£'3 d5 1 3 . . . bxa4 -

1 5 . tlJxb7 tlJxb 7 1 4.tlJa5 ! tlJc5 l 6 . .i::rxa4;l; Khalifman-Loginov, St Pe­ tersburg 1 99 5 . 1 4.exdS �xd5 1 5.axbS �xb3 1 5 . . . axb5 1 6 . .l::!. x a8 i.xa8 1 7 .�xb5± Stellwagen-Bu Xiangzhi, Wijk aan Zee 2 0 0 7 . 1 6.cxb3 axb5 1 7 . .i::rxa8 .i::rxa8 1 8.�xbS ;!; ; A 1 1 3 ) 1 1 ...tlJxe4?

1 2.tlJaS !N A very interesting move. Strangely, nobody has played this nov­ elty, although this position was reached 5 times. Surprisingly, 4 out of these 5 games were won by Black, even though 1 72

Chapter 9

the other moves chosen also gave White an advantage. 1 2 . . . WfxaS 1 3 .tbxe 7 + �h8 1 4.f3 'iVd8 1 s .tt:Jfs ± ; A 1 1 4) 1 1 . ..bxa4 1 2 . l:rxa4 �c6 1 3 . .r:i:a3 tbxe4 1 4.tbaS;l:; Kasparov­ Anand, Las Palmas 1 9 9 6 . A 1 2) 1 1 .axbS axbS 1 2.l:rxa8 ..txa8 1 3.Wfd3 t2Jbd7 1 4...teJN 1 4.�dl b4! l S .tbdS tbxdS 1 6 .exdS Wf c 7 ( 1 6 . . . tbb6 !=F) 1 7 .c4 bxc3 l 8.bxc3 .l:!.b8 1 9 .c4 Wlb6 2 0 .Wlfs tbf6 2 I . l:rd3 �b7 2 2 .l:rg3 �c8 2 3 .Wlgs g6 24.Wfe3 'ifc7 . White's attack has come to nothing, whilst Black has achieved a lot on the queenside. Black has a large advantage, Vogt-Suetin, Leipzig 1 9 8 0 . 14 ...b4 1 s .tt:Jds tbxds 1 6.exds i.gs t; A l 3 ) 1 1 .f3 b4 1 2 . tbds lbxdS 1 3 . exdS tbd7 Black's position looks more pleasant, due to his better devel­ opment and central pawns. Also, he has easy play in the kingside connected with the e- and f-pawns. For example: 1 4.c4 as 1 S .�e3 �gs 1 6 .f4 exf4 1 7 .�xf4 �xf4 1 8 . .l:rxf4 tbeS 1 9 . tbd4 'ifgs 2 0 .WVfl .l:rfe8 2 1 .1l!Vf2 I:!.ad8 2 2 .:c!'..fl :c!'.. d 7 2 3 .tbb3 Wfd8 24.h3 �a6 and Black won in Panarin-Bu Xiangzhi, Internet Chess Club 2 0 0 S ; A2) 1 0.tLldS tbxdS 1 1 .WfxdS l:ra7 1 2.�e3 �e6 1 3.Wfdl 1 3 .'ilWd2 J:[d7 ! 1 4.a4 dS = . 1 3 ... J:[b?! 1 4.a4 1 4 . .l::t c l tbc6 l S . c 4 tbaS 1 6 . tbxaS Wf xaS 1 7 .cxbS axbS 1 8 .a3 'ifa8 1 9 . .id3 .i:!.d8 2 0 .f3 h6 2 I ..l:rf2 �gs 2 2 .�xgS hxgS with an absolutely equal position, Short-Kasparov, Novgorod 1 9 94. 1 4...bxa4N 1 4 . . . tbc6 1 S .'ifd2 Wfc7 1 6.axbS axbS 1 7 .J::!'.. a 6 dS 1 8 .exdS �xdS 1 9 .°iVxdS tbb4 2 0 .Wfxb7 Wlxb7 2 1 . .l:!.a7 'i!Yc8 2 2 . l:rxe7 and Black had a very large advantage in Ganguly­ Saravanan, Nagpur 2 0 0 2 . 1 S . .l:!.xa4 Wfd7 1 6.'i!Yal .l:!.c8 1 7 . .l:!.c1

-

The P o s i t i o n a l 6 . � e 2

1 7 ...h6! A strong move! Firstly, Black wants to exchange his bad dark-squared bishop for its stronger white opponent and secondly, to make luft for the king. A3) 1 0.f4?! �b7 l I .�f3 tbbd7+; B) 9.a4 Always necessary for White in such structures. He does not allow Black to play . . . b7-bS and develop his pieces actively, and in addition, he wants to play a4-aS and fix the black pawns.

9 ... �e6 and now: B l ) 1 0.�f3 tbbd7 1 1 ..l:!.el Wlc7 B 1 1 ) 1 2.aS Of course, this is not the fixing White dreamed of, because Black can play . . . b7 -bS anyway, after which he has a weak pawn on a6, but active pieces, which compensate for this: B 1 1 1 ) 1 2 ... bS 1 3.axb6 tbxb6 1 4.tLlaS tbc4 1 S.tbxc4 i.xc4 1 6.�d2 l:!.fc8 1 7.b3 �e6 1 8 ..l:ta2 Wlb7 1 9.Wle2 �d8 20.t2:la4 20 . .i:!ea l �b6 2 l .tba4 �d4 2 2 .:c!'..d l dS 2 3 .exdS �xdS 24.�xdS tbxdS 2 S .Wff3 . Black has carried out . . . d6-dS , activating

1 73

Winning w i t h t h e Naj d o r f S i c i l i an

his bishop on e 7 , and has obtained slightly the better position, Shabalov­ Naroditsky, Las Vegas 2 0 0 9 . 20 ... l:i.c6 2 1 .i::t'.eal l:!.ac8 22.'iYd3 tll d 7 23.c4 ..tb6 24...te3 i.xe3 2S.'iYxe3 tllf8 26 . ..te2 i::t'.b 8 2 7.l:i.a3 with a small advantage, on account of the weak black pawn on a6, Areschenko-Nepomniachtchi, Sochi tt 2008; B l 1 2) 1 2 ... i::tfc s 1 3 .i.e3 h 6 1 4.'iYd2 bS 1 S .axb6 tll xb6 1 6.tll a S tll c4 1 7.tllxc4

Black has two ways to recapture. After the bishop capture White has the ad­ vantage. However, the queen on c4 is a bone in White's throat and does not al­ low him to carry out his plans in peace. 1 7 ... 'iYxc4N 1 7 . . . jlxc4 1 8 . .!:!ec l ! 'iYb7 1 9 .b3 �e6 2 0 .'iYd3 �d8 2 1 .tll a4 .ld.c6 22 .c4 �h8 2 3 .i::t'. ab l aS 24.jle2 .l:!.b8 2 S .i::t'. d l and White has a small but sta­ ble advantage, LekoKarjakin, Nice blind 2 0 0 8 . 1 8 . ..te2 'i!Vc6 1 9Jled l oo B 1 2) 1 2.tlld2 i::t'.ac8 1 3.tllfl

1 3 ... J::!'. fe8! 1 3 . . . 'i!Vc6 1 4.tll e 3 bS ? ( 1 4 . . . tll cs ! ? 1 S .as .!:!fe8 1 6. tll edS jlxdS 1 7 .exdS �c7�) l S .axbS axbS 1 6.tll fS .l:!.fe8 1 7 . .l:!.e2 jlf8 1 8 .tll d S jixdS 1 9.exdS 'i?Vb7 20.g4 g6 2 1 .tllh 6+ itxh6 22 .jLxh6 e4 2 3 .itg2 tllxg4 24.�f4 'i?Vb6 2S .�h3 tlldf6 2 6.'i?Vd2 and Black has a winning position, but everything is pos­ sible in blitz, Alexeev-Karjakin, Moscow blitz 2008. 14.tlle 3 'iYc6= Even with his control of the dS-square White doesn't have an advantage, as the bishop on c 1 can't get involved into the game, and also the pawn on c2 is always under attack, not allowing the c3-knight to comfort­ ably move to dS . B2) 1 0.f4 exf4 1 1 .i.xf4 tll c 6 1 2.tlld4 1 2 .�h l dS 1 3 .eS tll e 4 1 4.�d3 and I think 9 0% of players would play 1 4 . . .fS here, but the computer regards 1 4 . . . tll c S as equally good. It is a strong and interesting move, although even so, I would prefer 1 4 .. .fS . 1 4 . . . tll c S!N 1 S .tll xcS .itxcS 1 6.'i?Vf3 oo . 12 ...'i?Vb6 1 3.i.e3

1 3 ... tll xd4 1 3 . . . dS ! 1 4. exdS tll x dS 1 s . tll xdS ..txdS 1 6. tll fs �cs 1 7. 'iYxdS .itxe3+ 1 8 .�h l g6=. 1 4.�xd4 'i?Vc7 1 5.aS tt:ld7 1 6.tll ds jlxdS 1 7.exdS itf6 1 8.c4 i::t'.fe8 1 9 ...txf6 tllxf6 20.b4 b6 2 1 .i.d3 bxaS 22.i::t'.xf6 gxf6 23.�hS White's attack has been repulsed and Black has an extra exchange, Volokitin-

1 74

Chapter 9

Woj taszek, Germany Bundesliga 2006/07 ; B3) 1 0 ...tgs ti:Jbd7 1 1 .'iWd2

-

T h e Posi t i onal 6 . Jte2

1 3 ...lt:id7! 14.@hl tbes 15 ...td3 ti:Jc6 1 6.�gl �f6 1 7 ..b!.fl ..txc3 1 8.bxc3 'ti'as 1 9 ...td4 'ti'a4 20 ...te3 f6 2 1 .°tWel .b!.ad8 22.'i!Vg3 @hs 23 . .b!.f4 tbes 24.�d4 ..tf7 25.h4 Black has a definite advantage, on account of the weak white pawns, Makoli-Shirov, Kerner tt 2 0 0 7 . A2) 1 I ...txf4 tbc6 1 2.@hl 1 2 .VWe l dS ! 1 3 .exdS ti:JxdS 1 4.ti:JxdS 'tWxdS ! = .

1 1 . . .h6!N As if to ask, 'do you want to exchange or retreat ? ' . In both cases, Black has an excellent position, for example l 2 . .ie3 ti:Jb6t. 9 ..te6 1 0.'ii'd 2 ...

A) 1 0.f4 exf4 and now: A 1 ) 1 1 ..b!.xf4 ti:Jc6 1 2.ti:Jd4 In case of 1 2 .ti:Jds ..txdS 1 3 .exdS tt:Jes 1 4 . .b!.b4, after 1 4 . . . VWd7 Black has a brilliant po­ sition due to the dark-squared bishop, his outpost on eS and his play on the dark squares : 1 5 .a4 .b!.fe8 1 6 .@h l ..td8 1 7 . ..tg l .b!.c8 1 8 .aS ti:Jg6 1 9 .c3 tlJe4 2 0 .ti:Jd4 ti:JeS 2 1 .'tWa4 'MVxa4 22 . .b!.bxa4 tbcS 2 3 . .b!.b4 with a practical ending where chances are equal, Lutz-Bologan, Germany Bundesliga 1 998/99. 1 2 ... ti:Jxd4 1 3 ...txd4 1 3 .VWxd4 .b!.c8= .

