Kings Indian Defense: Fianchetto Yugoslav Kavalek
King’s Indian Defense
Definition
The King’s Indian Defense (ECO codes E60–E99) is a hyper-modern reply to 1.d4 that begins
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7.
Black allows White to occupy the centre with pawns, intending to undermine it later with breaks such as …e5 or …c5.
Typical Usage
- Employed by Black as a fighting opening when playing for a win.
- Works well in rapid and blitz because of the rich attacking chances on the kingside.
- Appears in repertoire books under headings like “play for a win with Black against 1.d4.”
Strategic & Historical Significance
Popularised by Soviet grandmasters (Boleslavsky, Bronstein, Geller) in the 1940s, the King’s-Indian became a mainstay of Bobby Fischer’s and later Garry Kasparov’s repertoires. The opening illustrates hyper-modern principles: ceding the centre temporarily in order to strike back with pieces and pawn breaks.
- Typical Plan for Black: castle short, play …e5 (or …c5), maneuver Nf6–h5–f4 or Nd7–f6, then pawn-storm with …f5–f4.
- Typical Plan for White: expand in the centre with d5 or e4–e5, or play the fianchetto system with g3 to restrict Black’s kingside attack.
Illustrative Example
The famous Game 16 of the 1985 World Championship (Kasparov–Karpov) featured the Classical Main Line:
Interesting Facts
- Garry Kasparov scored over 70 % with it as Black in his peak years (1982-1990) .
- Some engines initially “dislike” the King’s Indian because of space deficits, but long analysis often shows sharp resources and hidden equality.
- The ‘Bayonet Attack’ (9.b4) was named by GM John Nunn, who likened White’s pawn to a bayonet stabbing Black’s queenside.
Fianchetto
Definition
From the Italian “little window,” a fianchetto is a development scheme in which a bishop is
placed on the long diagonal behind a flank pawn that has advanced one square (g2, b2, g7 or
b7). Example: g3, Bg2 for White or …g6, …Bg7 for Black.
Usage in Chess
- Enhances king safety when combined with castling on the same side.
- Controls long diagonals and key central squares (e4, d5, e5, d4).
- Appears in numerous openings: King’s Indian Defense, Catalan, Grünfeld, English Opening, Pirc/Modern, Nimzo-Larsen (1.b3), etc.
Strategic Significance
A fianchettoed bishop can become the strongest minor piece on the board, but if the protecting pawn is exchanged (…gxf6 or …bxc3), the diagonal and the castled king may become vulnerable.
Examples
Catalan Opening: 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 →
White’s Bg2 pressures the long a8-h1 diagonal.
King’s Indian: 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 →
Black’s bishop eyes d4 and f2.
Interesting Anecdotes
- GM Bent Larsen loved double-fianchetto setups with both bishops wielding the long diagonals.
- David Bronstein once joked, “I don’t need knights if I can have two fianchettoed bishops— they jump further!”
Yugoslav Attack
Definition
Better known simply as “the Yugoslav,” this is White’s most aggressive system against the
Sicilian Dragon. The critical tabiya arises after
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 g6 6.Be3 Bg7 7.f3, with typical follow-ups
8.Qd2, 9.0-0-0, h4-h5.
Usage
- White castles long and storms the kingside with pawns (g4, h4, h5).
- Black counters on the queenside (…a6, …b5, …b4) and targets c3 and a2.
Strategic/Historical Notes
The name credits a group of post-war Yugoslav grandmasters—Svetozar Gligorić, Borislav Ivkov and Dragoljub Janosevic—who refined the system in the 1950s. It became the theoretical battleground of the 1990s, tested by Garry Kasparov, Veselin Topalov and many others.
Model Game
Topalov – Ponomariov, Linares 2002, featured the famous exchange sacrifice …Rxc3!! leading to a perpetual attack.
Interesting Facts
- Engines show the opening to be sound for both sides, but the game scores are volatile: with perfect play a draw is expected, yet over-the-board results are decisive more than 70 % of the time.
- World Champion Magnus Carlsen occasionally employs the Dragon but often sidesteps the Yugoslav with an early …a6 move order.
Kavalek
Definition
Lubomír Kaválek (1943-2021) was a Czech-American Grandmaster, prolific writer, coach, and
opening theoretician. Although “Kavalek” is a person rather than a move, his name is used
for several lines, most notably the Kavalek Variation of the Queen’s Indian
(1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 b6 4.g3 Bb7 5.Bg2 Bb4+).
Contributions & Usage
- Helped Nigel Short prepare for the 1993 World Championship match versus Kasparov.
- Co-inventor of the Kavalek System in the King’s Indian (an early …Na6 idea).
- Chess columnist for The Washington Post, making high-level analysis accessible to the public.
Historical Significance
Ranked in the world top-10 during the 1970s and served as U.S. team captain in multiple Olympiads, bringing modern opening ideas—including the Hedgehog and certain Grünfeld sidelines—to American players.
Notable Game
Kavalek – Fischer, Havana (tele-chess) 1965: Kavalek scored a rare draw against Fischer’s ferocious King’s Indian.
Interesting Anecdotes
- Fluent in five languages, he acted as translator at the 1972 Fischer-Spassky match.
- Once played four games simultaneously while giving a live TV interview—he won all four.
Bronstein–Larsen Defense
Definition
This flexible hyper-modern opening for Black arises after
1.d4 g6 2.c4 Bg7 3.Nc3 and usually continues with 3…d6 or 3…c5.
It is a branch of the Modern Defense bearing the names of David Bronstein and Bent Larsen,
who independently championed the early …g6 setup against 1.d4 during the 1960s.
Typical Usage
- Chosen by players wishing to avoid the heavy theory of the King’s Indian and Grünfeld yet keep similar piece activity.
- Allows rapid transposition into the Pirc (after …Nf6, …d6) or into a Modern Benoni (after …c5).
Strategic Features
Black stays flexible, often striking with …c5 or …e5 only after White defines the centre. A fianchettoed bishop on g7 eyes the central light squares and the long diagonal towards a1.
Illustrative Example
Interesting Facts
- Bent Larsen employed the defense to upset World Champion Tigran Petrosian in Bled 1965.
- Bronstein liked the …c5 move order because it could transpose into his beloved Benoni structures, calling it “one opening with many faces.”
- The line is enjoying a modern revival in online blitz thanks to its surprise value and the absence of forced draws.