Download PGN of August ’25 Dragon Sicilian games
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Fianchetto System 6.g3 Bg7 7.Bg2 0-0 8.0-0 Bg4 9.Qd2 Qd7 [B70]
I have to say that if you’re looking for an alternative to the main lines then you can do a lot worse than follow the ex-World Champion’s lead as seen in Ikeda, J - Carlsen, M. Eventually reaching a standard fianchetto system after 1.Nf3 g6 2.e4 c5 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 d6 6.g3 Bg7 7.Bg2 0-0 8.0-0, Black threw an early spanner in the works with 8...Bg4!?:
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Play continued 9.Qd2 Qd7 10.b3 Nc6 11.Nde2 Rac8 12.Bb2 Bxe2 13.Qxe2 with 13...Qg4 being very simple chess and 14.Qd2 Qh5 15.h3 Qa5 16.a3 Nd7 17.Rab1 e6 18.Rfd1 Rfd8 19.b4 Qh5 20.f4 Nb6 21.Bf1 Nd4 22.Qd3 Nc4 23.Bc1 leading to the decisive tactic 23...Nxa3!!
Fianchetto System 6.g3 Nc6 7.Nxc6 bxc6 8.e5 [B70]
Given that regular subscribers will know that I’m not a big fan, I wouldn’t generally want to include two games with it in the same update but I did this time because I thought both games brought something different to the party. Following the standard 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 g6 6.g3 Nc6 I had often wondered about the possibility of 7.Nxc6 bxc6 8.e5 dxe5 9.Qxd8+ Kxd8 10.Bg2 and was interested when it cropped up in the game Kovchan, A - Clarke, B:
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The obvious question is whether having sacrificed a pawn, White gets enough or more than enough compensation for the pawn through a lead in development and structural factors. My conclusion after the game continuation of 10...Kc7!? 11.Bd2 Bg7 12.h3 Be6 13.0-0-0 a5 14.Rhe1 Nd5 15.Na4 Rhb8 16.c3 Nb6 17.Nc5 Bxa2 18.Bf4 Bd5 is probably not as the young English talent converted a fairly controlled game.
Classical, Long Castles System 6.Be2 Bg7 7.Be3 0-0 8.Qd2 Nc6 9.0-0-0 Bd7 10.Kb1 Rc8 11.f3 Ne5 12.h4 h5 [B72]
The game Fishbein, A - Shabalov, A started off as a long castles Classical through 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 g6 6.Be2 Bg7 7.Be3 0-0 8.Qd2 Nc6 9.0-0-0 but following 9...Bd7 10.Kb1 Rc8 11.f3 Ne5 12.h4 h5 we’d sort of reached a Yugoslav Attack Soltis variation but with White’s light-squared bishop on e2 rather than b3:
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Okay White had saved a tempo by not having moved his bishop twice but putting that extra move to use with Kb1 didn’t really help in the case of 13.Bh6 Bxh6 14.Qxh6 and now the thematic 14...Rxc3!? 15.bxc3 Qb6+ 16.Ka1 Rc8 17.Qd2 d5 This reminded me of one of my own Dragon games that I refer to in the notes and indeed here 18.Nb3?! dxe4 19.Qd4 Qc7 20.c4 exf3 21.gxf3 Nxc4 22.Bxc4 Qxc4 23.Qxc4 Rxc4 had worked out rather well for Black. Alas life doesn’t always go to plan and Black ultimately erred later, turning a likely win into a loss!
Yugoslav Attack 9.0-0-0 d5 10.Nxc6 bxc6 11.Bc4 e6 12.Bb3 Qc7 13.h4 dxe4 14.h5 [B76]
After 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 g6 6.Be3 Bg7 7.f3 0-0 8.Qd2 Nc6 9.0-0-0 d5 the variation 10.Nxc6 bxc6 11.Bc4 continues to gain followers but whilst after 11...e6 12.Bb3 we’ve previously tended to focus more on 12...Bb7, here it is 12...Qc7 that features in Kourkoulos AS - Dong, H with 13.h4 dxe4 14.h5 leading to a fun middlegame:
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There are plenty of possibilities for both sides but intriguingly we saw 14...exf3 15.hxg6 fxg6 16.Bc5 Rf7 17.gxf3 Nd5 18.Ne4 Be5 19.Kb1 a5 20.a4 Rb8 21.Rdg1 Rxf3 22.Ng5 Rfxb3 23.cxb3 Rxb3 24.Rf1 Qg7 25.Rf8+ Qxf8 26.Bxf8 Rxb2+ 27.Qxb2 Bxb2 28.Kxb2 Kxf8 transform into a fascinating endgame, where White’s more active pieces (and probably higher rating!) triumphed over Black’s higher pawn count.
Yugoslav 9.Bc4 Bd7 10.Bb3 Nxd4 11.Bxd4 b5 12.h4 a5 13.a4 bxa4 14.Nxa4 Be6 [B77]
I’m not going to lie, I felt Black’s pain in Cahaya, SD - Priasmoro, N for reasons that will for sure become clear to you. As far as the opening goes though, it was all rosy with 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 g6 6.Be3 Bg7 7.f3 Nc6 8.Qd2 0-0 9.Bc4 Bd7 10.Bb3 Nxd4 11.Bxd4 b5 12.h4 a5 13.a4 bxa4 14.Nxa4 Be6 last featuring on the site nearly a quarter of a decade ago in one of my games! Here play continued with 15.Bxe6 fxe6 16.Rd1 Rb8 17.b3 Rb4 when ...Nxe4 tactics were being teed up:
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I quite liked Black’s position after 18.Qe3 Qc7 19.Qc3 Qb7 20.0-0 Nd5 21.exd5 Bxd4+ 22.Rxd4 Qa7 23.Nc5 dxc5 24.Rdd1 c4+ 25.Rf2 cxb3 26.cxb3 but when he abandoned his king through 26...Rfb8?! and 27.Qe5 exd5 28.h5 followed, a certain control was lost and what followed was totally nuts!
Soltis Variation 9.Bc4 Bd7 10.0-0-0 Rc8 11.Bb3 Ne5 12.Kb1 Re8 13.h4 h5 14.g4 hxg4 15.h5 Nxh5 16.Bh6 Kh7 17.Bxg7 Kxg7 18.Rdg1 [B78]
A critical line in the Soltis Variation runs 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 g6 6.Be3 Bg7 7.f3 0-0 8.Qd2 Nc6 9.Bc4 Bd7 10.0-0-0 Rc8 11.Bb3 Ne5 12.Kb1 Re8 13.h4 h5 14.g4 hxg4 15.h5 Nxh5 16.Bh6 Kh7 17.Bxg7 Kxg7 and now 18 fxg4. We’ve invested plenty of time on that in the past with a super-computer tussle probably pushing us towards the truth i.e. Black having to grovel for an eventual draw. From there I guess it’s down to the individual whether they focus on the ‘grovel’ or the ‘draw’ part but in any instance here in Nagare KS- Kshatriya, NV White opted to deviate from that well-trodden path with 18.Rdg1?! instead:
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Black sensibly responded with the standard reinforcement 18...Rh8! after which 19.f4 Nc4 20.Bxc4 Rxc4 left the white queen overloaded and in contrast 21.Nde2 Qa5 22.f5 Qe5 saw her opposite number sitting pretty. Following 23.Rxg4 Bxf5 24.Rg5 f6! 25.Rgxh5 Rxh5 26.Rxh5 gxh5 27.exf5 Qxf5 essentially Black had already reached a winning endgame.
Bye for now (and try to stay out of pain!) Chris
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