1 2 ...dS ! 1 3 .es 1 3 .exdS ttJxdS 1 4.tlJxdS 'tWxdS 1 5 .'ifxdS ..txdS 1 6 . .b!.ad l .b!.ad8 1 7 .c3 ..te4= Ahmad-Adly, Amman 2 0 0 8 . 1 3 ... tt:Je4! 1 4.i.d3 1 4.tlJxe4 dxe4 1 5 .ti:Jd2 ..tgS ! 1 6.ti:Jxe4 (1/2-1/2 Karpov­ Najdorf, Hastings 1 9 7 1 / 7 2) 1 6 . . . i.xf4 1 7 . .b!.xf4 tLixeS =F .

1 4. . . fs 1 4 . . . tb c s ! ? 1 5 . tbxcS .ixcS 1 6 .a3 l:!.c8+:t. 1 5.exf6 �xf6 1 5 . . . ti:Jxf6 ! ? 1 6 . 'ifd2 @h8 1 7 . l':i.ae l ..tg 8 = . 1 6.'iVe2N 1 6. tbxe4 dxe4 1 7 . ..txe4 ..tc4 1 8 . ..td6 ..txfl 1 9 .'il'ds + @h8 2 0 .'il'hs g6 2 1 ...txg6 ..txg2 + 2 2 . @xg2

1 75

Winning w i t h t h e Naj d o r f S i c i l i a n

2 2 ... 'iVd7 (22 . JH7 ! 2 3 .�xf7 'iVxd6�) 2 3 .ti:lcS 'iV g 7 2 4 . �xf8 'iVxg 6 + 2 5 .'iVxg6 hxg6 2 6.�d6 J::i.e 8 2 7 .l:rfl . Although White has an extra pawn, it is extremely hard to win such a position, on account of the paucity of material, Karpov-Anand, Buenos Aires 1 9 94. 16 ...�xc3 1 7.bxc3 'iVe7=; B) 1 0.'iVd3 ! ? is not a principal move, and Black has many good responses.

1 4.'iVb4 as l S .'iVbs 'iVc7 1 6.'ti'c4 l:tac8 1 7.I:!.fdl fs 1 8.c3 'iVds 1 9.'iVbs b6 20.ti:ld2 tt:Jxd2 2 1 .jlxd2 �f6 22.l:!.ab 1 e4

1 0 ... ti:lbd7 1 1 .tlJdS �xdS 1 2.exdS : B 1 ) 1 2 ... tt:Jcs .This seems to be stron­ ger than l 2 . . . J::i. e 8, as the text move equalises. 1 3 .'iVd2 1 3 .tt::l x cS dxc5 1 4.I:!.ad l ]!.d6=. 1 3 ...tt::l fe4 Here we see what I think is a CLASSICAL game for this type of play. Anand brilliantly shows what should be done in such po­ sitions. His opponent, the very strong grandmaster Ponomariov, tried to hold him off, but did not succeed. This posi­ tion suits Anand's style very well, and he played an absolutely great game:

23.b4 tt:Jd7 24.I:!.b3 �es 25.a3 .l:l:f7 26.c4 axb4 2 7.axb4 I:!.a8 and Black had a large advantage in Ponomariov­ Anand, Wijk aan Zee 2 0 1 1 . B2) 1 2 ... l:I.eS ! ? After this move we get some play in the position. In such posi­ tions I always like Black. The second player has very clear play, as in many other typical positions: Black just starts to push his e- and f-pawns with the support of his pieces. 1 3.c4 1 3 .I:!.fd l g6 1 4.c4 b6 1 5 .tlJd2 a5 1 6 .tlJb l h5 1 7 . tt::l c 3 tt::l g 4 1 8 .�d2 tt:Jcs 1 9 . °iYh3

.

1 76

Viswanathan Anand

C h a p t e r 9 - T h e P o s i t i on a l 6 . � e 2

tt:'if6 2 0 .�d3 tt:'ih7 2 l .�c2 �gs 2 2 .b3 �xd2 2 3 ..!:i.xd2 fs 24.'fk'e3 tt:'igs 2S .f3 h4 with an unclear position with mu­ tual chances in Emelin-Sakaev, Tallinn 2 00 1 . 1 3 ... �fS 14.tt:'id2 as 1 5 ..tdl N tt:Jcs 1 6.'fk'e2 g 6 1 7.tt:'ib l tt:Jhs 1 8 ..txcS dxcS 1 9.'fk'd2 tt:'ig7 20.�a4 t:te7 2 1 .d6 J::te 6 22.d7 tt:Jfs 23.'fk'ds e4 24.tt:'ic3 e3 and now: 1 O...tt:Jbd7 1 1 .a4 .!:i.c8 1 2.aS Wic7

One of the key positions of this varia­ tion, where White has several possibili­ ties, but there is no great difference be­ tween them. We reach one and the same sort of position, which I think is objectively equal, but where from a playing point of view, I think Black's game is easier. B2 1 ) 25.g4! exf2 + 2 6 . .!:i.xf2 tt:'ie3 27 .'fk'f3 'iYe7 0 2 8 .tt:'ids tt:'ixdS 2 9 .'fk'xdS �g7oo; B22) 25 .'fk'xb7? t:tbs 26.'ti'f3 .!:i.xb2 2 6 . . . �g 7 ! ? 2 7.t:tab l ? 2 7 .fxe3 .!:i.xe3 2 8 . 'fk' d S D .!:i. e 6 t . 2 7 ... tt:'id4-+ 28.'iYxf7+ 2 8 .'li'h3 exf2 + 29 . .!:i.xf2 J::txb l + 3 0 . tt:'ixb l .!:i.e l + 3 1 ..!:i.fl tt:'ie2+ 3 2 .Wf2 tt:'if4 33 . .!:i.xe l tt:'ixh 3 + 34.gxh3 'iVh4+-+ . 28 ... @xf7 29.fxe3+ Wg7 30 . .!:i.xb2 .!:i.xe3 3 1 .tLldS t:te2 32 ..!:i.xe2 tt:'ixe 2 + 3 3 .Wfl tt:'id4 3 3 . . . °iYh4+ ! 3 4 . g 3 'iVxh 2 + 3 S . W e 3 tt:'i d4 ! -+ . 3 4. .!:i.el 'fk'h4+ 3 5 .Wfl tt:'ie6?? After 3 S . . . ti:Jf3 ! 3 6 . .!:i.e8 'li'xc4+ 3 7 .Wf2 'iVxa2+ Black is winning. . 36 . .!:i.xe6 1 -0 . I simply blundered . . . Hovhan­ nisyan-Andriasyan, Yerevan ch-ARM 20 1 2; B3) 25.fxe3 tt:'ixe3 2 6 . 'iYf3 tt:'ixfl 2 7 . .!:i.xfl fS 2 8 .'i¥xb7 .!:i.b8 29 .'iYds 'iVf6 � . Back t o the position after 1 O . . 'ifd 2 .

1 3J:Uc1

A) 1 3 . .!:i.fdl lll cs 1 3 . . . .!:i.fe8 1 4.'iVe l tt:'icS 1 S .tt:'ixcS dxcS 1 6 . f3 .!:i.ed8 1 7 .tt:'ia4 .!:i.xd l 1 8 . .!:i.xd l tt:'id7 1 9 .°iYc3 c4 2 0 .tt:'ib6 tt:'ixb6 2 1 .�xb6 �cs + 2 2 .�xcS 'iYxcS+ - Black has already taken the initiative and has a small ad­ vantage, which Anand managed to real­ ise, Fernandez Garcia-Anand, Santurtzi blind 2 0 0 3 . 14.tt:'ixcS dxcS

A l ) 1 5.ti:JdS !? �xdS 1 6.exdS �d6 1 7.c4 1 7 . .!:i.a3 c4. 1 7 ... tt:'id7 A playing 177

Winn i n g w i t h the Naj d o r f S i c i l i an

position, but I prefer Black, who has a simple plan connected with play on the kingside: he just tries to push his e- and f-pawns; A2) 1 5 .f3 ? ! J:l.fd8 1 6.'iVe l .i::t x dl 1 7.'iVxdl 1 7 .�xd l c4 1 8 .tll a4 tll d 7 1 9 .�e2 h6 2 0 .g3 'i¥c6 2 1 .Wg2 'iVbs 2 2 .�d2 'i¥c6 2 3 .�b4 �xb4 24.'i¥xb4 tll c S 2 S .tll b 6 .!d'.d8 2 6 .tll xc4 and despite the fact that White has won a pawn, Black has good compensation, Naiditsch-Hou Yifan, Moscow 2 0 0 7 . 1 7 ...c 4 1 8.tlJa4 �b4 1 9.�b6 'i¥c6 20.c3 �e7 2 1 .Whl tt:Jd7+; A3) 1 5 .�el J:l.fd8 1 6.f3 1 6.1:!'.xd8+ .l::!: xd8 1 7 .f3 c4 1 8 .tlJa4 tll d 7 1 9 .'i¥c3 f6 2 0.b3 .ld.c8 2 1 .b4 'i¥c6 2 2.'i¥a3 fS 2 3 .bS axbS 24.'i¥xe7 bxa4 2S . .l::td l . As Dr Tarrasch said, 'he who has the bishops has the future' , Ivanchuk-Karjakin, Wijk aan Zee 2009. 1 6 ... .!d'.xdl 1 7.tlJxdl c4=; A4) 1 5 .�f3 .!d'.fd8 1 6.'iYe l .!d'.xd l 1 7.'l!fxdl h6! 1 7 . . . c4 1 8 .�b6 'i¥d6 1 9 .'iYe l 'i¥b4 2 0 .'iYb l h6 2 1 .h3 'i¥d6 2 2 .�e3 'i¥c6 23 . .!d'.a4 .!d'.d8 24.°iYe l J:l.d7 2 S .�b6 �cs 2 6 .�xcS 'iVxcS and Black had the advantage in Lautier-Gelfand, Tilburg 1 99 6 . 1 8.'l!fe l c4= J. Horvath­ Pigusov, Sochi 1 9 8 S . B) 1 3.�f3?!

bishop for the knight. 1 3 ...h6 1 4.J:rfdl .i::tfe8 1 5.tlJcl l S .°iYe l .l:!.a8 1 6.tll c l b6 1 7 .axb6 tll x b6 1 8 .b3 tll b d7 1 9 . tt:J 1 e2 .l:!.ec8 2 0 . .ld.a 2 tll c S 2 1 . .l:!.da 1 'iV c6 2 2 .�d2 �d8 2 3 .tll g 3 aS 24.h3 with an unclear position, in which each side has his trumps, Akopian-Short, Lucerne Wch-tt 1 99 7 . 1 5 ... b5! 1 6.axb6 tt:Jxb6 1 7.�xb6 'l!fxb6+ 1 3 ...tll c5 1 4.tll xc5 dxc5

Here White has two continuations. In the computer's opinion, 1 S .tll d S gives a small advantage to White, but I believe that in such a structure, from a purely practical standpoint, Black's game is at least not worse. On the other hand, 1 S .f3 is passive and causes Black no problems at all. He has plenty of moves which promise him equality. 1 5.f3 1 5.tlld5 �xd5 1 6 .exd5 :

I have always disliked this move in this structure, as after it the c4-square re­ mains without defence, and White will have to exchange his dark-squared 1 78

Chapter 9

1 6 ...�d6!? If Black plays . . . e5-e4 first, White will be able to exchange the dark-squared bishops, which is why I now think that it is stronger to play 1 6 . . . �d6 at once. If 1 6 ...e4 1 7 .�f4 �d6 1 8.�xd6 Wixd6 1 9.l:!.dl tll d 7 20.l:!.a3 f5 2 1 .l:!.b3 l:!.b8 22.f4 e:xf3 23.�:xf3 l:!.fe8 24.@hl l:!.e7 2S.h3 g6 26.c4 l:!.be8? 2 6 . . . b6=. 2 7.W/fl? 2 7 . l:!.xb7 'i¥g3 2 8 .l:!.fl ! tll e S 29.l:rxe7 l:!.xe7. 2 7...b6 28.axb6 tllxb6 29 ..l:!.c3 a5:f, Asrian­ Andriasyan, Yerevan ch-ARM 2007. 15 ...c4

-

T h e P o s i t i on a l 6 . � e 2

I f 1 5 ... l:!.cdS 1 6 .Wfe l c 4 1 7 .tll a4 tll d 7 1 8 .b4 Wfc6= . Or 1 5 . .JHdS 1 6 .'ii'e l c4 1 7 .tll a4 tll d 7 1 8 .@fl Wlc6 1 9 .@g l h6 2 0 .h4 @h8 2 1 .�fl fS 2 2 . exfS �xfS 2 3 .tll b 6 tllx b6 24.�xb6 �cs + 2 5 .�xcS 'lWxcS + and Black has the advantage, Zubarev­ Areschenko, Alushta tt 2 0 0 7 . 1 6.tll a4 tll d 7 1 7.�f1 1 8.'YWe1 '1Wc6 1 9.@h1 h6

.l:!.fd8

With an equal position, Ivanchuk­ Kramnik, Monaco blind 2 004.

