The KID is back in town
Review by Steve Giddins
There are few openings which have more of a
cult following than the King’s Indian, probably the most respected of Black’s
dynamic options against 1 d4. After a period in the doldrums, as far as the
super-GM popularity stakes are concerned, the KID is firmly back on the agenda,
thanks largely to the efforts of that other “Kid”, Teimour Radjabov. His 3.5 /
4 score with the opening at the 2007 Corus Wijk aan Zee tournament has once
against made it the centre of attention.

Amongst the super-GMs of the past 15 years,
Alexei Shirov is one, who has played a major role in the theoretical and
practical debates over the KID. Unlike many others, his experiences are not
confined only to one side of the board, as he has extensive experience as both
White and Black in this opening. This makes him almost uniquely qualified
amongst the world’s top players to explain the nuances of this most
complicated, but rewarding, of opening systems. On this DVD, he does exactly
that, presenting 12 of his most interesting King’s Indian battles, half as
White, and half as Black. The vast majority concern the Classical System,
starting 1 d4 Nf6 2 c4 g6 3 Nc3 Bg7 4 e4 d6 5 Nf3 0-0 6 Be2 e5 7 0-0 Nc6 8 d5
Ne7. Of all KID lines, this is possibly the sharpest and most principled
approach for both sides. White sets out to prove that his space advantage and
qualitative pawn majority on the queenside is the most important factor, whilst
Black prepares to counterattack on the kingside. It is certainly not a line for
those of a nervous disposition, but suits chessboard warriors, and it is no
surprise that the various champions of the two sides include such legendary
fighters as Fischer, Kasparov and Korchnoi, as well as Shirov himself.

Shirov’s opponents, in the over five hours
of action on this DVD, include such champions and KID experts as Kramnik
(twice), Gelfand, Nunn, and Radjabov himself. Shirov’s overall score in the
above games is 4/5, which says all one needs to know about his expertise in the
KID. In addition to the 12 main games, many other game fragments are mentioned
in the commentaries, which build into an unrivalled guide to the intricacies of
one of the most complicated and controversial opening systems in modern chess.
Start Gelfand vs. Shirov here (video in reduced quality)...
In addition to the most well-known
opponents, I was especially impressed with Shirov’s exposition of his 1991 game
against Zigurds Lanka. This game had an interesting background, as Lanka was
Shirov’s trainer at the time, and it was he who had been responsible for Shirov
playing the KID as Black during the period. The two had spent much time
analysing the opening together, so Shirov’s first task was to find a way to
avoid lines they had already dissected. This apart, the game shows a classic
strategic king march by White, whose monarch first castles short, and then
marches all the way to b3, before the final assault is launched by White – not
on the queenside, as is usual, but on the kingside. Such is the strategic depth
of the Classical Variation, all the more reason for devotees to take this great
opportunity of over five hours of top-class tuition from one of the line’s
leading experts.
Whether you are a KID player yourself, for
either colour, or merely want to see one of the world’s strongest and most
exciting GMs demonstrating some of his most interesting games, you are sure to
love this DVD.