Deep Dive: The Pirc Defense
GM Damian Lemos
Question 1.
Black just retreated his knight to
e7 and it seems like White can
win the e5 pawn with 10.Nxe5.
How to react to 10.Nxe5 with
Black?
Question 2.
What move does Damian
recommend for Black in this
position?
1
Question 3.
After the moves 1.e4 d6 2.d4
Nf6 3.Nc3 g6 4.f3 a6, White
reacted to Black’s move with
5.a4, stopping Black from
playing …b5.
How do you evaluate White’s
move?
Question 4.
How should Black answer
White’s last move (Bf4-h6)?
2
Question 5.
What move does Damian
recommend for Black in this
position?
Question 6.
What move does Damian
recommend for Black in this
position?
3
Question 7.
How should Black play in this
theoretical position?
Question 8.
Sidelines are sidelines for a
reason. White went for the line
1.e4 d6 2.d4 Nf6 3.Bd3 e5
4.c3 in the opening.
Black can already get a pleasant
position.
What move does Damian
recommend for Black in this
position?
4
Question 9.
It seems like Black is in trouble.
He is a pawn down and his
knight on f6 is hanging.
What to play here with Black?
Question 10.
Best move for Black?
5
Question 11.
White just closed the center with
the move d4-d5.
What is Black's best plan in this
position?
Question 12.
Black’s knight is under attack.
What should he play?
6
Question 13.
What is Black's best plan in this
position?
Question 14.
What move does Damian
recommend for Black in this
position?
7
Question 15.
White threatens to launch a
mating attack on the h-file.
What is Black’s best move in
here?
Question 16.
What move does Damian
recommend for Black in this
position?
8
Question 17.
Black is a piece down and his
knight on d5 is hanging.
Can you still find a way for Black
to come out on top?
Question 18.
Best move for Black in this
position?
9
Question 19.
Should Black play 6…Qxd1+
and exchange queens?
Question 20.
The opening went wrong for
Black and White already has a
winning move.
Can you spot it?
10
Solutions
1 10.Nxe5?! looks like a good move at first glance. However, Black has the
surprising response 10…c6! in store. White has several moves which he can try
here, but none of them offers White an advantage. It’s key to spot that 11.dxc6?
loses a piece due to 11…Qd4+. If White plays 11.Bg5 (attacking the knight on
f6), Black can save himself tactically with 11…cxd5 12.Bxf6 Qb6+! (a key
intermediate move to get back the piece) 13.Kh1 Bxf6. The resulting position is
dynamically balanced.
2 If White plays the move g4, you need to be sure to always have the d7-square
vacated to react to g4-g5 with ...Nfd7. Therefore, Black should remove his other
knight from d7 with 7…Nb6. The knight is well-placed on b6 and can move to c4
at an appropriate moment.
3 5.a4 does not fit well with the English Attack for White. The downside of this move
is that White can now forget about castling queenside. With a pawn on a4, it’s
easy for Black to open up the queenside with a well-timed ...b5.
Due to the fact that White already played the move f3, his intentions to create an
attack on the kingside are clear. White now faces the problem that he wants to
attack on the kingside, but he can’t castle queenside without taking huge risks.
4 The move 6.Bh6 is premature. Black’s bishop is still on f8. Therefore, Black can
take on h6 and create counterplay on the queenside at the same time. 6…Bxh6!
7.Qxh6 Qa5! (threatening …Nxe4) 8.0-0-0?! b5! and Black is already clearly
better.
5 After 5.Qd2, Black should play the move 5…h6 with the idea to get the bishop
pair. After 6.Bh4 (6.Be3 Ng4! 7.Bf4 e5 8.dxe5 Nxe5 and Black has easy
development.) 6…g5 7.Bg3 7…Nh5 8.0-0-0, we reach one of the critical tabyias
of the Pirc Defense.