Conclusion The present chapter dealt with one of the positional methods by which White can fight the Najdorf Sicilian. Such positions were often played by one of the kings of chess, the 1 2th World Champion, Anatoly Karpov. De­ spite the fact that the move is regarded as positional, in recent times, there has been a different trend in respect of the line. In several positions, White chooses the active move g2-g4, which leads to sharp and interest­ ing play. You have seen this in several of the games examined in this chapter. But to return to traditional positions, which we have already analysed in this chapter. We came to the conclusion that after the move 6.�e2 , Black has good counterchances in all lines, and a fighting position. In re­ cent games, Black is not experiencing problems equalising, or obtaining sufficient counterplay, in any of the positions.

Anatoly Karpov

1 79

Chapter 9

1 6 ... �d6!? If Black plays ... e5-e4 first, White will be able to exchange the dark-squared bishops, which is why I now think that it is stronger to play 1 6 . . . �d6 at once. If 1 6 ...e4 1 7.�f4 �d6 1 8.jixd6 �xd6 1 9 ..l:[dl tlld 7 20.l::ta3 B 2 1 ..ld:b3 .l:[b8 22.f4 exf3 23.jixf3 .l:[fe8 24.'itihl .i::r e 7 25.h3 g6 26.c4 .ld:be8? 2 6 . . . b6=. 2 7 .�f2? 2 7 . .l:!.xb7 'iVg3 2 8 . .l:[fl ! tll eS 2 9 . .l:!.xe7 .l:!.xe7. 2 7...b6 28.axb6 tllxb6 29 ..l::i.c3 a5=F, Asrian­ Andriasyan, Yerevan ch-ARM 2007. 1 5 ...c4

-

T h e Posi t i on a l 6 . �e2

If 15 ....l::i.cdS 1 6.'MVe l c4 1 7 .tll a4 tll d 7 1 8 .b4 'ifc6= . O r 1 5 ... nfds 1 6 .'iVe l c 4 1 7 .tll a4 tll d 7 1 8 .'itifl 'i¥c6 1 9 .'itig l h6 2 0 .h4 'itih8 2 1 .�fl fS 2 2 .exfS �xfS 2 3 .tll b 6 tll x b6 24.�xb6 �cs + 2 5 .jixcS 'Yi'xcS + and Black has the advantage, Zubarev­ Areschenko, Alushta tt 2 0 0 7 . 1 6.tll a 4 tll d 7 1 7.�f1 1 8.'i\f e1 'MVc6 1 9.'itih1 h6

l:Ifd8

With an equal position, Ivanchuk­ Kramnik, Monaco blind 2 004.

Conclusion The present chapter dealt with one of the positional methods by which White can fight the Najdorf Sicilian. Such positions were often played by one of the kings of chess, the 1 2th World Champion, Anatoly Karpov. De­ spite the fact that the move is regarded as positional, in recent times, there has been a different trend in respect of the line. In several positions, White chooses the active move g2-g4, which leads to sharp and interest­ ing play. You have seen this in several of the games examined in this chapter. But to return to traditional positions, which we have already analysed in this chapter. We came to the conclusion that after the move 6.jie2 , Black has good counterchances in all lines, and a fighting position. In re­ cent games, Black is not experiencing problems equalising, or obtaining sufficient counterplay, in any of the positions.

Anatoly Karpov

1 79

Chapter 10

The Aggressive 6.f4 1.e4 c5 2.tllf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.tll xd4 tll f6 5.tll c3 a6 6.f4

The move f2-f4 is very aggressive and contains many ideas. White wants to com­ mence active operations at once and delays the development of his pieces. He wants to put his queen on the square f3 . The move f2-f4 also prevents the black knight reaching the excellent square eS , and from f3 the queen defends the e4-pawn and helps the white attack, as well as also being able to transfer to h3 , from where it will exert pressure on the black king. After 6.f4, Black has two main continuations, which are 6 . . . e6 and 6 . . . eS , of which I prefer 6 . . . e S , since it is more active and does not allow White to play g2-g4 and begin active operations on the kingside. It also forces White to move his knight from d4 to f3 , after which the white queen has to come to the kingside via e 1 and g 3 , where she can always be attacked by the black knight jumping to hS. After the retreat 7 .tll f3 , Black has two main continuations: 7 . . . Wic7 and 7 . . . tll bd7 . In my opinion, the stronger move is 7 . . . 'Vilic7 , since after the other con­ tinuation 7 . . . tll b d7 White places his bishop on c4, where it is ideally located, si­ multaneously controlling the a2-g8 diagonal and attacking the square f7 , creating problems for the black king. The move 7 . . . 'Vilic7 is strong because it does not allow the white bishop this possibility, and forces it to the passive square d3 , where it just defends its own pawn on e4. Then Black develops his pieces actively, to control the centre.

180

Chapter I 0

-

The Ag g ressive 6 . f4

1 .e4 c5 2.tllf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.tllxd4 tllf6 5.tll c3 a6 6.f4 es

7.tllf3

A) 7.tll b 3 is not dangerous for Black. He has many good continuations, so we will show just one example: 7 ...tll b d7

8.g4N 8 .a4 b6 9 .i.e2 �b7 1 0 .�f3 �e7 1 1 . 0-0 0-0 1 2 .Whl exf4 1 3 .�xf4 tll e 5 1 4.tll d4 g6 1 5 .'i!Ve2 I:re8 1 6.I:rad l tll fd7 with an unclear position, in which the chances of the two sides are about level, Hebert-Portisch, Rio de Ja­ neiro Interzonal 1 9 7 9 . 8 dS ! 9.exdS tllb 6 1 0.�e2 tll fxdS 1 0 . . . tll x g4 1 1 . 0-0 'tWh4 1 2 .i.xg4 �xg4 1 3 .'tWd3 . 1 1 .tll xdS tll xdS 1 2.0-0 exf4 and Black is better; B) 7.tll fs and now: B l ) 7 ...dS 8.tll e 3 .•.

8 ... �b4N After 8 . . . tll xe4 9 .tll xe4 dxe4 1 O .'tWxd8+ Wxd8 1 1 .fxeS i.e6 1 2 .�c4 White has the advantage, as his king can castle and Black's cannot, plus White has the better development and his re­ maining pieces can come out more quickly. 9.tll xdS tll xe4 1 0.�e3 �xc3+ 1 1 .tll x c3 °iYxd l + 1 2 .tll x dl exf4 1 3.�xf4 Despite the fact that the com­ puter assesses this as absolutely equal, that does not seem right to me; the po­ sition is open and White has the two bishops, so he should have the advan­ tage, albeit not a large one. B2) 7 ...tt:lxe4 8.tllxg7+ �xg7 9.tll xe4 dS 1 0.tll c 3 ! ?

1 o ...tll c 6N 1 1 .�e2 0 - 0 1 2.0-0 �fs 1 3.tll xdS �xc2 14.�xc2 tll d4 1 5 .'ii'd l 'itxdS 1 6 .fxeS tllxe2+ 1 7.'i¥xe2 'iVxeS= One can say that the position is a dead draw. Many pieces have already come off, and now the queens will follow, after which peace will soon be signed.

181

Winn i n g w i t h t h e Naj d o r f S i c i l i an

7... 'lWc71 8.�d3 tt:Jbd7

A) 8 ...�e7 9.0-0 0-0

Here White has a choice of two possible continuations. The first, 1 O .a4, stops Black getting active counterplay on the queenside. But the move also has draw­ backs, namely that it costs a tempo, and Black can exploit this to develop quickly. The other move is 1 0 .�e l , which ignores Black's queenside activ­ ity and starts an attack on the king, but in this case, Black has counterplay. A l ) 1 0 .'lWel tlJbd 7 ! and now 1 1 .a4 transposes to 8 . . . tlJbd7 . Instead, Black may try 1 O . . . bS ?! 1 1 .a4!

l 1 . . .b4N 1 2 .tLldS tlJxdS 1 3 .exdS �b7 1 4.fxeS dxeS 1 5 .'lWxeS .ics + 1 6.tie l D g6 2 7 .'irh6 l::t e 8+ 2 8 .'>tid2 �f8=i=. 20...exd4 2 1 .°'lWxd4D ld:e8! 22.'ird2 't/Vc8 ! 2 3 .l':.he l �f6 ! 24.�d4D .l:tde7! A very strong, al­ though at the same time rather strange move. Black is two pawns down, yet he exchanges pieces. 2 5 Jh e 7 .l:txe7 26.'>tigl .l:te2 2 7.'lWf4 �xd4+ 28.'t/Vxd4 't/Vxc2 29.�f3 l:!:xh2 30.�e4 �d3 ! Here Black already has the advantage, and can regain his lost material with an attack on the enemy king. Even so, White has drawing chances. B) 8.a4

20 1

Wi nning w i t h t h e Naj d o r f S i c i l i a n

This move has another minus. Of course, White does not want to allow . . . b7-b S , after which Black seizes space on the queenside, gives his bishop an excellent post on b 7 , his knight comes to d7 and cS , and there is always a threat of . . . bS -b4, attacking the e4-pawn. However, after a2-a4, Black obtains the square b4 for his knight, from where it supports the advance . . . d6-dS , and it is not clear how it can be ejected from the b4-square, since the move c2-c3 means that the knight should not have come to c3 in the first place. B 1 ) 8 ... ttJc6 9.�g2 ttJb4 1 0 .0-0 �e6 1 1 .b3

1 1 . ..d5 = In such positions, Black's main idea usually consists of this ad­ vance, and if he achieves this, the posi­ tion is equal. 1 2.exd5 ttJfxd5 1 3.�a3 ttJxc3 1 4.ttJxc3 �xdl 1 5.li:axdl ttJxc2 1 6 .�xe? @xe7 1 7 .ttJd5 + �xd5 1 8.li:xd5 @e6 with a draw on move 2 S in Ghaem Maghami-Vachier-Lagrave, Dresden Olympiad 2 0 0 8 ; B2) 8 ...�e6 is also an interesting move, giving Black a normal, playable position: 9 .�g2 ttJbd7 1 O .h3 li:c8 1 1 .g4 h6 1 2 .ttJg3 g6 1 3 . 0-0 W¥c7 1 4.aS @f8 1 S .�e3 @g7 1 6.f4 exf4 1 7 .li:xf4 ttJeS with a draw on move 4 7 , Kamsky-Lautier, Monaco rapid 1 9 9 6 .

