STARTING OUT: SICILIAN SCHEVENINGEN
Author: Craig Pritchett
Everyman Chess (2006)
192 pages
$21.95

Reviewed by Jeremy Silman

This book brought back memories! Reaching out to the closest 6' tall bookshelf (One of nine devoted to chess, all behind me and accessible by a quick twist of my office chair -- it's important that one's beloved chess books are held and caressed with great regularity! The first four bookshelves are devoted only to books on opening theory), my hands grasped a Batsford hardcover book titled THE SICILIAN SCHEVENINGEN by Craig Pritchett -- this classic book appeared in 1977!

I have to admit that I hadn't opened this old hardcover for many years, so I was a bit surprised to find dozens of post-it notes stuck to the pages, updating it with fresh games. I gave up 1.e4 around 1980, so Pritchett's original Scheveningen treatise has been with me for a long, long time. Now, almost thirty years later, Mr. Pritchett has done it again and, like his previous book on the same subject, it's a winner.

For many years now, "young bucks" have lashed out against 1.e4 with the "flashy" Najdorf or Dragon variations, the venerable Scheveningen being a system that usually interests a player once his teens are behind him. However, Grandmaster Jaan Ehlvest (in his very interesting bio, THE STORY OF A CHESS PLAYER) considers the Scheveningen to be of enormous importance, saying, "Without understanding the Scheveningen, you cannot play the Sicilian."

A favorite of Garry Kasparov, the Scheveningen not only teaches the Sicilian neophyte all the classic Sicilian plans and ideas, it's also far less memory intensive than many other Sicilian lines. Thus, in my view it's a perfect first Sicilian for young players and old who wish to test the 1.e4 c5 waters.

White has various ways to counter Black's setup, but the most dangerous are the Keres Attack (1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 e6 6.g4), the English Attack (1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 e6 6.Be3 with the idea of f3, Qd2, and 0-0-0), and the classical main line (1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 e6 6.Be2 with 0-0, Be3, and f2-f4 to follow).

The Keres Attack: 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 e6 6.g4 is Gavrikov's choice in EXPERTS vs. the SICILIAN. Pritchett recommends 6...h6 7.h4 Be7 8.Qf3 Nc6 when both follow the game J. Gallagher-C. Hansen, Bundesliga 2002: 9.Nxc6 bxc6 10.g5 Nd7 11.gxh6 gxh6 12.Bd2 Bxh4 13.0-0-0 Qe7 14.Qf4 Bf6 15.Rxh6 Bb7 16.Rxh8+ Bxh8 17.Qg3 0-0-0 and here Pritchett says that White doesn't have anything. Gavrikov goes further: 18.Bg5 Bf6 19.Bxf6 Nxf6 20.e5 dxe5 21.Rxd8+ Qxd8 22.Qxe5 and claims "a favorable ending for White."

What's the truth here? In my opinion, both authors served their readers well. Since Pritchett's book is a "STARTING OUT" tome, all this theory is a bit longer than much of his audience would like to see. Thus, instead of going on and on, he states that Black is fine (soothing frayed nerves while also telling the truth). Gavrikov faces a slightly higher rated audience that wants Black's blood, and so he says that White has a favorable ending. Both stretched things a bit, but both their views are acceptable. I feel that White does have a slight pull after 22.Qxe5, but it's nothing lasting or even that threatening. Thus, after 22...Nd7 Black will soon solidify his position and equalize the game.

The English Attack: 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 e6 6.Be3. The setup with Be3 followed by f3 is a dangerous one if Black has played an early a6 (as is the case in the Najdorf). However, here Black can use the extra tempo (from not playing a6) to strike in the center and secure a fighting game with mutual chances. Here's a taste of what Pritchett offers: 6...Be7 7.f3 Nc6 8.Qd2 0-0 9.0-0-0 d5 10.Qe1 e5 11.Nxc6 bxc6 12.exd5 Nxd5 (Pritchett says, "Now Black's pawn center, active pieces and particularly tight grip on d5 compensates for White's positional advantages on the queenside.") 13.Bc4 Be6 14.Ne4 f5 15.Nc5 Bf7 16.Bf2 Qc7 17.Kb1 a5 18.a4 Rfe8 19.g4 e4! and Black took the initiative and eventually won in A. Zontakh-M. Ulibin, Bosnia 1999.

The Classical Main Line: 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 e6 6.Be2 Be7 7.0-0 0-0 8.Be3 Nc6 9.f4 Bd7 (notice how Black is once again avoiding ...a7-a6) and now both 10.Qe1 and 10.Nb3 are looked at in detail. One classic example is Milic-Korchnoi, Belgrade 1964: 10.Qe1 Nxd4 11.Bxd4 Bc6 12.Qg3 g6 13.Bf3 b5 14.a3 a5 15.Rad1 b4 16.axb4 axb4 17.e5 Bxf3 18.Qxf3 bxc3 19.exf6 Bxf6 20.Qxc3 Bxd4+ 21.Qxd4 Ra6 and Black's superior pawn structure (one pawn island to White's two) gave him an edge, which he turned into a win on move 37.

STARTING OUT: SICILIAN SCHEVENINGEN doesn't cover everything, nor is it meant to. But it does give Black a very nice repertoire, covers all of White's main replies, and leaves the student knowing the key plans that make the Scheveningen such an excellent choice.

Highly recommended for players from 1600 to 2200.

Click to buy (or get more information about) STARTING OUT: SICILIAN SCHEVENINGEN