More Winning Chess

CHARLES Higgie, who played board four for England 3 at the world senior team 65+ championship in Prague, scored +6=1-2, gaining 36.6 Fide elo.

Here is his last-round game against Karel Šlechta, of Czech club side ŠK Sokol Vyšehrad.

Higgie (1945) - Šlechta (1874)

Sicilian Classical/Dragon

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 d6 6.f3!?

This is fifth-most popular in ChessBase's 2025 Mega database, behind 6.Be3, 6.Be2, 6.Bc4 and especially 6.Bg5.

6...g6 7.Be3 Bg7 8.Bc4!?

This is quite a popular alternative to the mainline 8.Qd2, although lines can easily transpose.

8...a6 9.Qd2 Bd7 10.0-0-0 0-0

Now both sides have castled, how would you assess the position?

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Games with opposite-side castling are often tricky to evaluate, but Stockfish17 and Dragon1 much prefer White.

11.h4 Rc8

The engines suggest 11...b5 or 11...h5!?

12.Bb3 Na5 13.h5 Nc4 14.Bxc4 Rxc4 15.g4 Qa5 16.Nb3 Qd8?!

Almost certainly too passive, but the engines' 16...Qe5 may not be a lot better.

17.hxg6 Rxc3!?

Exchange sacrifices on c3 are thematic in the Sicilian, but here the sac is too late and too ineffective to affect the outcome.

18.gxh7+ Kh8 19.bxc3 Qc7 20.Bh6 Bxh6 21.Rxh6 Bb5 22.Qd4 Qc4 23.g5 1-0

After 23...Qxc4 24.cxd4 Nd7 Black would be the exchange and two pawns down, and without hope of mating chances.

Fiery Dragon

HERE is an exciting and instructive game from Mikhail Botvinnik's One Hundred Selected Games.

Notes in italics are from the book.

Ilya Kan - Mikhail Botvinnik

Moscow 1936

Sicilian Dragon

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 g6 6.Be2 Bg7 7.Be3 Nc6 8.Nb3!?

Am idea deserving serious attention. White has in mind an immediate pawn-attack on the kingside, while Black has no better continuation than 8...Be6 and 9...0-0, as otherwise White will castle short, and then a well-known variation unfavourable to Black will result.

More popular than the text were, and still are, 8.Qd2 and especially 8.0-0. For what it is worth, Stockfish17 very marginally prefers the former, while Dragon1 favours the text.

8...Be6

It is hard to know what Botvinnik's "well-known variation unfavourable to Black" may be. Certainly nothing obvious jumps out from ChessBase's 2024 Mega database.

9.f4 0-0 10.g4!?

How should Black meet White's pawn-storm?

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10...Na5?!

In reply to White's flank attack, Black should have undertaken an active counterattack in the centre by 10...d5! Now White's attack grows dangerous.

The text is by far the commonest continuation in Mega24, but is strongly disliked by Stockfish17 and Dragon1. They suggest 10...Rc8 or 10...a5, but reckon Botvinnik's recommendation is a mistake thanks to the reply 11.f5. This was played later the same year at Nottingham in the game Alexander Alekhine - Botvinnik, which continued 11...Bc8!? 12.exd5 Nb4, after which the engines reckon 13.Bf3 gives White the upper hand, as subsequent games seemed to show.

11.g5 Ne8

This is unquestionably better than 11...Nd7 as afterwards the knight can occupy g7, where it is useful for defence.

The latter move is almost five times more popular in Mega24, and is the top choice of Stockfish17, whereas Dragon1 agrees with Botvinnik's assessment.

12.Qd2

White determines the queen's position prematurely. The correct move is 12.Bd4 at once, as [Jan] Foltys played against [Erich] Eliskases (Poděbrady, Czechoslovakia, 1936).

The engines marginally prefer Kan's move.

12...Rc8!?

Sacrificing the a7 pawn. White refuses the sacrifice, for after 13...Bc4 it would lose several important tempi and relinquish the initiative to Black.

The engines agree 13.Bxa7? is a mistake, but reckon the correct reply is 13...Bxc3!? 14.bxc3 Nc4 or the immediate 13..Nc4. The problem with 13...Bc4, according to them, is the simple 14.Bd4, when they reckon White is at least equal.

13.Bd4 Nc4

Stronger is 13...Bc4, eg 14.0-0-0 is followed by 14...Bxe2 15.Nxe2 (or 15.Qxe2) Nc4, and the knight's strong position gives Black opportunities of counterattack.