202

C) 8.h3

8 ...b 5 ! If we compare this position with the 6 .h3 variation, then it is clear that White has simply lost a tempo, be­ cause he will have to spend three moves getting his pawn to g4, instead of two. So it seems to me that the varia­ tion with 6 . g3 is not dangerous for Black. 9.�g2 ttJbd7 1 0.a3 1 O .g4 b4 1 1 .ltJdS ttJxdS 1 2 . exdS aS 1 3 . 0- 0 hS 1 4.gxhS li:xhS 1 S .ttJd4 ttJf6 1 6 .ttJc6 �c7 1 7 .1lii f3 �fs 1 8 . � e l �d 7 . Black's position is the more promising, as he has some attack, Alexeev­ Dominguez Perez, Biel 2 0 0 8 . 1 0 ...�b? 1 1 .g4 ttJb6 1 2.ltJg3 g6 1 3.g5 ttJfd7 1 4.h4 .bi.cs 1 5.@fl 0-0 1 6.@gl .bi.c4 Black has a definite advantage, since the rook on h 1 is not taking part in the game. But strangely, Black later lost the game, after wrongly sacrificing the ex­ change in a good position, sharpening the position, and then committing sev­ eral inaccuracies in Short-Gelfand, Novgorod 1 99 7 . 7...ile7 8.�g2

White also has the option here of stop­ ping bS by playing a2-a4 himself, but then, as we have already seen, the black knight gets a good square on b4, and this helps him organise the advance . . . d6-dS : 8.a4 ttJc6 9.�g2

C h a p t e r 1 2 - T h e F i an c h e t to 6 . g 3

Olginka tt 20 1 1 , but to my mind, 1 O . tll b4 is rather stronger. Black pre­ pares the advance . . . d6-d5 , whilst the white pieces are not harmoniously placed - the queen interferes with the development of the other pieces and he still has to expend a tempo on castling. 1 1 .tll dS tll bxdS 1 2.exdS ..

Not a very dangerous position for Black, and I would even say that he can play for the advantage, as White has conceded the square b4 and the knight on b3 is out of place in such positions. It does not contribute to the battle for dS, while all of Black's pieces take part in that battle. I will give two examples: A) 9 .. tllb4 1 o . .igs �e6 1 1 .0-0 l:rc8 1 2 . .l:tel 0-0 1 3 .'li'e2 h6 14 . ..ixf6 �xf6 1 5.aS 'li'd7 1 6 .'i¥d2 .l:fd8 1 7.h4 J::i.c 7 1 8. J::i. e dl .b!.dc8=i= Lopez Martinez­ Dominguez Perez, Barcelona 2 0 0 6 ; B ) 9. . ..ig4!? I very much like this move, because now White starts to have problems. If he plays 'i¥d2 , then he can­ not develop the bishop from c 1 , whilst if he plays f2-f3 , then he will later end up having to play f3 -f4, weakening his king, which is not very desirable. B l ) 1 0 .'li'd2

1 2.. . .l:!.cS!N Black is simply better. He will play . . . tll d 7 , . . . f7 -f5 whilst White's subsequent play is not entirely obvious, because his pieces do not cooperate well and it is hard to imagine how he will restore this coordination. 1 2 . . . aS 1 3 . 0-0 0-0 1 4.�d3 �c8 1 5 .c3 .ifs , with good play for Black, was seen in Vydeslaver-Colovic, Kallithea tt 2 0 0 8 . 1 3.0-0 'li'd?=F ; B2) 1 0.f3 .ild7 1 1 .0-0 tllb4 1 2 .�e3 0-0 1 3.aS .l:!.c8 14.J::i. f2 .ie6 1 5 . .t!.d2

1 0 ... tllb4! 1 0 . . . tll a S is also not bad, as was played in Movsesian-Kokarev,

1 5 ...'li'e8! A strong idea. Black transfers his queen to c6, after which he plays

.

203

Winn i n g w i t h t h e Naj d o r f S i c i l i a n

. . . �fd8 and . . . d6-d5 , and will then stand a little better. 1 6 .tl:lc 1 ! h5 1 6 . . . 'iVc6? ! 1 7 .tl:ld3 tl:lxd3 1 8 . .l:txd3 .!::r fd8 1 9 .tl:ldS ! ;l; . 1 7.tbd3 tl:lxd3 1 8 ..ld:xd3 h4� ; B3) 1 0.�f3 �h3 ! White is hardly likely to castle kingside, and in order to castle queenside he needs first to move the bishop and queen, besides which he has already played a2-a4, creating a weakness there. Back to the position after 8 .�g2 . 8... b5 9.�g5

A) 9.a4 b4 1 0.tl:\d5 tl:\xd5 1 1 .1li!Yxd5 .ld:a7 1 2.�e3 �e6 1 3.'l!Vd3 1 3 .'l!Vd2 transposes to 9. 0-0, see the game Kasimdzhanov-Karjakin in line C. 1 3 ....ld:d7 1 4.0-0 0-0 1 5 ..ld:fcl

1 5 ... .ld:eS Without the move f2-f4, the .l:!.e8 does nothing, and Black will not manage to get in . . . � gs because White has played a4-a5 and he can put his bishop on b6 with tempo. So it was necessary to play 1 5 . . . �gS at once, or 1 5 . . . 'l!Vc8 , whereas 1 5 . . . l:!:e8 turns out to be a wasted move: 1 5 . . . �gS ! ? 1 6 .f4 �h6 1 7 .l:!:e l l:!:e8oo. 1 6.a5 'l!Vc8 1 7.c3 bxc3 1 8.l:!:xc3 l:!:c7 1 9 . .i::t: ac l l:!:xc3 20.l:!:xc3 'l!Vb7 2 1 .'l!Vc2 l:!:c8 22.l:!:xc8+ �xc8 23.tbd2

204

But here White has pressure, and al­ though his advantage is not great, the position is unpleasant for Black. White has a very simple plan. He wants to play b2 -b4-b 5 , transfer the �g2 via fl to c4 and bring the knight via b 1 to c3 . White won on move 3 6 in Zherebukh-Ter Sahakyan, Athens Wch-jr 2 0 1 2 ; B) 9.tl:ld5 It was better to start with the preliminary 9 .a4 as in line A, and only after 9 . . . b4 to play 1 0 . tl:ldS . Here, Black stands fine. 9 ... tl:lxd5 1 0.'l!Vxd5 �a7 1 1 .�e3 �e6 1 2.'l!Vd2 �d7 1 3.0-0

1 3 ... d5 1 4.exd5 �xd5 1 5 .�xd5 l:!:xd5 = Filipenko-Voitsekhovsky, Tolyatti 2 0 1 1 ; C) 9.0-0 0-0 1 O.a4 b4 1 1 .tbd5 tl:lxd5 1 2.'l!Vxd5 .ld:a7 1 3 . .i.e3 �e6 1 4.'l!Vd2 We have transposed into the position after 9 .a4 with the only difference that here, the queen is on d2 instead of d3 . 1 4... l:!:b7

Chapter 1 2

1 5.l::!. fdl 1 5 .'iYd3 makes no sense at all; White could have played 'lli'd3 at once, saving a tempo: 1 S . . . 'i!Hc7 1 6.tll d 2 aS 1 7 . .l::!. ac l tll d 7 1 8 .b3 .l::r c 8 and Black was already slightly better in Kasim­ dzhanov-Karjakin, Tomsk 2006. 1 5 ...'iYc7 1 5 . . . tll d 7 ! ?. 1 6.�acl tll d 7 1 7.�fl .l:!.a8 1 8.c4 a5

-

The Fianchetto 6 . g 3

looked at this position before my game with Dvoirys at the Russian Cup. It happened that we met in the first cy­ cle, and before this, he lost in this line to Sjugirov. For this reason, I did not think he would play the same way again, although he probably had little choice. In the first game, I was White, and after playing a very strong novelty, I obtained the advantage. I could not realise it, but I was full of determina­ tion to win the match in normal time, which I managed to do. An alternative is 9 ... tllb d7 and now: A) 1 0.tll d S tllxdS ! 1 1 .°iVxdS tllb 6 1 2.�xe7 �xe7 although the king is in the centre, he stands quite comfort­ ably there, as White has no pieces with which to disturb him, having no dark­ squared bishop and the tll b 3 being un­ able to help. If Black exchanges queens, he will have the advantage: 1 3.'i!Hd2 f6 1 3 ... 'l!Vc7 ! ? 1 4.0-0 .te6oo. 1 4.0-0 �e6 1 S .c3 .l:!.c8 1 6.h4 tllc4 1 7.'ii'e2 °iVb6 1 8.tllc l b4 and Black was OK in Alexeev-Nepomniachtchi, Moscow ch-RUS 2 0 0 6 ; B) 1 0.a4 and now: B l ) 1 0 ...b4! ? 1 1 .tll dS -

A closed and equal position, which ended in a draw, Adams-Alexeev, Calvia 2007. 9 � g4 ...

1 1 ...h6!N 1 1 . . .tll xdS ? ! 1 2 .'iYxdS .l:!.a7 1 3 . .txe7 �xe7 1 4.0-0 tll f6 l S .'°iYd2 aS 1 6.c4 bxc3 1 7 ."i¥xc3 �e6 1 8 .tll d2 'ii'b 6 1 9 .tll c4 �cs 2 0 .tll e 3 'lli'x c3 with

20S

Winning w i t h t h e N a j d o r f S i c i l i an

a later draw, Olsson-Micheli, Skopje Olympiad 1 9 7 2 . 1 2 .tll xe 7 'iYxe 7 1 3 . .,teJ 0-0 1 4.0-0 aS= ; B2) 1 0 ....,tb7 1 1 .axbS axbS 1 2 . .ld:xaS 'iYxa8 1 3.tll xb5 1 3 ..,txf6 tllxf6 1 4.'iVd3 0 - 0 1 5 . 0 - 0 .,tc6 1 6 . l:f.a l 'iYb8 = . 1 3 ... 0-0 1 4.tll c 3

