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Sicilian Defence: Najdorf, 6.Be3 e5 7.Nf3

Polgar–Perez, FIDE World Cup 2011 · Nakamura–Firouzja, FIDE Candidates 2022 · 6:24 · ECO B90

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In this video

Game 1: Judit Polgar (2699) vs Leinier Dominguez Perez (2719)

FIDE World Cup 2011, 6 September 2011 · Black won (0-1) · 46 moves

Click a move to jump the video to it. Dotted moves are the opening line the video is about.

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Key moments

  1. 7...Be7The first move after the opening line0:34
  2. 25.Qc2The evaluation moves from −2.35 to −3.741:54
  3. 34...Ra1The evaluation moves from −3.32 to −1.762:42
  4. 44.b4The evaluation moves from −1.19 to −7.89, and Black stays more than two pawns ahead from here3:29
  5. 46...Qg5Black wins after 46 moves3:42

Evaluation

Above the line, White is better; below it, Black. Scores are in pawns, capped at five either way.

Game 2: Hikaru Nakamura (2760) vs Alireza Firouzja (2793)

FIDE Candidates 2022, 29 June 2022 · White won (1-0) · 32 moves

Click a move to jump the video to it. Dotted moves are the opening line the video is about.

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Key moments

  1. 7...Nc6The first move after the opening line4:14
  2. 26...Rc6The evaluation moves from +1.77 to +3.41, and White stays more than two pawns ahead from here5:42
  3. 28...Qxb4The evaluation moves from +3.24 to +7.945:52
  4. 32.fxg3White wins after 32 moves6:10

Evaluation

Above the line, White is better; below it, Black. Scores are in pawns, capped at five either way.

About these games

After 6...e5 Black gains central space and hits the knight on d4. With 7.Nf3 White retreats to f3 rather than b3, keeping an eye on e5 and planning Bc4 and Nd5 to fight for the d5 square, which Black's pawn on e5 can no longer guard. Black's usual answers are quick development and queenside play with ...b5, while the backward pawn on d6 and the hole on d5 are the long-term weaknesses.

Polgar–Dominguez followed the main line 7...Be7 8.Bc4 O-O 9.O-O Qc7. Black pushed 12...b5 and 14...b4, and after 15.Nd5 gave up the light bishop with 15...Bxd5. After 16.Bxf6 Nxf6 17.exd5 Black stood at −0.98, and by 27.Rf1 the score had reached −4.21. With 34...Ra1 the advantage shrank from −3.32 to −1.76. Black then advanced 37...e4 and 39...exf3+ to open lines against White's king. 44.b4 was the decisive error, moving the score from −1.19 to −7.89. Black won after 46...Qg5.

Nakamura–Firouzja went 7...Nc6 8.Bc4 Be6 9.Nd5. Unlike Game 1, White took on f6 with 10.Nxf6+ gxf6, which broke up Black's kingside pawns. Black freed the position with 13...d5, but White put a rook on d5 and gained queenside space with 21.c5 and 22.b4 (+1.87). From 26...Rc6 White stayed more than two pawns ahead. After 27.Bh6 (+2.60), the recapture 29...Rxf8 allowed a forced mate in 8. White won after 30.Qh6 and 32.fxg3, with mate threats against the exposed black king.

Chapters

  1. 0:00Introduction and the opening line
  2. 0:10Game 1: Polgar vs Dominguez Perez, FIDE World Cup 2011
  3. 3:50Game 2: Nakamura vs Firouzja, FIDE Candidates 2022

The opening line

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 a6 6. Be3 e5 7. Nf3

See every video from this position →