The engines prefer the text, but agree with Botvinnik's analysis of his main variation, with the major exception that they reckon meeting 15.Qxe2 with ...Nc4 gives White a winning attack starting with 16.h4. Instead they recommend 15...e5!?, claiming complete equality.

14.Bxc4 Rxc4 15.0-0-0 Qd7 16.Qd3 Rc8!?

After this passive move the initiative passes to White. Black should have continued 16...b5 with an approximately equal game.

The engines agree 16...b5 is a little better, but reckon White anyway has an edge.

17.h4 Bg4

Black must prevent the opening of the h file.

18.Rd2

Retreat to e1 would be more exact. The rook's position on the same diagonal as the king provides Black with combinative possibilities.

18...b6?!

Botvinnik does not comment on this defensive move, but it seems a serious mistake. The engines give 18...f5, albeit awarding White a slight edge.

19.Nd5

If 19.Bxg7 then 19...Nxg7 20.Nd5 Be6 21.Nd4 Rc5, and Black has fully equal play.

The engines prefer 19.Bxg7, their point being to meet 19...Nxg7 with 20.Rg1!?, eg 20...f5 21.e5 Rfd8 22.Qd5+ Qe6 23.Nd4!? Qxd5 24.Nxd5, claiming White has the upper hand.

19...e5

With passive play Black would be slowly asphyxiated after f5.

20.Bc3

Apparently 20.f5 is also without danger to Black, because of 20...exd4 21.f6 Nxf6 22.gxf6 Bh6 23.Ne7+ Kh8 24.Nxc8 Rxc8.

The engines agree with the assessment of the result of that line, but reckon sacrificing the exchange with 23.Kb1!? Bxd2 24.Qxd2 gives White a slight edge.

20...f5?!

The engines reckon Black needed to play 20...Nc7 or possibly 20...f6.

Position after 20...f5?!

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An extremely sharp and complex position has arisen. To 21.fxe5 Black can simply reply 21...dxe5.

The engines continue 22.Qa6! with what seems a winning advantage as Black has apparently unsolvable problems saving his queen without losing material, eg 22...Nd6 23.Bb4 Rcd8 24.Qa3! Nc4 25.Ne7+ Qxe7 (or 25...Kf7 26.Rxd7 Nxa3 27.Rb7! etc) 26.Bxe7 Nxa3 27.Rxd8, winning the exchange.

Possibly strongest of all now for White is 21.exf5 Bxf5 22.Qe2, and White preserves his knight at d5. The continuation White chooses gives the advantage to Black.

21.gxf6?! Nxf6 22.Nxf6+ Rxf6 23.Qd5+?

Nothing in 23.fxe5 Rf3 24.Qd5+ Be6 25.Qxd6 Bh6 26.Nd4 Rh3!, and White does not get adequate compensation for the exchange.

The engines reckon this line gives White full compensation.

23...Rf7!

The move that decides the game! If now 24.Qxd6 then 24...Qxd6 25.Rxd6 exf4, or 24.fxe5 Be6 25.Qxd6 Bh6, and White is in a bad way.

Now White makes a pawn sacrifice, which gives him nothing and only speeds up his loss.

24.h5 gxh5 25.Rg1

In sacrificing the pawn White evidently overlooked that after 25.fxe5 dxe5 26.Qxd7 Bxd7 27.Rxh5 Rf1+ 28.Rd1 Rxd1 29.Kxd1 Bg4+ he is a rook down.

25...Qc6 26.fxe5 dxe5!?

The strong passed h pawn secures Black the win. So there is no sense in complicating the game by winning the exchange at the price of laying bare his king's position.

In other words, Botvinnik is saying that 26...Bh6, while it may be objectively stronger, as the engines agree, increases the chances of Black going wrong.

27.Qxc6 Rxc6 28.Rd5 Rcf6 29.Nd2

The continuation 29.Bxe5 leads to loss of material because of 29...Rf1+ 30.Rxf1 Rxf1+ 31.Kd2 Rd1+.

29...Bh6 30.b3 Rf2 31.Kb2

31.Rxe5 does not save the game because of 31...Rh2 ( to defend the h5 pawn), followed by 32...Rff2.

31...Re2?

Botvinnik does not comment on this. It seems both players missed that this throws away Black's advantage, which would remain more-or-less decisive, according to the engines, after 31...Bg5 or 31...b5.

