Botvinnik and the Pirc/Modern

The name of the 6th World Champion Mikhail Botvinnik is forever associated with famed Soviet Chess School. To this day, 26 years after the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Patriarch, as he was not-so-affectionally-but-respectfully called, is still being credited with the continuous success of players from Russia and other republics of the former USSR.

Botvinnik's methods of preparation were legendary: Deep study of opening theory, detailed analyses of adjourned games; maintaining physical fitness; strict regimen during tournaments down to mapping out the best route for a walk to the tournament hall, etc. All this helped him to stay on top of World's Chess for 30 years. He won the Championship title after Alekhine died and kept it (with two small interruptions when losing to Smyslov and Tal) for 15 years. Only after he lost to Petrosian in 1963 and was not granted a return match by FIDE in a surprising twist two years later, Botvinnik announced he had had enough of fighting for the World Championship.

He was 52 then and still in good shape. One can only speculate what would have happened if Botvinnik decided to enter the 1965 Candidates Matches, where he was offered a spot as the loser of the previous World Championship match. If the bracket stayed the same, in the Quarterfinals he would be facing Smyslov again, for the fourth time in 12 years.

However, as it had always been the case, Botvinnik's decision to quit was firm. He continued his work as an electrical engineer and became interested in the burgeoning field of computer science. Chesswise, it was down to team tournaments and an occasional foray to the leisure spots of Monte Carlo and Palma de Mallorca.

Botvinnik's most famous student: Garry Kasparov

Then there was the Botvinnik Chess School, and a great influence it had on the young generation of Soviet players. I'm often asked how I enjoyed my time there. I shock people by answering that I was never there. Of my personal interactions with the great man, I have only had one, but it left a lasting impact, although not of the kind the reader might expect.

Back when I was about 14 years old, I was part of the Leningrad Team playing in a new event sponsored by the Komsomolskaya Pravda newspaper. Each team was led by a GM-Captain, and matches between teams were a combination of six-board clock simuls. Say, we played Moscow: in this case Spassky would give a simul to the Moscow kids while we the Leningrad youths would face Smyslov. Scores are combined. The time control was set for 45 moves after which the games would be adjudicated with Chief Arbiter Botvinnik being the final authority.

In round two we played Riga, and it was Mikhail Tal prowling in front of us.

Mikhail Tal vs Alex Yermolinsky, 1972

I managed to reach move 45, and then the game was stopped. Tal looked a bit distracted, probably he was tired from being on his feet for five hours straight. Botvinnik came over to our board, looked at the position, then at me, and said in a gravelly tone “gimme your score sheet”. As if playing Tal wasn't enough to overwhelm me, imagine how I felt then the Patriarch actually spoke to me. I couldn't say a word, I just gave him my score sheet.

Botvinnik had been away from tournament chess for a couple of years already, but his mind was sharp. In a matter of seconds he went over the game in his head. He had seen enough: my cowardly play made him purse his lips. Without another word the Patriarch thrust the score sheet back to me, and that was it - for him I ceased to exist.

Mihail Tal giving a simul in the USSR in the 1970s

He turned to Tal and said, “Well, Misha, we both know you would have won this game if it continued, but at this stage I cannot call it a win for Black”. Tal, who looked like he didn't care at all, shrugged his shoulders and shook my hand. I got my half a point and learned a valuable lesson. It may have been a dead draw on the board, but ultimately it was up to powers-that-be to decide.

I love digressions. I could sit here all day telling you my Grandpa Simpson stories. Too bad I have to drag myself, kicking and screaming, back to the subject of this article, which is Botvinnik's defenses to 1.e4 in his post-Championship years. A bit of history first.

While he started off as an 1..e5 player, later Botvinnik largely abandoned the classical approach, and instead employed a variety of responses, usually preparing a new one for the next World Championship match. The Classical Sicilian with his trademark gxf6 served him reasonably well until the crushing defeat against Keres in the Alekhine Memorial 1956. Then, with a sprinkle of the Dragon, it was mainly the French, but it also took a hit in matches against Smyslov and Tal. For the return matches against both players, Botvinnik settled on the solid Caro-Kann, and this is basically where he stood when his World Championship days were over. Of course, he didn't have to worry about 1.e4 when he played Petrosian.

True to his fundamental approach to everything: it was time for a new opening, and Botvinnik surprised everyone by choosing the relatively unexplored Pirc Defense, later to be morphed into the Modern with 1...g6. His first experience came in the remarkable battle with German GM Wolfgang Unzicker in the same Alekhine Memorial, 1956. Notes from ChessBase by GM Valery Chekhov.

Wolfgang Unzicker vs Mikhail Botvinnik, 1956 (annotated by GM Valery Chekhov)

Botvinnik facing Unzicker in 1961

The same players continued their discussion six years later at the Varna Olympiad.

Wolfgang Unzicker vs Mikhail Botvinnik, 1962 (annotated by Alex Yermolinsky)

Granted, the opposition was accommodating, but Botvinnik's overall results in the Pirc/Modern were above all expectations: +14 = 6 with no losses! What helped Former Champ to achieve success was his great familiarity with Dragon and Caro-Kann structures, on the junctures of which the Modern Defense stood.

How about this one featuring the thematic exchange sac?

Aivars Gisplis vs Mikhail Botvinnik, 1963 (annotated by Alex Yermolinsky)

One intriguing question we'll never the answer to is what would have happened if Botvinnik played a match with Fischer in 1970. The Patriarch himself said he would have most likely lost, and indeed, giving the arguably best player who ever lived 32 years of age handicap would be hard to overcome. Yet, giving Botvinnik's mental toughness, I doubt it would be the full whitewash Taimanov and Larsen had received one year later. Too bad the negotiations fell through, since that match would have been one for the ages.

Mikhail Botvinnik played Bobby Fischer, 32 years his junior, only once, in 1962

Say, it were to take place, then what would Botvinnik have played against Fischer's 1.e4? Probably, more than one opening, and the Pirc could have been among them.

Let's see how Mikhail Moiseevich dealt with Bobby's beloved Austrian Attack.

Franciscus Kuijpers vs Mikhail Botvinnik, 1966 (annotated by Alex Yermolinsky)

Karpov's classical Nf3, Be2 was given a ride in the next encounter, where the Patriarch totally went trailblazing.

Marat Muhutdinov vs Mikhail Botvinnik, 1967 (annotated by Alex Yermolinsky)

In 1970 Botvinnik defended his Motherland's colors one last time. In the Century Match against the Rest of the World he took a modest position on Board 8. In both Black games against Yugoslavia's #2, Milan Matulovic, he employed the Pirc/Modern. Enjoy the games with match bulletin annotations.

Milan Matulovic vs Mihail Botvinnik, 1970 (notes from official bulletin)

In conclusion, I might add that despite his success with the new found opening, Botvinnik realized its limitations. Therefore, in critical encounters throughout the late stages of his career, particularly against strong players, he still trusted the Caro-Kann more. That's where his games with Tal (USSR Spartakiad 1964), Gligoric (European Team Ch 1965), Spassky and Tal again (USSR Team 1966) went. The same story was true in Botvinnik's last event, Leiden 1970, a four-player event with Spassky, Larsen and Donner – no Modern Defense there.

One might agree that the Pirc/Modern had some experimental value for the great Champion who enjoyed his sunset years in a low pressure chess environment. To play this way Botvinnik didn't have to worry about latest theoretical developments, however slow they were in coming compared to this day and age. So, it was 1...g6 with Black and 1.c4 with White, and let's play some chess!