6 GM Damian Lemos recommends you play a setup similar to the setup Black
obtains in the Sicilian Dragon. Therefore, Black should attack White’s center with
1…c5!
7 Black can play the surprising move 5…Nh5. The trade of the dark-squared
bishop is Black's main idea in this variation. White has occupied more space,
placing his pawns on the light squares. So, his dark-squared bishop becomes
very important, as it controls dark squares. Therefore, Black plans to play …Bg5,
offering the exchange of bishops. Afterwards, White’s dark-squares are severely
weakened.
8 4.c3 can be met by the surprising 4…d5! 5.dxe5 Nxe4 and Black can develop
all his pieces easily.
9 Black can save himself tactically with 11…cxd5 (regaining the pawn) 12.Bxf6
Qb6+! (a key intermediate move to get back the piece) 13.Kh1 Bxf6. The
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resulting position is dynamically balanced. Still, Black has excellent chances to
play for a win.
10 At first glance, it looks like Black regains the pawn with either 6…Bxf2+ or
6…Qd4 (threatening the knight on e5 and mate on f2). However, only one move
works for Black. Here, it’s important to be precise. After 6…Qd4?, White can play
7.Bb5+! c6 8.Qxd4 Bxd4 9.Nf3! (removing the knight and simultaneously
attacking Black’s bishop on d4). White keeps his extra pawn with a clearly better
position.
Instead 6…Bxf2+! 7.Kxf2 Qd4+ wins back the pawn.
11 After 8.d5 (White closed the center), Black can play for a queenside expansion
with 8…Rb8 9.a4 (preventing Black from playing 9…b5) 9…b6! (Black prepares
to expand on the queenside anyway with …a6 and …b5. The direct 9…a6?!
could be met by 10.a5!, however.)
12 Black’s best move is 10…Ne5! The doubled pawns on the e-file after 11.Nxe5
dxe5 are not a problem as they control important central squares. Black can
continue with …Qd6 and …c5 with a good position.
13 The center is closed and White grabs space on the queenside. The best plan for
Black is to counterattack on the kingside with the typical King’s Indian Defense
moves …Ne8 and …f5.
14 Instead of recapturing on d6, Black’s best move is 7…0-0. White’s center is gone,
his king is still on e1 and Black has a lead in development.
15 Black’s best move is 12…Nb4! The idea is to take on c2 and then not the rook on
a1 but the pawn on d4. Once White’s center is completely destroyed and Black’s
knight is ideally placed on d4, Black is able to defend against White’s kingside
attack.
16 Generally speaking, Black’s plan in the Pirc Defense is to attack White's centre
with either c7-c5 or e7-e5. By playing the Austrian Attack, White builds up a
strong pawn center. Due to White’s move 4.f4, Black’s thematic break in the
center with ...e7-e5 is more difficult to achieve than in other systems. Therefore,
Black usually resorts to ...c7-c5. GM Damian Lemos suggests the move 7…c5 in
this position.
17 Black can save himself with 14…Qh4+! 15.Ke2 Nf4+16.Kf3 Nxd3 17.Qxd3
Kxg7. The material balance is restored. However, with White’s king on f3, only
Black can be better. Especially for human beings, White’s position is tough to play.
18 Black’s best move is 12…Nxe5 (12…Bxe5 also works well) 13.Nxe5 Bxe5 and
Black won a pawn. White can’t recapture on e5 due to the pin on the d-file.
19 If Black exchanges queens on d1, White simply recaptures with the rook.
Afterwards, Black’s knight has to leave the f6-square and White often has a
quick Nd5 with decisive threats against e7 and c7. Therefore, 6...Qxd1? is a
bad move.
Generally speaking, Black has to be careful to answer White’s central e4-e5
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push with ...dxe5. Most of the time, it’s best to retreat the knight.
20 White wins after 10.Bxe7! Bxe7 11.Nxc7+ Kd8 12.Nxa8. Black is a pawn and
an exchange down.
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