32.Nc4 Rff2 33.Rd8+ Bf8

The engines slightly prefer moving the king, or 33...Rf8.

How should White continue?

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34.b4?

White's game is lost, but even so he should have chosen 34.Rc8, although here also the advance of the h pawn is decisive.

The engines reckon 34.Rc8?? is even worse than the text, but that 34.Kb1 gives complete equality, and 34.Be1! may even lead a to a tiny edge, eg 34...Rxc2+ 35.Kb1 Rxc4! (moving the f2 rook along White's second rank allows 36.Rf1) 36.bxc4.

34...Rxc2+ 35.Kb3 Rg2 36.Rf1?

Better are 36.Rxg2 and 36.Bxe5!

36...Rcf2 37.Rxf2 Rxf2 38.Nxe5 Be6+ 39.Ka4 Rxa2+ 40.Kb5 Rc2 41.Rd3 h4 42.Bd4 Bg7 43.Ra3 h3 44.Rxa7 h2 45.Ra8+ Bc8 46.Ra1 Bh3 47.Nf3 Bxd4 48.Nxd4 Rf2 0-1

Beat The ... Dragon

HERE is a post I wrote but did not publish during Lockdown.

IN this series I am looking at the statistically best way to play against popular opening lines.

The numbers are drawn from the 2021 edition of ChessBase's Mega database, ignoring, where possible, those results that include very few games and so are statistically insignificant.

The Sicilian Dragon: 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 g6 is one of the commonest opening sequences in chess.

Of those continuations featuring more than 3,000 times in Mega21, the most-popular, 6.Be3, scores a respectable 56%, but this is eclipsed by the 58% of 6.f4!?

Position after 6.f4!?

Black has three popular replies.

A) 6...Nc6 (1,599 games)

After 7.Nf3!? Bg7 8.Bd3 0-0 9.0-0 the line splits.

A1 9...a6 10.Kh1 b5 11.Qe1 scores 60% for White, albeit from a small sample.

A2 9...Bg4 10.h3 Bxf3 11.Qxf3 scores 70% for White, albeit from a small sample.

A3 9...b5!? 10.Nxb5!? Qb6+ 11.Kh1 Nxe4!? 12.Nxa7 scores 100% for White, albeit from a small sample.

A4 9...Bd7 10.Kh1!? scores 67% for White, albeit from a small sample.

B) 6...Bg7 (1,064 games)

After 7.e5!? the line splits.

B1 7...dxe5 8.fxe5, after which the line splits again.

B1.1 8...Ng4? 9.Bb5+, when B1.1a 9...Kf8 10.Ne6+! scores 100% for White (there are 135 examples of this trap in Mega21), B1.1b 9...Nc6 10.Nxc6 Qxd1+ 11.Nxd1 a6 12.Ba4 Bd7 13.h3 scores 81% for White, albeit from a small sample, and B1.1c 9... Bd7 10.Qxg4 scores 85% for White.

B1.2 8...Nd5? 9.Bb5+, when B1.2a 9...Kf8 10.0-0 Bxe5 11.Nxd5 Qxd5 12.Bh6+ Kg8 13.Nd5 Qc5+ (12...Qxc5? 13.Nxe7#) 14.Be3 Qc7 15.Nh6+ leads to mate in one,  and B1.2b 9...Bd7 10.Nxd5 scores 100% for White, albeit from a small sample.

B1.3 8...Nfd7 9.e6, when B1.3a 9...Ne5!? 10.Bb5+ Nbc6 11.exf7+ Kxf7 12.0-0 Bf6 13.Nxc6 bxc6 reaches a position where White scores 75% with both 14.Ba4 and 14.Qxd8, albeit from small samples, and B1.3b 9...fxe6 10.Nxe6 Bxc3+ 11.bxc3 Qa5 12.Qd4!? Nf6 13.Bb5+ scores 75% for White, albeit from a small sample.

B2 7...Nh5 8.Bb5+ Bd7 9.Qe2!? scores 67% for White, albeit from a small sample.

 

C) 6...Nbd7 (335 games)

After 7.Nf3!? the line splits.

C1 7...Bg7 8.Bc4!? scores 67% for White, albeit from a small sample.

C2 7...Qc7!? occurs just 17 times in Mega21. The analysis engines Stockfish13 and Komodo12.1.1 reckon White already has a large advantage after the simple 8.Qd4.

