Sicilian Defence: Najdorf, 6.Bg5 e6 7.f4 h6
Caruana–Nakamura, London Chess Classic 2016 · Erigaisi–Grandelius, TePe Sigeman & Co 2023 · 7:18 · ECO B96
Position as text
FEN:
In this video
Game 1: Fabiano Caruana (2823) vs Hikaru Nakamura (2779)
London Chess Classic 2016, 15 December 2016 · White won (1-0) · 32 moves
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Key moments
- 8...Qb6The first move after the opening line0:36
- 25...Qg5+The evaluation moves from +1.02 to +2.971:56
- 28...Qe7The evaluation moves from +1.80 to +6.87, and White stays more than two pawns ahead from here2:12
- 31...Qxb5The evaluation moves from +7.00 to +8.142:26
- 32.Rh6+White wins after 32 moves2:29
Evaluation
Above the line, White is better; below it, Black. Scores are in pawns, capped at five either way.
Game 2: Arjun Erigaisi (2701) vs Nils Grandelius (2664)
TePe Sigeman & Co 2023, 5 May 2023 · Black won (0-1) · 57 moves
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Key moments
- 8...Nbd7The first move after the opening line3:05
- 17.Rg3The evaluation moves from −0.52 to −1.863:42
- 19.Rxg5The evaluation moves from −2.75 to −3.773:52
- 24...d4The evaluation moves from −5.47 to −2.024:20
- 29.Rxd4The queens come off4:42
- 41.Be5Black stays more than two pawns ahead from here5:42
- 57...Bb2Black wins after 57 moves7:05
Evaluation
Above the line, White is better; below it, Black. Scores are in pawns, capped at five either way.
About these games
After 7...h6 8.Bh4, White keeps the pin on the f6-knight and prepares a quick e5 or f5 against Black's d6/e6 centre. Black first asks the bishop to commit and keeps the option of ...g5 to break the pin. With both sides often castling on opposite wings, the play becomes a race of pawn storms.
Caruana–Nakamura followed the main line 8...Qb6 9.a3 Be7 10.Bf2, with White castling long and storming with 13.g4 and 14.h4 while Black answered on the other wing with ...b5-b4. After 17...Nexg4 18.Bxg4 e5, White gave up the queen for a knight with 19.Qxf6 and regained material with 20.Nd5 and 22.Nxf6+. The engine had White at +3.77 before 23.Rxd6, which let the score fall to +1.09. Black's 25...Qg5+ then handed back the edge, raising it from +1.02 to +2.97. After 29...Qe8, the score jumped from +3.15 to +6.68, and 30.Nxf7+ and 32.Rh6+ broke Black's king position; White won.
In Erigaisi–Grandelius, Black chose 8...Nbd7 and 9...e5, taking the e5 square for a knight instead of racing on the queenside. White pushed g4-g5 but 17.Rg3 dropped the score from −0.52 to −1.86, and the exchange sacrifice 20.Rxg7+ did not cover the cost. Black's 24...d4 let the score fall from −5.47 to −2.02, but after the queens came off on move 29 Black's extra knight against White's pawns proved decisive in a long bishop-and-knight endgame. Black won.
Chapters
The opening line
1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 a6 6. Bg5 e6 7. f4 h6 8. Bh4
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