5 ttJc3 'fiic7
1 e 4 c5 2 lt:'lf3 e6 3 d 4 cxd4 4 lt:'lxd4 a 6 5 lt:'lc3 1kc7
Now we finally move on to 5 lt:Jc3, White's second most popular choice after 5 i.d3. In this chapter we will study the re
sponse 5 ... 'il'c7. This is still Black's main reply to 5 lt:Jc3, even though in the past couple of years it's had some stiff competi
tion from S ... bS (mainly because of the sud
den discovery of 5 ... bS 6 i.d3 'il'b6 - see Chapter 7).
The move 5 ... 'il'c7 immediately puts the black queen on her normal 'Kan' square, from where she controls the key eS-square and eyes events down the c-ftle. The move is also very flexible; Black commits himself neither on the queenside nor with his d
pawn. Given Black's reluctance to move the d-pawn so early, 5 ... 'ii'c7 is also virtually a necessity so that Black can develop with ... lt:Jf6 (the immediate 5 ... lt:Jf6? would run into 6 eS!).
In this chapter we will consider all of White's main replies to 5 ... 'il'c7.
1 e4 c5 2 lt:'lf3 e6 3 d4 cxd4 4 lt:'lxd4 a6 5 lt:'lc3 1kc7
see following diagram 6 �d3
6 i.d3 is the most popular and logical
move. White bolsters the e-pawn and pre
pares to castle. The bishop on d3 is actively placed for an eventual kingside attack and may be liberated by an eventual e4-e5.
Classical development with 6 i.e2 is also an accepted choice amongst white players, especially those who play i.e2 systems against the Najdorf, Scheveningen and Tai
manov. Acrually Black can transpose into the Taimanov (with 6 ... lt:Jc6) and the Scheveningen (with 6 ... lt:Jf6 7 0-0 d6) but here we will concentrate on pure Kan posi
tions that are reached after 6 ... b5 (see Game 59). I should say a few words about mixing ... b7-b5 with an early ... 'il'c7. Sometimes this can be an extremely risky strategy as Black can fall dangerously behind on
develop-Sicilian Ka n
ment. On the other hand, the ... b7-b5 lunge can also be the best way forward as it forces White to deal with early pressure against e4.
On this occasion (against 6 .ie2) it is fully against other Sicilians can also play it against the Kan. Now 6 ... .ib4 (or 6...tt'lf6 7 .ig2 .ib4) is probably the strongest move to play if one wishes to keep a Kan flavour (see Game 61). On the other hand, here 6 ... b5?!
is an extremely hazardous response (see Game 60). One further point I should add is that 6 ... tt'lc6, transposing to the g3 Tai
manov, is a perfectly viable option.
Erecting a pawn front with 6 f4 is an
other white strategy. As this is hardly a de
veloping move, Black is justified in playing 6 ... b5 (see Game 62).
Before moving on I should just mention a couple of less important moves for White, but ones that are still commonly seen in practice. With 6 a3?! White's idea is to pre
vent an early ... .ib4 or ... b7-b5-b4. How
ever, this is not really a move that will strike fear into the Kan player, who will no doubt be happy to use the extra tempo for devel
opment. Either 6 ... tt'lf6 or 6 ... b5 should be fine for Black, for example 6 ... b5 7 .id3 .ib 7 8 0-0 tt'lf6 and the loss of a tempo with a2-a3 means that White is in much less of a position to exploit Black's set-up (com
pare this with 6 .id3 b5). English attack against the Scheveningen, the fact that Black can play ... d7-d5 in one go is bishop pair, De Silva-Kotsur, Aden 2002.
6 . . . lDf6 playable: Game 58 focuses on 7 ... dxc6 while in Game 57 we look at 7 ... bxc6 (7 ... l\hc6 8
a) The move 7 'iie2!? threatens e4-e5 and Black normally avoids this with 7 ... d6.
However, this rules out the idea of a knight
disturbing ... i.c5 for Black; the price White pays for this is that the queen is committed to e2. After 8 f4 I Like the idea of 8 ... g6!? 9
0-0 i.g 7 for Black. The point is that a nor
fortable for Black in T.Bauer-Farago, Hun
gary 1 993. After 14 e5?! dxe5 15 fxe5 lDd5 0-0-0 16 i.e3 gave White a slight structural advantage in Shirov-Rublevsky, Polanica Zdroj 1 998.
b2) 1 3. .. dxc6! 14 i.e3 i.e 7 1 5 0-0-0 0-0 1 6 h4 c5 1 7 'it>bl c4 was equal in Lanka
Volzhin, Koszalin 1999.
7 . . . i.c5
Here we once more see the typical theme of knocking the d4-knight from its central f5 is probably a bit better for White.
c2) 8 f4!? i.c5 9 i.e3 lDc6 1 0 lDf5! worth more than a piece, Topalov-Hiibner, Wijk aan Zee 1996.
8 fi:Jb3
White can also protect this knight with 8 i.e3 (see Game 54).
8 . . . i.e7
This retreat is played the majority of the time but there is also something to be said for 8 ... i.a7. Now we reach positions similar to those studied in Chapter 4. White is committed to both lDc3 and 0-0, while Black has committed his queen to c7. ECO gives 9 'ii'e2 d6 10 i.e3 i.xe3 1 1 'ii'xe3 but
Sicilian Kan
Black has some compensation for the pawn in Tischbierek-Eingorn, Ostend 1 992.
9 f4 d6
We've reached another typical Scheve
ningen-style Kan position. Move orders, ideas and tactics will be discussed in Games 5 1-53.
7 'W£3 'Wb6 8 lLlb3 'Wc7 9 i.d3 Ji.e7 10 0-0).
Alternatives to 10 'ti'£3 will be discussed in Games 52-53.
1 o ... lLlbd7
Immediate queenside action with 10 ... b5!? is possible but risky: 1 1 e5! Ji.b7 12 'Wg3 lLlh5 1 3 'Wh3 g6 14 exd6 'ti'xd6 1 5 f5!
exf5 16 Ji.h6 was precarious for Black in Hindle-Emms, Cromer (rapid) 1993.
Most Kan players tend to prefer to play systems with ... lLlbd7, so I will concentrate my efforts on that. However, the alternative way with 1 0 ... lLlc6 is certainly also possible.
Play continues 1 1 Ji.d2 b5!? and now:
a) 12 e5!? (a direct attempt at refutation) 1 2 ... dxe5 1 3 fxe5 'Wa7+! 14 i.e3 lLlxe5 15 'Wg3 ifb8 16 Ji.f4 'Wa7+ (16 ... lLlh5 17 i.xe5 lLlxg3 18 Jixb8 lLlxfl 1 9 i.f4 traps the knight) 17 Ji.e3 'ti'b8 18 Ji.f4 was agreed drawn in Werle-Brodsky, Hoogeveen 1 999.