Bobby Fischer v The Sicilian (part three)

Sicilian Dragon

Fischer always met 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 g6 with the main move 6.Be3, to which Black nearly always replies 6...Bg7 (the tempting, to the uninitiated, 6...Ng4? loses substantial material to 7.Bb5+, eg 7...Nc6 8.Nxc6 bxc6 9.Bxc6+ etc or 7...Bd7 8.Qxg4).

Games usually continue 7.f3 Nc6 8.Qd2 0-0 (the precise order of Black's moves can vary) and Fischer always played 9.Bc4, reaching a main Sicilian tabiya.

There are more than 22,000 games with this position in ChessBase's 2020 Mega database

Black plays 9...Bd7

This is easily the most-popular move in Mega20.White usually replies 10.0-0-0, but Fischer had other ideas and played 10.h4!?

A) 10...Rc8 11.Bb3 Qa5!? (the main line today runs 11...h5 12.0-0-0 Ne5 13.Bg5 Rc5 14.Kb1 b5 15.g4 with a position from which White has scored heavily, although my main analysis engines Stockfish12 and Komodo11.01 reckon the position is unclear) 12.0-0-0 Nh5?! (the main line goes 12...Ne5 13.Kb1 Nc4 14.Bxc4 Rxc4 15.Nb3 with what the engines reckon is a very good position for White) 13.g4 Nxd4 14.Bxd4 Bxd4 15.Qxd4. White had a large advantage in Fischer - Heinz Matthai, Canadian Open (Montreal) 1956 (but ½–½, 108 moves).

B) 10...a6!? (a little-played move that is quite liked by the engines) 11.Bb3 Na5 12.Bh6 e5 13.Nde2 Nxb3 14.axb3 Bxh6 15.Qxh6 with a large advantage for White in Fischer - Tibor Weinberger, North Central Open (Milwaukee) 1957 (1-0, 35 moves) and subsequent games.

C) 10...h5. This was not faced by Fischer but has been played by Carlsen and Kasparov. The main line continues 11.0-0-0 Rc8 when 12.Bb3 transposes to the first note in A), but the engines like the little-seen 12.Nxc6!? Bxc6 13.Bb3 with an edge for White.

Black plays 9...Nd7!?

This anticipation of long castling by White is Black's second-most popular move in Mega20.

Fischer accepted the challenge with 10.0-0-0 Nb6 11.Bb3 Na5 12.Qd3 Bd7 13.h4 Rc8 14.h5 Nbc4 15.hxg6 in Fischer - Sharav Purevzhav, Olympiad (Varna, Bulgaria) 1962. This is still the main line today.

A) 15...hxg6?! (this has been played by strong grandmasters, but is probably a mistake) 16.Bg5!? (the engines reckon this is even stronger than the more-popular 16.Bh6) Nxb3+ 17.cxb3! Qa5 18.Bxe7 (if 18.bxc4?! then 18...Qxg5+) Ne5 19.Qc2 with a winning advantage, according to the engines, as in Tom Wedberg - Gennadi Sosonko, Haninge (Sweden) 1988, and other games. They suggest Black can slightly improve with 17...Ne5 18.Qd2 f6 but reckon White has a winning attack anyway after 19.Bh6 Nf7 20.Be3.

B) 15...fxg6 16.Bg5 Nxb3 17.cxb3! Ne5 18.Qd2 Nf7 19.Be3. This line is not so very different from the last line in A). Stockfish12 reckons White is again close to winning, but Komodo11.01 rates White's edge as quite a bit smaller.

Black plays 9...a6

This was popular in Fischer's day but has fallen from favour. The main reply is 10.0-0-0.

A) 10...Qc7 (this is still Black's commonest move) 11.Bb3 b5? (this popular move already loses: the engines prefer the mainline 11...Na5 12.h4 Nxb3+ 13.axb3 but reckon White is much better) 12.Nxc6 Qxc6 13.Nd5! with a winning advantage in Fischer - Edward Stepans*, US Open (Cleveland) 1957 (1-0, 25 moves) and other games.

B) 10...Ne5 11.Bb3 b5 12.h4 gave White the better game - much better, according to Stockfish12 - in Fischer - TC Hartwell, Simul (Ogden, Utah) 1964 (1-0, 42 moves).

