| What is the opening of choice for chess grandmasters
in meeting 1.e4 players? Of course, it is the Sicilian Defense 1...c5.
The reason is this opening produces sharp chess, where the value of every
move is heightened, punishing the imprecise and the unwary. There is more
chess opening literature about the Sicilian defense than any other opening.
There are many Sicilian variations, but the most complicated, and the favorite
of both Kasparov and Fischer, is the Nadjorf Variation. I used to play
the Nadjorf back in the sixties, but switched to the Scheveningen defense
in the mid-seventies, and played it for the better part of the quarter-century
afterwards. |
| The Scheveningen Defense is characterized by black
pawns on e6 and d6. Black has several routes to reach this formation. My
favored choice has usually been (after 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3) to play 2…e6 3.d4
cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 d6. This move-order, or its twin 2…d6 and 5…e6, gives
up black control over the g4 square rather early, enabling white to play
the dreaded Keres Attack, 6.g4. Therefore, many Scheveningen players prefer
the Nadjorf order of 2…d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6, intending to reach
the characteristic “small center” formation by playing e6 only at the sixth
turn. This is the preferred method of the greatest chessplayer of all time,
the ex-World Champion Gary Kasparov. |
| There is only one major drawback to the Nadjorf
route to the Scheveningen; the sharp white move 6.Bg5. If black already
has the move e6 in, Bg5 is an innocuous system, because black can simply
break the pin by Be7. But in the Najdorf move-order, 6.Bg5 is a heavyweight
move. Black normally replies 6…e6, so the Nf6 is pinned for the moment.
Now, after white’s nearly automatic 7.f4, the road splits into several
paths. The move 7…Be7 is usually considered the main line, but these days
the sharp attempt to grab a pawn with 7…Qb6, the Poisoned Pawn Variation,
is black’s most frequent choice at the highest levels. |
| A few months ago, I read an interesting theoretical
article in the Dutch publication “New in Chess” about an important innovation
for black in the super-sharp Polugaevsky Variation, inaugurated with 7…b5.
The Polugaevsky has always been considered a bit dubious by theory. I studied
the Polugaevsky intensely, but eventually came to the conclusion that theory’s
conclusion was indeed correct, even though the reasoning used was not.
Even so, I acquired a taste for these early b5 lines, because black is
counter-punching right away against the queenside castling lines of white.
There is a related variation with 7…Nbd7 that is very interesting, where
black prepares the b5 advance. I found that theory has not crystallized
on this line, and it is still played by top players. After a couple of
months of intense study, I decided to use the Nadjorf move-order in the
2001 Chicago Cup Memorial Day weekend tournament. Here is what happened. |
| In the second round of the tournament, I had black
against a 2000-rated player. He played the 6.Bg5 line against my Nadjorf,
which continued 6…e6 7.f4 Nbd7 8.Qf3 Qc7 9.0-0-0 b5, reaching the jumping-off
point in the 7…Nbd7 line where each side has major decisions to make. My
opponent chose 10.Bd3, the solid positional move. (The sacrifices 10.e5
and 10.Bxb5 are both important lines, likely leading to a draw if both
sides wend their way through the maze with best moves. The Michigan master
Vasik Rajlich, now living in Budapest, has played a couple of recent games
on the cutting edge of the latest theory, scoring 1.5 points in two games
with 10.e5 against strong players.) |
| My game against 10.Bd3 now went 10…Be7 11.Rhe1 Bb7,
transposing to a line in the 7…Be7 variation where black can pat himself
on the back for getting there without having to face the powerful g4 move.
Yet a lot of fierce chess lies ahead in this essentially even position. |
Even with the benefit of my huge openings library,
I am not sure at this moment what the best move for white is here. He can
play 12.Nd5?!, but that is probably too bold. The most popular move is
12.Qg3. My opponent played 12.Qh3!?, which has also seen a number of outings.
Here is a diagram of this position:
Position after 12.Qh3
|
| Up to this point I had followed my pregame analysis,
and knew my position was reasonable, but had to play the rest by instinct
and calculation rather than memory. I chose 12…0-0-0, removing my king
from the center. This turned out to be the most popular move for black
here, but it is probably not the best. White can reply to it with 13.a3,
a good choice positionally once black has castled queenside, because then
black can no longer take advantage of the weakness on a3 by an attack on
the b-file. |
However, my opponent had his own ideas. He sacrificed
a piece for two pawns with 13.Bxb5?! axb5 14.N4xb5. Now I must remove my
queen from c7. I chose 14…Qb6? My analysis a week after the game with IM
Jack Peters showed that my opponent’s sac was unsound, and could have been
refuted with 14…Qc5! and a black edge. However, after my error, a position
arose of great interest, showcasing the volatility of positions in the
6.Bg5 Nadjorf. After 14…Qb6?, my opponent ripped me open with 15.e5! dxe5
16.fxe5, reaching this position:
Position after 15.fxe5
|
| Here, I realized that my intended 15…Nd5? flat loses
to 16.Bxe7 Nxe7 17.Nd6+ Kb8 18.Nxf7, winning the exchange and ripping through
my position. So I thought there was no way to put up a fight –– until carefully
examining 15…Nxe5 giving back the piece. Black is down a pawn, but there
is still a lot of play left. So our game went 15…Nxe5 16.Rxe5 Rxd1 17.Nxd1
Nd7, and white has many choices. If he makes perfect moves, he gets an
advantage. But he will lose the exchange for another pawn, so still has
to play chess. My opponent actually continued 18.Qc3+ Bc5 19.Rxc5 Qxc5
20.Qxg7 Rf8 21.N5c3 Be4!, and I had an even position, which I went on to
win. |
| How do I view my first try at the Nadjorf in a quarter-century?
One can at least say that I had the opportunity to play the kind of sharp
active game that I like. On the other hand, there is no telling how many
months –– years –– of preparation are needed for me to feel completely
comfortable in the line. But really, that is a chess decision we all face
with black. Either try the solid Karpov approach of playing boring positions
that do not offer much by way of winning chances, or the aggressive Kasparov
approach of taking a serious risk going after the full point. For an amateur
like myself, playing only for pleasure, the choice is easy. Take a chance
and go for the throat. |
|