1 4... tllxe4!N 1 4 . . . h6?! 1 S . .,txf6 tllxf6 1 6 . 'iY a 1 ! - after this move, White was slightly better in Deepan-Areschenko, Mumbai 2 0 0 9 . 1 S ,.,txe4 .,txe4 1 6 .�xe7 �xc2 1 7.'iYxc2 'iYxh l + 1 8.t>f8 and l 9 . . . '>t>g7 with an equal position. Kryvoruchko-Ftacnik, Czech tt 2 0 1 2/ 1 3) 1 3 . . . tt:Jcs 1 4.0-0 and after 1 4 . . . 0-0 I S .l:l'.d2 gives White some­ thing. Instead, in Vallejo Pons­ Rytshagov, Istanbul Olympiad 2 0 0 0 , there followed 1 4 . . . tt:Jxb3 I S .axb3 h4 1 6 .tlJge2 tlJhS 1 7 .�xe7 'iYxe7 1 8 .'iVd3 .l:!.c6 1 9 .f4 exf4 2 0 .'iVd4 0-0 2 1 .tLlxf4 tlJxf4 22 . .l:!.xf4. Here White is better, as his pieces are more active, and there are various weaknesses in the black posi­ tion, which White will soon exploit. 1 2 ... tt:Jcs 1 3 .�xe6 tt:Jxe6 1 3 . . . fxe 6 1 4.�xf6 �xf6 I S .b4;!;; . 1 4.�xf6 ..txf6 1 5.tt:Jds ;t White has managed to ex­ change the two defenders of dS and left Black with his bad bishop, and for this reason, he has the advantage. B) 1 1 ... tlJfd7N 1 2.�xe 7 'iYxe 7 1 3.'iVd2 tt:Jc6 1 4.0-0-0 Here Black faces a choice. Firstly, he can defend the d6-pawn for now with l 4 . . . tlJd4, but then White will prepare the exchange of this knight and Black's position will be bad. The second idea is to castle queenside and abandon the d6-pawn, with the idea of trying to catch the rook on d6, although this does not work, due to concrete action by White. The third and strongest op­ tion is to play 1 4 . . . I:!.d8 , also sacrificing the d6-pawn, with the same idea, but with the nuance that the black king re-

mains in the centre where i t is better placed. B l ) 1 4 ... :lds 1 4 . . . tt:Jd4 I S .�xe6 '&'xe6 1 6 . '>t>b I ;!;; . 1 S .'&'xd6 'iVxd6 16 ..l:txd6 tlJd4 1 7 .�xe6 fxe6 l 8.f4 exf4

There is no reason not to take the pawn. 1 9.tt:Jxhs gxhS 1 9 . . . .l:txhS 2 0 . .laxd4 .l:tgS 2 I ..t!.d2 tlJf6 2 2 .:l:rfl . 20 . .l:txd4 .l:tg8 2 0 . . . eS 2 I ..l:td6 .l:tg8 (2 1 . . .tlJcS 22 . .l:tg6 '>t>f7 23 . .l:f.b6;t) 22 . .l:t g I ! f3 2 3 . .l:tfl ! ;!;; . 2 1 .eS ! lhg2 22 . .l:!.xf4 We7 23 . .l:th4 .l:tf8 ! 24.'>t>b l .l:tgf2!� C) 1 4 ... 0 - 0 - 0 1 S . 'iYxd6 '&'xd6 1 6 ..l:!.xd6 tlJd4 1 7 .�xe6 fxe6 1 8.f4 exf4

Here, as in the position above, the pawn should be taken. 1 9.tlJxhS gxhS 20 ..l:txd4 tlJb6 2 0 . . . eS 2 I .!!d6 .l:!.hg8 2 2 . tt:Jds .!:rxg2 2 3 .l:rd l l:!.g7 24 . .l:th6;!;; . 2 1 ..l:!.xd8+ Wxd8 White has the advan­ tage, with his extra pawn, though to be fair, one should say that it very hard to realise such a pawn. 219

Winning w i t h t h e Naj d o r f S i c i l i an

1 2.tLlge2 0-0 1 3.'ifd3

1 3 .�h6 l:le8 1 4.0-0 bS 1 5 .'ifd3 ;t . 1 3 ...tLlh7

1 3 ... tLld7 l 4 . .2.xe 7 'ii'x e7 1 5 . 0-0-0 .ixb3 l 6 . axb3 'if g S + 1 7 .'i¥d2 ! ;t White has coped with all that Black has asked of him. Now Black loses the d6pawn, without any compensation at all. 1 4.�h6

1 4...t2lb41 14... .l::t e S 1 5.�xe6 fxe6 1 6.0-0-0 �gs+ 1 7 ..ixgS 'iYxgS + 1 8.@b 1 .i::r ad8 A strong move, preparing active opera­ tions. Black has managed to exchange the two bishops, and in exchanging light-squared bishops , he has suc­ ceeded in forcing White to exchange on e6, so the f7-pawn occupies that square. But even so, it is not all so sim­ ple: Black has a major problem, in that his king is very weak, whilst the enemy king is located on the other flank. This allows White to develop an attack with tempi, and it is very hard for Black to defend against this. 1 9 . .l::!: hfl .!:i.f8 20.g3;t 1 5 .WW'd1 .i::r ea 1 6.a3 t2lc6 1 7.�xe6 fxe6 1 8.Wid3 .ig5 1 9..ixg5 'iWxg5= 1/2- 1/2

Conclusion In this chapter, we have looked at the relatively new and interesting move 6.h3, which has become popular and has been seen frequently in recent years. This is because in the main lines, White has no clear path to an ad­ vantage, whereas 6.h3 , as we have seen, leads to complicated and fresh positions Looking at the move 6 . . . eS, which is a very common reply to 6 .h3 , we can see that in all lines, Black has a good position, and in general he re­ tains counter-chances, which is a very important factor in preparing the opening in our day. In my opinion, our move is more subtle than 6 . . . e6. After the latter move, in many variations Black is only fighting for a draw because the re­ sulting positions are roughly equal, but White always has some pressure. Black can neutralise this, but he has insufficient resources to take the ini­ tiative himself Of course, this is not suitable for a stronger player, playing a weaker opponent.

220

Chapter 14

Exercises After examining the Najdorf Variation for Black and familiarising ourselves with the main ideas of this very interesting line, which contains many new ideas, I would like to give you the chance to test yourself Solving these exercises will strengthen your knowledge and help you to revise the material you have seen above, but this time in the form of tests. Such exercises are extremely useful from the practical viewpoint, because all of the positions are taken from games played in various tournaments and the players themselves had to solve the same problems at the board. By solving these, you will be better prepared for practical play. Good luck! Exercise 1

Exercise 2

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Exercise 4

Exercise 3

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22 1

Wi nning w i t h t h e Naj d o rf S i c i l i an

Exercise 5

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Exercise 6

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Exercise 8

Exercise 7

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Exercise 1 0

Exercise 9

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222

Chapter 1 4

Exercise

11

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Exercises

Exercise

12

Exercise

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Exercise

16

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Exercise

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Exercise

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15

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223

Winning wi th t h e Naj d o rf S i c i l i an Exercise 1 8

Exercise 1 7

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Exercise 20

Exercise 1 9

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Exercise 22

Exercise 21

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224

Cha p t e r 1 4Exercise 23

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Exercises

Exercise 24

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K

Exercise 26

Exercise 25

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Exercise 27

Exercise 28

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225

Winn i n g w i t h t h e Naj d o rf S i c i l i an Exercise 29

Exercise 30

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Exercise 31

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Exercise 32

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Exercise 33

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Exercise 34

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226

C ha p t e r 1 4

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E x e r c i s es

Exercise 36

Exercise 35

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Exercise 37

Exercise 38

Exercise 39

Exercise 40

D

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227

Wi n n i n g wi th t h e N a j d o r f S i c i l i an

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Exercise 41

Exercise 42

Exercise 43

Exercise 44

Exercise 45

Exercise 46

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Chapter 1 4

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Exerci ses

Exercise 47

Exercise 48

Exercise 49

Exercise 50

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Exercise 51

D

229

Solutions •

Kiprian Berbatov Sa.IIlvel Ter Sahakyan

Solution 1

Aix-les-Bains Ech 2 0 1 1 ( 6)

20... .!:rxd4 21 .cxd4 2 1 .'tWe3 ! ? tlJf2 + ! (2 1 . . .tlJxeS ! ? 2 2 .�xd4D tlJf2 + 2 3 .'it>g l tlJh3 + ! 24.'it>fl (24.'it>h l ? �xd4 2 5 .cxd4 tlJd3 :+) 24 . . . �bs + 2 5 .l:!e2 .txe2+ 2 6 .'it>xe2 'tWc6 ! 2 7 . 'it>fl (2 7 .gxh3 ? 'iVf3 + 2 8 .'it>e l 'tWxh5-+) 27 . . . f6 +) 2 2 . 'it>g l ( 2 2 .'i¥xf2 .!::l. b 4 2 3 .'tWxb6 .!::l.xb6+) 2 2 ... tlJd3 2 3 .cxd4 tl:ixe l 24 . .!d:xe l .!::!. d 8 2 5 .l:!'.d l aS !:+. 21 ...'tWxd4 22.'tWe3 'tWxb2 23.l:!.ab1 'tWxe5+

Dimitri Reinderman Viswanathan Anand

Solution 2

Wijk aan Zee 1 99 9 ( 1 )

24 ... h5!!-+ 25.tl:ib6 27. .ld:f3 h3-+

•

h4

26.�d5

Nigel Short Garry Kasparov

�g5!

Solution 3

Amsterdam VSB Euwe-mem 1 9 9 6 (4)

31 ...tt:Jxc3! 32.�xc3 'i¥b6+ 33.'it>g2 .!:rc7 34..taa .!:rc41 35.'tWb7 'tWxb7 3 5 . . . 'iVd8 ! + . 36 ...ixb7 .ld.b8 3 7...ia6 .ld.b6 38..!:ra1 llcc6 39 . ..ixb5 .!:rxb5 40. .!:iaS+ 'it>g7 41 ..ld.a7 @f8 1/2-1/2 42 . .!:ra8+ @g7 43 . .ld:a7 Wf8

23 1

Winn i n g w i t h t h e Naj d o rf S i c i l i an •

Arkady Naiditsch Viswanathan Anand

Solution 4

Dortmund 2 0 0 3 (5)

1 6 ... e51 1 7.tbf5?1 1 7 .tbde2 b4 l 8 .axb4 tbxb3 1 9 .cxb3 l:td8+ . 1 7...�xf5 1 8.exfS t2Jxb3 1 9.cxb3 20.axb4 J::t x b4-+ •

Michael Feygin Alexey Shirov

b4

Solution 5

Germany Bundesliga 2008/09 ( 1 2)

1 3 ...t2Jxe4! 1 4.t2Jxe61 1 4.�xe7 tbxc3 1 5 .�xd8 tbxe2+. 14 ...fxe6 1 5.�xe7 �xe7 1 6.tbxe4 l 6 . fxe4 tbd7 +. 1 6 ...dS!+ •

Hichem Hamdouchi Maxime Vachier-Lagrave

Solution 6

Pau ch-FRA 20 1 2 (2)

1 4... b4 1 4 . . . �h4! 1 5 .�g4 �f6 1 6 .l:tfe l ( 1 6 . .l:rd3 aS ! =F) 1 6 . . . �c7 =F; 1 4 . . . �f6 1 5 . .i:ife l �c7 1 6 .�gS oo . 1 5.axb4 J::t b8 1 6.�c4 1 6.bS ! axbS 1 7 .e S --+ . 1 6 ... l:txb4 1 7.b3oo

Jud.it Polgar Boris Gelfand

Solution 7

Dos Hermanas 1 994 (9)

1 4...tbhS! 1 5.�h3 gxh6 1 6.�xhS �a7! 1 7.l:tad1 es-+

•

Santiago Gonzalez de la Torre Evgeny Naer

Solution 8

Kallithea tt 2008 (5)

28...aSI 29.l:tb6 l:tc7=F 30.l:ta6?1 a4 31 .�a2 d5 32.eS t2Jd7+

232

Thal Abergel Maxime Vachier-Lagrave Pau ch-FRA

Solution 9

2008 ( 1 0)