C) 10...Bd7. This quiet developing move, second in popularity to 10...Qc7, was not faced by Fischer. The main line runs 11.h4 b5 12.Bb3 Na5 13.h5 Nxb3+ 14.axb3, which the engines reckon is good for White (positionally winning, according to Stockfish12).

Black plays 9...Nxd4

An exchange of knights on d4 is a common motif in the Sicilian, where Black has less space in which to find good places for his pieces.

After 10.Bxd4 the main idea is to develop the queen's bishop, viz 10...Be6, and so immediately challenge what can be thought of as White's Fischer bishop.

Fischer only faced this line once, but it was in an important game.

Fischer - Bent Larsen

Interzonal (Portorož, Yugoslavia) 1958

11.Bb3

Dropping the bishop back, rather than exchanging on e6, is still the main line today.

11...Qa5 12.0-0-0 b5!?

The engines prefer this to the more-popular 12...Rfc8.

13.Kb1 b4 14.Nd5!

An improvement over 14.Ne2 Bxb3 15.cxb3 Rfd8 with approximate equality in Vasily Panov - Alexey Suetin, USSR U21 Semi-Finals (Vilnius) 1953 (½–½, 24 moves).

14...Bxd5

White has the upper hand after 14...Nxd5?! 15.Bxg7 Nc3+ 16.bxc3 Kxg7 17.cxb4.

15.Bxd5!?

This might not be best. Fischer may have feared his light-square bishop would become something of a dead piece after 15.exd5, but later games, including Tal - Larsen, Zürich 1959, suggest this is not the case.

15...Rac8!?

Most later games continued 15...Nxd5 16.Bxg7 Nc3+ 17.Bxc3 bxc3 18.Qxc3 Qxc3 19.bxc3, when White's extra pawn is largely meaningless.

16.Bb3 Rc7 17.h4 Qb5

As often happens in Sicilians with opposite-side castling, the game becomes a race to get at the opponent's king.

18.h5! Rfc8

Not 18...Nxh5?? 19.Bxg7 Kxg7 20.g4 etc.

19.hxg6 hxg6 20.g4 a5 21.g5 Nh5

Not 21...Ne8?? 22.Bxg7 Nxg7 23.Rh6 etc.

22.Rxh5!

Sacing the exchange in this way has become routine in the Sicilian, but it still needs to be precisely calculated.

22...gxh5?

Black is busted after this.

The engines give best-play as 22...Bxd4 23.Rh6 Bg7 24.Qf4! Bxh6 25.Qxf7+ Kh8 26.gxh6 Qe5 27.Qxg6, when White's two pawns and safer king seem to give more than enough compensation for the exchange.

In this line Black can offer a counter exchange-sac with 24...Rc4!? but it seems to fail to 25.Bxc4 Rxc4 26.Rh7!! Qc5 (best, according to the engines, as 26...Kxh7?? loses to 27.Qxf7 and 28.Rh1+ ) 27.Qh2 (not 27.Rh2?? Be5) Qxg5 28.b3, when Black does not have enough compensation.

23.g6 e5 24.gxf7+ Kf8 25.Bde3 d5

This is best, but hopeless, according to the engines. The point is that defending the d pawn by 25...Rc6 runs into 26.Bh6 with a huge attack against the black king.

The game finished:

26.exd5 Rxf7 27.d6 Rf6 28.Bg5 Qb7 29.Bxf6 Bxf6 30.d7 Rd8 31.Qd6+ 1-0

Black plays 9...a5!?

This speciality of Donald Byrne is still occasionally seen at elite levels. The main idea is to accelerate Black's queenside counterplay, but there is also a trap White can easily fall into.

10.h4 Ne5 11.Be2

Not 11.Bb3? a4! 12.Bxa4 (or 12.Nxa4?! Rxa4! 13.Bxa4 Nc4 14.Qc3 Nxe3 15.Qxe3 Qa5+ 16.c3 Qa4, when Black has won two bishops for rook and pawn) Nc4 13.Qc1 d5, when Black has great play for a pawn.

11...d5

This position was reached in several games, including Fischer - Donald Byrne, Western Open (Bay City, Michigan) 1963. That game continued 12.Bf4?! Nc4? 13.Bxc4 dxc4 14.0-0-0, when White was much better, according to the engines, and went on to win. However 12...Nc6 seems a big improvement.

The engines much prefer 12.exd5 Nxd5 13.0-0-0 with advantage to White, but Black is still in the game.

*Sometimes given, for example in Mega20, as Stephans.