CHESS DEVELOPMENTS

CHESS DEVELOPMENTSthe Sicilian DragonDAVID VIGORITOEVERYMAN CHESSwww.everymanchess.com

First published in 2011 by Gloucester Publishers pic (formerly Everyman Publisherspic), Northburgh House, 10 Northburgh Street, London EC1V OATCopyright 2011 David VigoritoThe right of David Vigorito to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyrights, Designs and Patents Act 1988.All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in aretrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic,electrostatic, magnetic tape, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without priorpermission of the publisher.British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication DataA catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.ISBN: 978 1 85744 675 3Distributed in North America by The Globe Pequot Press, P.O Box 480,246 Goose Lane, Guilford, CT 06437-0480.All other sales enquiries should be directed to Everyman Chess, Northburgh House,10 Northburgh Street, London EC1V OATtel: 020 72S3 7887 fax: 020 7490 3708email: info@everymanchess.com; website: www.everymanchess.comEveryman is the registered trade mark of Random House Inc. and is used in thiswork under licence from Random House Inc.For Heather and ZoeEveryman Chess SeriesChief advisor: Byron JacobsCommissioning editor: John EmmsAssistant editor: Richard PalliserTypeset and edited by First Rank Publishing, Brighton.Cover design by Horatio Monteverde.Printed and bound in Great Britain by Clays, Bungay, Suffolk.

ContentsBibliography4Introduction5Part I: 9 BC4 Bd771 Soltis Variation: 100-0-0 Rc8 11 Bb3 NeS 12 h4 hS92 Modern Variation: 100-0-0 Rc8 11 Bb3 Nes 12 Kb1583 Topalov Variation: 100-0-0 Rc8 11 Bb3 Nxd4894 Chinese Variation: 100-0-0 Rb81165 Accelerated Variation: 10 Bb3 Nxd4 11 Bxd4 bS141Part II: 9 0-0-0 and 9 g41656 90-0-0 dS 10 exds1677 9 0-0-0 d 5 10 Qe12068 90-0-0 dS 10 Kb12259 90-0-0 Nxd4 and 9 . Bd725510 9 g4288Index of Variations309Index of Complete Games318

BibliographyBooksDismantling the Sicilian, Jesus de la Villa (New in Chess 2009)Easy Guide to the Dragon, Mikhail Golubev (Everyman Chess 1999)Experts vs. the Sicilian, Jacob Aagaard & John Shaw (editors - Dragon section byMikhail Golubev; Quality Chess 2006)Openingfor White According to Anand 11, Alexander Khalifman (Chess Stars 2009)Play the Sicilian Dragon, Edward Dearing (Gambit 2004)Sicilian Attacks, Yuri Yakovich (New in Chess 2011)Starting Out: The Sicilian Dragon, Andrew Martin (Everyman Chess 2005)The Cutting Edge - The Open Sicilian 1, Milos Pavlovic (Quality Chess 2010)The Soltis Variation of the Yugoslav Attack, Steven Mayer (Hypermodern Press1995)Winning with the Dragon, Chris Ward (Batsford 1994)Winning with the Sicilian Dragon 2, Chris Ward (Batsford 2001)PeriodicalsNew in Chess Magazine through issue 2011/6New in Chess Yearbook throug h Volume 100Electronic ResourcesChesslecture.comChesspublishing.com (Dragons section by Chris Ward and Gawain Jones)Chess TodayChess VibesMega Database 2011The Chess Mind (Dennis Monokroussos)

IntroductionThe Sicilian Dragon was one of my early loves. I still think it is a great opening tolearn from because there are so many thematic tactical and positional ideas. It isan opening that is ripe with exchange sacrifices and opposite side castling attacks.The Dragon is an opening where one can learn about the dynamic balance between the initiative and material; attack and counterattack; and pawn structureand piece play. It is also a fun opening to analyse at home, and I have always keptan interest in the Dragon even long after I stopped playing it regularly.Ifirst started playing the Dragon in its Accelerated version (1 e4 c5 2 Nf3 Nc6 3 d4cxd44 Nxd4 g6), which is safer than the pure Dragon (1 e4 c5 2 Nf3 d6 3 d4 cxd4 4Nxd4 Nf6 5 Nc3 g6) as covered in this book. The Accelerated allows the MaroczyBind (5 c4), but Black is able to avoid certain lines of the Yugoslav Attack by usingthis move order. Eventually I moved to the Dragon and entered the fascinatingworld of the Yugoslav Attack. One of the positive aspects ofthe Dragon is alsonegative in a way - it is a very narrow opening. The only critical lines are those inthe Yugoslav Attack. Black has to be very well prepared for both 9 Bc4 and 9 0-0-0(and to a lesser degree 9 g4), but other than that Black has a relatively easy life.Because there are only a couple of critical ways for White to play, Black can prepare more deeply, but there is also less variety in the opening.The Dragon introduced me to the world of 2. d6 Sicilians and after while I switchedto the more 'mature' Najdorf, which has always been more popular at higher levels.In recent years, however, the Dragon has made quite a comeback. Carlsen and Radjabov have used it regularly, while players such as Ivanchuk, Kasimdzhanov, Grischuk, Shirov, Nakamura and Gashimov have all been found on the black side.This book is broken up into two main parts. The first part covers the Yugoslav Attack with 9 Bc4. This has always been considered the sharpest way for White toplay, but Black has a relatively broad choice of responses. The five chapters coverthe Soltis Variation, which could be considered the backbone of the 9 Bc4 Dragon5