26_. d7! 27.l:txg7? 'i'd3+! 2 7 . . . d l ? 2 8 .'iit> a 2 tll d 5 2 9 .tll g S ! tll c 3 + 3 0 .bxc3 hxg5 3 1 .\WxgS 'iic 2+ 3 2 .'.t>a l 'i'xc3 + 3 3 .'iit> a 2 'iic 2+ = . 28.'iit> a 2 tll d 5! 29.l:tg4 tll c3+ 30.bxc3 'i'c2+ 31 .'iit> a 1 "irxc3+ 32.'iit>a 2 'i'c2+ 33.'iit> a 1 0-1 "irc1 + 34.'iit> a 2 l:tc8

Jacek Tomczak Andrey Volokitin

Solution 1 0

Lublintt 2009 ( 1 )

2 6... tll xf3+! 27.l:txf3 �xe4 28.l:td3 �xd3 29.cxd3 �f6=F

•

Michail Kostromin Alexander Areschenko

Solution 1 1

Rogaska Slatina tt 2 0 1 1 ( 1 )

1 8...l:txc3! 1 9.bxc3 tt:Jxe4 20.�e1 l:tc8 2 0 . . . aS ! ?t. 21 .�d5 tt:Jxc3 22.�xb7 tll x d1 23.�xcS �xc8 24.�d2 f6!=F •

Atousa Pourkashiyan Wesley So

Solution 1 2

Jakarta 20 1 1 (3)

29...l:txd1 I 30.l:txd1 32.'it>e2 �g5t

Rustam Ponomariov Arkady Naiditsch

g6! 31 .l:txd6 l:tc1 +

Solution 1 3

Porto Carras Ech-tt 2 0 1 1 (4)

1 8...'iWc51 1 9.tll xe6 fxe6 ! 1 9 . . . l:txe6 2 0 .tll dS tll f2 + 2 1 . l:txf2 2 2 .tll e 7 + = . 20.hxg4 tll x d3 21 .'i'xc5 tt:Jxc5=F

'i'xf2

233

Winning w i t h t h e Naj d o r f S i c i l i a n •

Gata Kamsky Vassily Ivanchuk

Solution 14

Lucerne Wch-tt 1 993 (2)

1 7... d51? 1 8.tll x d5 tlixd5 1 9.exd5 �f6 20.�e5! �xe5 21 .tlixe5 Wfxd5 22.h3 .!::!:fear

•

Heiko Mertens Ivan Cheparinov

Solution 1 5

Reykjavik 2 0 1 2 (2)

28...f51t 29.exf5 Wfxf5 30.�xb7 tllf4 31 .�e4 �es�

•

Juan Manuel Bellon Lopez Lajos Portisch

Solution 1 6

Linares 1 9 8 1 ( 7 )

22 ...�bSI 23 ..!::!:d 3 �a7+ 24.@h2 .!::!:x d3 25.cxd3 .!::!: d 8 26 ..!::!: d 1 h5 27.g3 h4! 28.g4 tlih7+

•

Michael Rahal Vives Alexander Areschenko

Solution 1 7

Zurich 2 0 0 9 (2)

1 4...d5! 1 5.tll x d5 1 5 .exdS tll x dS 1 6.tll x dS �xd2+ 1 7 .tll xd2 �xdS l 8.�xe7 @xe 7 1 . 1 5 ...�xd2+ 1 6.tlixd2 �xd51 1 7.exd5 tlixd5 1 8.�xe7 @xe7=F •

Jovita Ziogaite Natalia Zdebskaja

Solution 1 8

Dresden ol-W 2008 (4)

1 2 ... d51 1 3.�xb6 �xb6 14.tll x d5? 1 4.exdS �cS !=F. 1 4...�xd5 1 5.exd5 �c5-+

234

•

Kazim Gulamali Matthew Herman

Solution 1 9

ICC INT US Chess League 2 0 1 2 ( 3)

23 ... dS! 24.lll b4 2 4 . exdS .l::!. x dS ! ( 2 4 . . . lll x dS ? 2 5 .�e4 ! +- ) 2 5 .lll xdS �xdS 2 6.�h 7 + ? h2 d4-+

•

Bosko Tomic Zaven Andriasyan

Solution 34

Plovdiv Ech 20 1 2 (3)

1 2 ... �h4! 1 3.�g4 �f6 14."tWe2 b5t

•

Marcin Tazbir Zaven Andriasyan

Solution 35

Cappelle la Grande 2 0 1 2 ( S )

15 ...g5! 1 6.�e2 h5 1 7.g3 h4!? 1 7 . . . dS!=F. 1 8.g4 tt:Jd7t

•

Evandro Amorim Barbosa Zaven Andriasyan

Solution 36

Cappelle la Grande 2 0 1 2 ( 1 )

1 9...'itid7!!-+ 20.tt:le2 �xb2+! 21 .'it>xb2 .l::!. b8+ 22.'it>a2 tt:lb4+ 23.�xb4 .i::!.xb4 24.�d2 .i::!. h b8 0-1

D

Robin van Kampen Zaven Andriasyan

Sol ution 37

Groningen 2 0 1 0 (9)

1 6.e5! dxe5 1 7.tt:le4 �c7 1 8.tll d 6+ 'it>f8 1 9.fxe5 �g5 20.�f2 bxc4 21 .h4!+-

238

Antonios Pavlidis Zaven Andriasyan

Solution 38

Kalamaria Open 20 I 0 (5)

13 ...g5! 1 4.ltJf3?! 1 4.eS ! ? dxeS I S .fxeS �xeSoo. 14...gxf4 1 5.'ifxf4 �xc3=i=

•

Eltaj Safarli Zaven Andriasyan

Solution 39

Moscow 2 0 1 0 (6)

45 ...f5! 46.gxf5 'ifxe4 47.ttJe3 @h8 48.'iig 3 'iie 5 1/2· 1/2

Artur Gabrielian Zaven Andriasyan

Solution 40

St Petersburg 2009 (7)

31 ...f5! 32.exf5 .l:i.xc21 33.'ii b 3D .l:i.c4-+

•

Alvaro Tejeda Meneses Zaven Andriasyan

Solution

41

Benasque Open 2009 ( ! )

2 6 ... e51 27.f5 f6 28..l:i.g3 @f8 2 9. .l:i.h3 h6 30. .l:i.e3 d5!=i=

D

Dmitry Chuprov Zaven Andriasyan

Solution 42

Moscow 2008 (2)

1 7.hxg61 exd4 1 8.g7 l 8 .gxf7 + ! ?-+ 1 8 ... .l:i.gS 1 9.�xd4 0-0-0oo

239

Winn i n g w i t h t h e Naj d o rf S i c i l i a n

Nigel Short Garry Kasparov

Solution

43

Riga Tal-mem 1 99 5 (9)

21 ...'iYxb1 +! 22.tll x b1 fxg4 23.hxg4 h3 23 .. Jhc2 ! =F . 24Jk3 hxg2+ 25.'it>xg2 l:rg8 26.l:rxca+ �xc8 27.'it>f1 l:rxg4 28.tll 1 d2 e5 29.'iYc3 �b7 30.'iYc7 112- 112

Vugar Gashimov Alexander Grischuk

Solution

44

Bursa Wch-tt 2 0 1 0 (4)

22 ... l:rhS! 23.�f4 ?! �b4+ 24.c3 tt::Jxc3 25.�d2 'iYd5 26.l:rf7+ 'it>c6 27.l:rc1 'it>b6 28.�e3+ 'it>a5! 29.a3 'it>a4 30.axb4 �xd3 31 .iVa5+ 'it>b3 32.l:rxc3+ 'i¥xc3+ 33.�d2 b6! 34.�xb6 'iWe5+ 35.'it>d1 �b7 36.�xb7 l:rhd8 37.l:rf3+ 'it>a2 38.l:rf2 'it>b1 39.'iWf3 l:rac8 40.'iWb3+ 'li'b2 41 .'li'xb2+ 'it>xb2 0-1

•

Ilya Smirin Alexander Grischuk

Solution

45

Kallithea tt 2008 ( 6)

1 6 ... d5! 1 7.�xc4 �xc4 1 8.�g5 d4 1 9.�xf6 �xf6 20.tll d 5 'li'xc2 21 .tll xf6+ gxf6 22.'ti'h4 'it>g7 23.'ti'g4+ 'it>h8 24.'ti'h4 'it>g7 25.'ti'g4+ 'it>h8 26.'li'h4 l:rg8! 27.'lWxf6+ ng7 28.l:rg1 l:re8t

•

Alexander Motylev Alexander Grischuk

Solution

46

Moscow ch-RUS 2004 ( 1 )

1 5 ... l:rxc3!? 1 6.�xc3 'i¥xc3 1 7.bxc3 l:rxh2 1 8.�f4 l:rh5 1 9.l:rg5 l:rxg5 20.�xg5 tllf d7 oo

240

i. i i.

• 'iV

•

'

i,a,� '''

Sergey Karjakin Alexander Grischuk

fj, £3, fj, 'ii

Odessa 20 I 0 (3)

Solution 47

33 ...ld.xc2! 34.g6 f5!=F

Peter Leko Alexander Grischuk

Solution 48

London 2 0 1 2 (8)

1 6 ..Jixh2! 1 7.l:!.xh2 exd4 1 8.l:!.h4+:t

D

Vladimir Akopian Alexander Khalifman

Solution 49

Plovdiv Ech 20 1 2 ( 1 1 )

26.ttJbS+! axb5 27.'{;}fxd7 'ifxf4+ 28.Wb1 '{;}fxg5 28 Wa6 2 9 .l:!.ee l ! !+ - . 1 -0 29.'ifc 7 wa6 30.l:!.xfS! . . .

