Sicilian Najdorf
What do you think is the best Sicilian variation for black?
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IM_Serious wrote:
StinkingHyena wrote:
IM_Serious wrote:
Sicilian Four Knights
I assume he is threatening Nd6 and you dont have Qf6 like in a e5 sicilian. But after black plays d6 what does he play? He doesnt have c4 available anymore to clamp down on d5 or help with a queenside majority and after something like 6...d6 7 Be3 a6 8 Na3 b5 black is looking pretty healthy?
White's idea is to transpose into the sveshnikov sicilian with 7. Bf4 threatening the pawn on d6 which basically forces black to play e5 and after Bg5 we transposed into the sveshnikov with an additional move played. The positions are very complex and you definitely have to know your stuff here but I never encountered it in my games so far.
I think the reason is that only strong players would prepare specific lines against the sicilian. The rest of the players stick to normal moves which is good for me
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Actually the check on d6 isn't a threat. Black can transpose to the sveshnikov but he doesnt have to. He can just ignore the threat and play Bb4. If the check comes then just Ke7 and there isn't really a convincing follow up. White might not have anything better than taking the bishop on c8. Black may need to take a move or two to make his king safe but it isn't a big problem since black was developing pieces while white was going after this check idea....plus after Ke7 both the knight on d6 and the pawn on e4 are hanging so white has to do something about that. There are some lines where white sacrifices the e pawn but black appears to be doing okay. Anyway...... All of this is discussed in the recent book "the sicilian four knights" by David Willis and the positions get quite complex.
The real drawback to the four knights is that it is hard to play for a win in the 6. Nxc6 line....which according to classical standards you should be happy with a draw with black, while on the other hand most players don't play the sicilian to get a draw. Personally I feel the Petroff is an easier path to a draw. All this assumes white will know the theory or be able to deduce it over the board which may not be the case. On the other hand out of all the sicilians, the four knights is prrobably easiest to learn and play.
I switched over to the e6 Sicilians for its flexibility and practicality for club level play. Chances are you will run into an anti-Sicilian and e6 is in the majority of the lines so if you are a d6 Sicilian player, you lose a tempo in this case.