Chess Developments: The Sicilian Dragonfor Black, as well as some modern lines for both sides. I do not cover 12 h4 Nc4,which I have always found to be a bit passive. This system is very rarely playednowadays. Originally I had wanted to include the old line with . QaS. This approach was recommended by Chris Ward in his pioneering works Winning withthe Dragon and Winning with the Sicilian Dragon 2. These books influenced meand countless others. Unfortunately, this line has fallen on hard times and I wasunable to find anything to change theory's current opinion of these lines as inadequate. I have also omitted minor lines for Black.The second part of the book covers 9 0-0-0, which I consider to be the most annoying move to meet, as well as the related but less dangerous move 9 g4. Blackshould really meet 9 0-0-0 with 9. dS, but I have also covered the risky alternatives9. Nxd4 and 9. Bd7. Perhaps the biggest development in the Dragon over the lastcouple of decades has been the realization that after 9 0-0-0 dS 10 exds NxdS 11Nxc6 bxc6 12 Bd4, the near-universal 12 . eS appears to be inadequate. Black hassurvived with the once rare moves 12 . Bxd4 and 12 . NxC3, although it must besaid that in many cases he is just playing to equalize and make a draw in theselines. Black's success with these moves caused White to look for fresh approachesand thus the variations 10 Qel and 10 Kbl were born.By now the reader may have gathered that lines outside of the Yugoslav Attack arenot covered in this book. Practice has shown that lines such as the Classical, Fianchetto, and Levenfish are less dangerous for Black. Therefore they are playedmuch less frequently at a high level and develop at a slower pace. Existing Dragonliterature covers these various lines quite well and I did not have anything specialto add to them, so I decided to focus on the lines that are really the most dangerous for Black. I will highlight the 'developments' in the Dragon while also trying toexplain how they have come about, as opening theory is evolutionary. I tried towrite this book with an objective eye, but I will admit that I have some sympathyfor the Black cause.As always I have several people to thank: first and foremost my wife Heather, for,well, everything; both of our mothers, for watching Zoe the baby so that I couldwork; John Emms, for his help with the format and his patience with my neverending promises of meeting extended deadlines; Joe Fang, for the use of his library, his proof-reading, and for blitz games in 1994; and Dennis Monokroussosand Roland Loetscher for sharing their secret analysis.David Vigorito, Somerville, Massachusetts,October 20116

Part I9 Bc41 e4 e5 2 Nf3 d6 3 d4 exd4 4 Nxd4 Nf6 5 Ne3 g6 6 Be3 Bg7 7 f3 0-0 8Qd2 Ne6 9 Be4 (Diagram 1)Diagram 1 (8)This is White's sharpest way of handling the Dragon. He prevents Black's . dSbreak while preparing to castle long and launch an attack on the black king.9 Bd77

Chess Developments: The Sicilian DragonNow White has three different moves that he can play. All may well lead to thesame position, but there are some differences. The main move is 100-0-0. After10. RcS 11 Bb3 NeS White has traditionally played 12 h4. Black's most reliable defence is 12 .hS, which is the Soltis Variation. This is covered in Chapter 1 and is byfar the largest chapter in the book. This is a wonderfully complex system andBlack's results have been relatively good over the years. In the mid-1990'S whiteplayers found a new weapon to combat the Soltis Variation - they avoided it. TheModern Variation (12 Kb1!) came to the forefront of Dragon theory and even nowBlack has some problems with this move. While it had always been accepted thatplaying Kb1 was a useful move for White, the strength of playing it so early wasnot fully appreciated.So, Black was compelled to seek new roads against 9 Bc4. There are two relativelyyoung variations that have become very popular. The first of these systems is theTopalov Variation with 11.Nxd4 12 Bxd4 bS. Just as White avoided the Soltis Variation by deviating a move early with 12 Kb1, Black passes on the traditional l1.NeSand exchanges knights instead. The second line is the Chinese Variation with10. RbS. Here Black goes a step further and does not even bring his rook to the halfopen c-file. This system is quite popular and has been played at a very high level.The 'one-upmanship' continued and White can in fact deviate on move 10 himself. It used to be quite common for White to play 10 h4 before castling. The possibility of White attacking on the h-file without castling discouraged Black from certain obscure variations. Nowadays this move is considered to limit White's optionsas much as Black's. Although the Chinese Variation does not work so well againstWhite's early advance, White can no longer play the Modern Variation with 12 Kb1and therefore the simplest way to meet 10 h4 is with 10. RcS 11 Bb3 hS! headingfor the Soltis Variation.White sometimes plays 10 Bb3 immediately. This used to be considered inaccurate(and perhaps it is), but White manages to avoid the Chinese Variation while retaining the option of playing the Modem Variation. However, Black can playa kind of'Accelerated Topalov' with 10. Nxd4 11 BxdS bS. This line can also arise from theAccelerated Dragon and for that reason this particular system has not had muchcoverage in either Dragon or Accelerated Dragon literature - it seems that Dragonbooks consider it more likely to arise from an Accelerated Dragon (which is probablytrue), while Accelerated Dragon books say that is transposes to the Dragon proper(which is also true!) and thus nobody wants to look at it. In any case, it has its owndeveloping body of theory which will be examined in Chapter 5.8

Chapter OneSoltis Variation: 10 0-0-0ReS 11 Bb3 Nes 12 h4 hS1 e4 e5 2 Nf3 d6 3 d4 exd4 4 Nxd4 Nf6 5 Ne3 g6 6 Be3 Bg7 7 f3 0-0 SQd2 Ne6 9 Be4 Bd7 100-0-0 ReS 11 Bb3 Ne5 12 h4 h5 (Diagram 1)Diagram 1 (W)This is the starting point for the Soltis Variation, which has been considered a soundand ambitious system for Black for many years. It was this variation that Kasparov9