D

Alexey Shirov Alexander Grischuk

Solution

50

Wijk aan Zee 20 1 1 (8)

D

21 .h4! gxh3 22.l:!.xh3 b5 23.we2 24.l:!.bh1 t2Jc6 25.l:!.h8 l:!.a7 26.f4!;;!;

f6

Vassily Ivanchuk Alexander Grischuk

51

Solution

Sochi tt 20 I 0 (7)

28.ttJxdS! cxd5 29.'tWxdS+ We8 30.l:!.d1 !+­ l:!.c7 31 .'{;}faS+ Wf7 32.l:!.f1 + we6 33.'ifxa6+ Wd7 34.l:!.d1 + We8 35.e6! .1d8 36.'{;}fbS+ we7 37.'{;}fb4+ 1 -0

241

Explanation of Symbols

�

The chess board with its coordinates:

White stands slightly better Black stands slightly better ± White stands better + Black stands better +- White has a decisive advantage -+ Black has a decisive advantage balanced position 00 unclear position QQ compensation for the material > strong (sufficient) < weak (insufficient) � better is s weaker is good move !! excellent move bad move ?? blunder !? interesting move ?! dubious move 0 only move /::,. with the idea --+ attack t initiative tt lead in development � counterplay # mate corr. correspondence =F

8

7 6

=

5

•

4 3 2 a

0

b

c

d

e

f

White to move Black to move Good move ! ! Excellent move Bad move ?? Blunder !? Interesting move ? ! Dubious move � King 'iiY Queen .:a Rook � Bishop tt.J Knight •

242

g

h

Genera l Concl usion I hope that, in reading this book, you have found many interesting new opening ideas and have learnt to understand the positions arising in the NajdorfVariation. Even players who have never played the Najdorf in their lives, after reading this book, can undoubtedly start to play this most fascinating and fairly sharp variation of the Sicilian Defence, because we have tried to present all the main ideas of the line, including all the main moves for White and the corresponding defences for Black, which allow him to achieve satisfactory play. In many variations, we have tried to sidestep the most popular lines and instead, in quite a few cases, have tried to find new moves, which give the possibility of reaching fresh, sharp positions that have not yet been tested. In addition, we have also analysed quite deeply some relatively rare continuations, but ones which are quite poisonous and contain much of interest. In many variations, we have not tried to analyse everything out to a bare draw, or to find every way of obtaining equality, but have instead tried to obtain complica­ tions, and play with mutual chances, where, of course, there is an element of risk, but where there is scope to play for a win. It should be noted that in order to ob­ tains such positions as Black, one needs to employ rare or new continuations, or non-standard ideas, which will change the course of the game. But of course, there are some variations where even with the computer's help it is very difficult to enliven the position, and in these situations, one has to keep oneself in hand and not take unfounded risks, which can just lead to the ruin of one's posi­ tion. In such dry positions, one must adopt a pragmatic approach and console oneself with the thought that in modern-day chess, a draw as Black is a satisfactory result. After studying this book, to learn the nuances of the opening, I would advise you to look further at those games which are quoted only in part in the book. To im­ prove your play and master the intricacies of the opening, I recommend that you play training games against a player of similar strength, which will deepen your knowledge of the subtleties, and after the games, analyse them and try to find the typical mistakes which you are making. Having played quite a few different openings as Black, I have come to the conclu­ sion that the Najdorf is the best way for Black to play for a win. Without risking ending up in a rather unpleasant position, he can often reach a really very promis­ ing position. In open tournaments, where it is essential to play for a win in every game, the Najdorfhas been my best and most trusted friend, which has enabled me to achieve some highly important victories, often in the middle of the tournament, against players of varying strengths. PLAY THE NAJDORF AND WIN ! ! !

243

I ndex of Variations 1 .e4 c5 2.tt:Jf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.tt:Jxd4 tt:Jf6 5.tt:Jc3 a6

6.�g5 e6 7.f4 'iVb6 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 8 .°iVd2 'i¥xb2 9 .tlJb3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 4 9 . .l:!.b l 'i¥a3 I O .i.xf6 . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 8 1 0 .f5 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 2 1 O.e5 h 6 1 1 .i.h4 . . . . . . . 2 6 8 .°iVd3 �xb2 9 . .l:!.b l 'i¥a3 1 0 .f5 't!Va5 . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 1 1 O . . . t2Jc6 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47 I O ... ..ie7 l 1 .i.e2 . . . . . . . 50 8 .t2Jb3 t2Jbd7 9 .'i¥f3 ..ie7 1 0 .0-0-0 't!Vc7 1 1 ...id3 . . 66

6.�c4 e6

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69

7 .�b3 t2Jbd7 8 . 0-0 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 0 8 .i.xe6 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 2 8 .�e3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 2 8 .'i¥f3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 3 8 . g4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 4 8 .f4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 4 8 .�e2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 8 8 .i.g5 t2Jc5 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 8 7 . 0-0 b 5 8 . ..ib3 i.b7 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 3 8 . . .b 4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 5 8 . . . �e7 9.f4 0 - 0 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 5 9 .'\lk'f3 �b6 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 2 9 . . . V/!ic7 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 0 2 7 . ..ie3 b5 8 .�b3 ..ib7 9 . f4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 1 2 7 .i.g5 ..ie7 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 1 2 7 .a3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 1 3 245

Winning w i t h t h e Naj d o rf S i c i l i a n

6 .Jile3 e 5

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119

7 .ttJf3 'fk'c7 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 2 0 7 . . . §l.e7 8 .§l.c4 0-0 9 . 0-0 §l.e6 1 0 .'ife2 . . . . . . . 1 2 7 1 0 .§l.xe6 . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 3 3 1 0 .§l.b3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 3 5 7 .ltJb3 §l.e7 8 .'fk'd2 0-0 9 . 0-0-0 as 1 0 .a4 . . . . . . . . 1 4 1 1 0 .§l.bs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 4 1 1 0 .@b l . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 4 1 8.f3 §l.e6 9.'fk'd2 0-0 1 0.0-0-0 aS 1 1 .'fk'e l . . . 1 42 1 1 .@b l . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 49 1 l .a4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 5 1 l 1 .ltJa4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 5 4 l 1 .'fk'f2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 5 5 1 1 .§l.bs ttJa6 . . . . . . . . . . 1 5 6

6 .Jile2 e5 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 67 7 .tt:Jf3 h6 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 6 7 7 .ltJb3 §l.e7 8 .§l.gs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 6 7 8 . g4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 69 8 .0-0 0-0 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 7 1

6.f4 e5

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1 81

7 .ltJb3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 8 1 7 .tt:Jfs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 8 1 7 .ltJf3 'fk'c7 8 .§l.d3 §l.e7 9 . 0-0 0-0 . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 8 2 8 . . . bS 9 . 0-0 ltJbd7 1 0 .'fk'e l §l.b7 1 1 .@h l . . . . . . . 1 84 8 . . . ttJbd7 9 . 0-0 §l.e 7 1 0 .@h l 0-0 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 8 5 9 .a4 §l.e7 1 0 . 0-0 0-0 1 1 .'fk'e l . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 8 6 1 1 .@h l . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 8 8

246

I n d ex of Vari a t i ons

6.a4 e5

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1 92

7 .tll b 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 9 2 7 .tll d e2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 9 2 7 .tll f3 h6 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 94 7 . . . JJ..e 7 8 .JJ..c 4 �e6 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 94 8 .�gS JJ.. e 6 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 9 6

6.g3 e5

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1 98

7 . tll d e2 �e7 8 .�g2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 99 8 .a4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 0 1 8 .h3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 0 2 7 .tll b 3 il.e7 8 .a4 tll c 6 9 .JJ..g 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 0 2 8 .�g2 bS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 0 4

6.h3 e5

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209

7 .tll f3 tll b d7 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 1 0 7 . . . Wfc7 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 1 0 7 .tll d e2 bS 8.g4 b4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 1 1 8 . . . JJ..b 7 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 1 2 7 . . . hs 8 .JJ.. g s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 1 3

247

Index of Players Numbers refer to pages. A

Adams 1 3 4, 1 9 5 , 2 0 5 1 05 Adelberg 50 Adhiban 1 75 Adly 1 00 Agrest 88 Aguilar Sevilla 1 75 Ahmad 68, 79, 1 3 2, 1 3 6, Akopian 1 50, 1 78 73 Akylbekov 1 34 Aldokhin 1 74, 2 0 2 , 2 0 5 Alexeev 1 33 Aliavdin 1 3 6- 1 3 7 Almasi 73 Amanov I 97 Amonatov 8 6 , 1 2 8 , 1 3 6- 1 3 7 , Anand 1 69 , 1 7 3 , 1 7 6- 1 7 7 Anastasian 73 I 07 Andreasen Andriasyan 3 8 , 43, 74, 1 24, 1 2 7 , 1 3 0- 1 3 1 , 1 3 3 , 1 3 7 - 1 3 8 , 1 42 , 1 7 7 , 1 7 9 , 1 83 , 187, 1 9 1 , 1 95 , 1 9 7 - 1 9 8 , 20 1 , 2 1 6 1 58 Anisimov 24 Antipov 50 Apryshko 116 Arancibia Guzman Areschenko 1 6 , 3 0 , 5 1 , 8 0 , 1 1 5 , 1 3 6 , 1 6 8 , 1 74, 1 7 9 , 206 76 Armanda 111 Arnason 1 30 Arslanov 141 Ashwin 1 7 1 , 1 79 Asrian 90, 1 32, 1 90 Aveskulov 1 6, 2 5 Azarov B

Babula Backlund Bakre Balogh

91 1 87 1 32 1 38

Banikas 1 04 36 Baron Bej tovic 76 Berbatov 80 79 Berndt 5 6 , 1 68 Bezgodov 97 Biriukov Blanco Gramajo 22 Bok 36 Bologan I 5 7 , I 7 0 , I 7 5 , 1 84 Boruchovsky 20 I Bosch 107 Brandenburg 5I 25 Brinck Claussen Brkic 36, 62, 13 7 - 1 38, 1 45 , 1 9 3 30 Bromberger I 70 Bruzon Batista Bu Xiangzhi 1 1 1 , 1 2 3 , 1 3 0 , 1 3 6 , 1 3 8 , 1 7 2- 1 7 3 Bushill 1 06 c

Carlsen Carlsson Cernousek Cheparinov Chernobay Claros Egea Coleman Colovic Cossin Csiba Czakon Czarnota

1 35 - 1 36, 1 68 3 8 , 48, 5 3 58 77, 1 1 5 1 85 48, 5 3 1 00, 1 05 - 1 06 203 132 1 22 83 1 26

D

Damaso Darrin Dauletova De Firmian De Jongh Deepan Degraeve Del Rio Angelis Delchev

111 24, 9 6 98 48, 7 3 1 26 206 1 08 27 95

75 Dembo I 03 Dgebuadze Dominguez Perez 9 9- 1 0 0 , 1 48 , 1 6 8 , 202-203 Donchenko 96 217 Drozdowski 50 Duistermaat 1 56 Durarbeyli Dvoirys 84, 1 2 7 , 1 60 , 1 6 8, 1 98 , 206 E

EQUINOX Eames Eberth Edvardsen Efimenko Ehlvest Eklund Elent Eliseev Emelin Enklaar Eriksson Ermenkov Ernst

1 32 1 05 1 14 72 1 97 84, I 03 90 22 1 50 1 77 1 85 48 1 14 26

F

1 84 Fedorchuk Fedorov 1 1 3 , 1 83 117 Feletar 1 68 , 1 94 Felgaer 58 Fercec 177 Fernandez Garcia 22 Figlio 204 Filipenko 15, 17 Fischer 37 Forsaa 157 Freitag 95, 1 0 1 , 219 Ftacnik Fuderer 26 G

Gabuzyan Gallegos Ganguly

50, 2 1 5 1 02, 1 05 1 73

249

Winning w i t h t h e N a j d o r f S i c i l i an 43 , S O Gao Rui Gashimov S l , S 7- S 9 , 6 2 , 64 S2, 97 Gavrikov Gdanski 73 Gelfand 1 00 , 1 0 2 , 1 09- 1 1 1 , 1 1 6 , 1 3 S , 1 68 , 1 7 8 , 2 0 0 , 202 1 7 , 2S, 1 08 Georgiev,Kir 116 Georgiev,Kr 202 Ghaem Maghami 1S3 Gharamian 16 Gheorghiu 1 6, 1 32 Giri 101 Gobet 43 Goh Weiming 84, 96-97 Golubev 90 Goncharov 93. 1 63 Gopal l SO Grigoryan Grischuk 1 7 , S 7- S 9 , 64, l S l , 1 62 , 1 9 7 1 08 Guidarelli 1 03 Gurevich,V S8 Guseinov 117 Gutman Gunther 80 H

1 08, 2 1 8 HIARCS 1 13 Hamdouchi 1 94 Hansen,SuBe 217 Havlikova 191 Hayrapetian 181 Hebert 1 14 Herczeg 1 89 Hjartarson 2S Holst S2 Horrocks Hort so 1 78 Horvath.] Hou Yifan 3 9 , 9 8 , 1 3 1 , 1 69 , 1 78, 1 83 , 1 9 7 Hovhannisyan 2 0 , 1 7 7 , 1 9 7 218 Howell 9S Hiinerkopf I

Idani Ikonomopoulou Inarkiev Iruzubieta Villaluenga

250

1 23 l lS 1 4S 94

79 Istratescu 1 00 Iturrizaga Bonelli 7 3 , 8 6 , 93 , Ivanchuk 1 0 7 - 1 0 8. 1 1 1 . 1 3 4- 1 3 s . 1 4 1 , 1 7 8- 1 7 9 212 Ivanov J Jadoul Jakubiec Jaracz Jasnikowski Jedlicka Jobava Ju Wenjun 3 0 ,

so.

42 211 96, 1 1 3 73 86 171 1 69 , 1 9 7

K

123 216 1 87 200, 202 90 Karhunen Karjakin 1 7 , 6 2 , 1 04, 1 3 S , l S l , 1 62 , 1 6 8 , 1 7 0 , 1 7 4, 1 7 8 , 1 99 , 204-20S 1 7S - 1 76, 1 79 Karpov Kasimdzhanov l S , 204-20S Kasparov 1 7 , 2 S , S 3 , 6 S , 7 S , 7 7 , 8 8 , 1 0 2 , 1 09- 1 1 0 , 1 29 , 1 7 3 Kempinski 9 6 , 1 3 8 , 1 89 - 1 9 0 , 1 96 26 Keres 134 Khairullin 1 72 Khalifman 210 Khismatullin 1 87 Kindermann so Kiran 36 Kiuttu 1 63 Klein 83 Klima 121 Kobalia l l S- 1 1 6 Kobese Sl Kodentsov s 1 , 203 Kokarev 96 Konguvel 1 70 Korbut 1 S8 Kornev 22 Korosec 19 Kortchnoi

Kadric Kalashian Kaminski Kamsky 6 7 , 1 3 S , 1 9 6 ,

39 37, 1 3 1 1 7, 30 S8 1 68 Sl 76 1 79 63 1 29 97 S2 200, 2 1 9 96 212 63, 80 1 34 71 1 68

Kosintseva,N Kosintseva, T Kosteniuk Kotanjian Kozlitin Kozlowicz Kozul Kramnik Krivoborodov Kroeze Kruppa Krush Kryvoruchko Kudrin Kupreichik Kurnosov Kurukin Kuzubov Kiilaots L

Lambert !'Ami Sl, Las tin Lautier Lazic Le Quang Liem Lefebvre Leitao 1 3S-1 36, Leko Li Chao Li Shilong Lie Likavsky Lintchevski Liu Guanchu Ljubojevic Loginov Lopez Martinez Lu Yijie Lupulescu Luther Lutz

97 72 1 60 , 2 1 0 1 7 8 , 202 89 93 80 1 34 1 43 , 1 74 1 4 1 , 1 90 1 93 l lS 7S 1 33 1 42 67 1 72 203, 2 1 S 43 1 83 1 7, 2S 1 7S

M

Magnusson MakoIi Mallahi Mamedov,N Mamedov,R Mamedyarov

2S 1 7S 187 S7 2S, 37, S8 1 10

Index o f P l a yers Mamikonian Marcks Marcotulli Marjanovic Markgraf Markovic Matikozian Matlakov Mecking Melkumyan Micheli Michiels Minasian Minic Morozevich Motylev Moulin Movsesian Movsziszian Mozharov Mukhutdinov Myakutin

101 213

Onischuk,A Onischuk,V

1 90 1 2 1 , 1 68

SI SI

p

1 29

PAKman Palac

91

24 62, 80 , 1 0 9 , 1 1 7 ,

1 02 1 70 16 1 34 206 1 1 1 1 02 , 1 0 7 19 1 1 0, 1 32 , 1 S 2 36 96 203, 2 1 6 1 00 1 34 1 0 6, 2 1 2 Sl

1 93

Palkovi Palliser Panarin Pap Papaioannou Papp Paulet Petr Petrik Petrosian,D Petrosian,TL Petrov Pigusov Platonov Folgar I S , 9 9 ,

2S 36 1 73

so I S6 77 !IS IS7 1 22 , I 3 6 1 23 , 1 3S , 1 3 8 1 2 6 , 1 3 6- 1 3 7 1 83 16 1 28, 1 3 1 , 1 3 7 ,

Naer

S6, 9 7 , 1 3 1 , 142, 1 S 8, 171

94 Nagy 1 7 8 , 2 1 S -2 1 6 Naiditsch 1 7S Najdorf 2 1 , 92, 2 1 0 Nakamura S3 Nakamura,T 107 Nalbandian 1 3 3 , 1 74 Naroditsky S1 Nataf Negi 71 Nepomniachtchi 63, 1 3 1 , 1 7 4, 2 0 S , 2 1 0

Nestorovic Nezhmetdinov Nijboer Nikolov Nisipeanu

212 14 ! S3 9S, 1 3 2 3 1 , 1 0 0 , 1 04 , 1 70

Novikov Nunn Nyzhnyk

21 4 2 , S 3 , 9 S , 1 84 126

0

Oakley Olsson Olszewski

S2 206 2IS

Polgar,Zsu Polugaevsky Ponomariov Portisch I 6,

Shmuter Shneider Short

I 76

S3 3 7 , S 7 , 1 23 1 83 1 77 SI 80 1 73 ! 8S 14 36 I S8 116 S 2 , 9 2 , 1 74 132 77 1 89 1 4 1 , I S i , 1 68 ,

l 7S 19 I 06

1 7 , 7 S , 7 7 , 8 8 , 1 03 , 1 29, 1 73 , 1 78, 202

SI I 07

1 32

1 70,

1 78

1 70

N

s

SHREDDER Safarian Safarli Saigin Sakaev Sambuev Sandipan Saravanan Savchenko Scherbakov,V Schut Sebag Seretakis Shabalov Shaposhnikov Sharbaf Sherzer Shirov 1 3 S ,

Shytaj Sjugirov

I S7 1 23 , 1 36, 1 38,

I 1 4, I I 7 , I 8 I ,

206

1 84

7 6, 1 6 8 Smeets 18S Smejkal 7 S , I S4 Smirnov 1 1 1 Sokolov,A 1 04 Solak 49 Solodovnichenko Sophistry 24 IS, 17 Spassky 21S Spoelman 86 Stehno 1 72 Stellwagen 2S Strati! 1 09 Stupavski 116 Suba 1 73 Suetin IS2 Sukandar 36, 38, 78 Sutovsky Svidler I 3 6 , 1 4 3 , I S 8 , I 7 0 ,

Post! Predojevic Prentos Pyha!a Q Quinteros

187 138 7S S2

16

R

REBEL RYBKA Radjabov Ramnath Repkova Robson Rodriguez Cespedes Rodshtein Rogers Rohit Rotstein Rowson Rublevsky Rytshagov

1 08 218 S 7 , 1 68 80 80 48 26, I 0 2 20 I

197

1 89 101

Swiercz

216

213 S7 78, 1 1 1 219

T

Tai Tatar Kis

I S- 1 6 , 1 8 3 , 1 8 S 7S

251

Winning w i t h t h e N a j d o r f S i c i l i an Tella Ter Sahakyan

52

1 62 - 1 6 3 , 20 1 , 204

Timman Timofeev

40 1 3 0- 1 3 1 , 1 99 , 210

Timoshenko Tischbierek Tisdall Tissir Tiviakov Todorovic Tomczak Tomic Topalov

19 95 1 00 73 157 89 71 74 6 5 , 7 5 , 94, 1 3 4 , 1 48 , 1 6 9 , 1 9 6

Tosic Tukmakov

50 1 85

25, 27, 152,

Wyss

216

v

Vachier-Lagrave

7 1 , 1 1 3,

1 32, 1 38, 1 58, 202

93

2 1 5, 219

Van Wely 6 8 , 1 3 6 , Van der Linde Van der Ploeg Van der Tuuk Van der Wiel Vasquez Schroeder Velasco Velimirovic Vishnu Visser Vitiugov Voboril Vogt Voitsekhovsky 1 6, Volokitin Vydeslaver

1 70, 2 1 8 51

x

Xiu Deshun

Wang Hao Werner Wojtaszek Wojtkiewicz Womacka

1 34, 1 5 0 , 1 5 2

51 40 52, 1 93 1 1 5-1 1 6

y

Yakovenko Yilmaz

1 23, 1 7 1 1 62

88 1 1 6-1 1 7 75 1 63 1 5 4, 1 9 9 211 1 73

z

Zagorskis Zaid Zakhartsov Zhang Pengxiang Zherebukh

203

84 15 49, 1 5 7 1 99 , 2 1 4 1 24 , 1 3 1 , 1 42 , 2 0 4

204 1 3 1 , 1 74

Zhigalko Zhou Zhou Jianchao

w

u

Urkedal

252

Vallejo Pons

2 0 , 1 3 5 , 1 45 ,

7 7 , 200 215 1 36, 1 83 , 214

38 94 3 1 , 1 5 1 , 1 75 189 63

Zinchenko Zivkovic Zolotukhin Zubarev Zubov

197 58 132 1 79, 1 9 7 97

Biography Zaven Andriasian was born on 1 1 March 1 9 8 9 in Erevan. He has been playing chess since the age of five. He was Armenian under- I 0 cham­ pion and went on to win many other Armenian championships at various junior categories. At 1 5 , he became Armenian rapid champion, and he repeated this success the following year. He became an International Master in 2 0 0 5 by winning the B-Group at the Aeroflot Open, and the same year became European under- 1 6 Champion. In 2 0 0 6 , he became European un­ der- 1 8 Champion and World under-2 0 Cham­ pion, the latter success also bringing him the grandmaster title. Since the end of 2 0 0 7 , he has written regularly for New In Chess Yearbook. Starting that same year, he has won many European open tournaments and in 2 0 1 0 he won the Russian Cup. A three-time bronze medallist in the Armenian Champi­ onship ( 2 0 0 9 . 2 0 1 0 . 2 0 1 1 ) , he also won a silver medal in the European Club Cham­ pionship, with the MIKA team. His most recent tournament win came at Groningen 2 0 1 2 .

253

Winning w i t h t h e N a j d o r f S i c i l i an

Bi bl iogra phy Books

The Sicilian Sozin Mikhail Golubev, Gambit 2 0 0 1 Opening for White according to Anand 1 .e4 - Alexander Khalifman, Chess Stars 2 0 1 2 The Complete Najdorf: 6. Bg5 John Nunn, Batsford 1 9 9 6 The Sharpest Sicilian - Kiril Georgiev, Atanas Kolev, Chess Stars 2 0 1 2 The Complete Najdorf- John Nunn, Joe Gallagher, Batsford 1 99 8 -

-

Journals and Magazines Yearbooks 9 7 ( 2 0 1 0) , 9 8 , 9 9 , 1 0 0 , 1 0 1 ( 2 0 1 1 ) , 1 0 2 , 1 0 3 ( 2 0 1 2) , 1 0 6 ( 2 0 1 3) New in Chess Magazine nos. 2 (2 0 1 2) 1 , 2 (20 1 3 ) . Databases Mega Database 2 0 1 3

254

ISBN 9789056914295

. 9

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