Alumbrado:
I don't play the Pirc myself, but unlike GM Dzindzi I do think that it's a perfectly respectable opening and has a right to live.
Perhaps in your main line (i.e., after 1.Nf3 d6 2.e4 Bg7 3. d4 d6 4.Nc3 Nf6 5.h3 0-0 6.Be3 a6 7.a4 b6 8.e5 Nfd7 9.e6!? fxe6 10.Bd3) 10...c5 is worth looking at more closely, as it seems thematic for Black to react to White's flank attack with some central action if it can be made to work tactically.
I don't think that the line GM Davies gives in "The Dynamic Reti" following 10...c5 is entirely convincing (although I don't see anything that is necessarily much of an improvement for White): After 10...c5 he gives 11.h4 Bb7 12. Ng5 cxd4 13.Nxe6 Qc8 14.Nxd4 (the alternatives are worse, e.g., 14.Nxf8 Nxf8! -+; 14.Nxg7 dxe3 -+; 14.Bxd4 Bxd4 14.Nxd4 Qc5! (Fritz) 15.Nf3 Ne5! 16.Be2 and Black has a choice between taking twice on f3 and playing Qe5+, or playing for an attack with Nbd7; in both cases he seems to be better) and here he gives 14...Bxd4? (my question mark) 15.Bxd4 e5 16.Be3, saying Black's position looks very exposed, which it does. However, 14...Bxd4 looks somewhat suicidal to me, and Black seems to have various more promising ideas. For example, 14...Ne5 looks interesting, with possibilities of Nxd3 or Bxg2 followed by Nf3+, both trying to defuse White's attack. Some sample lines after 14...Ne5:
(A) If White continues in the same caveman vein as Dzindzi's other lines with 15.h4, Black seems okay after 15....Bxg2 16.Rg1 (16.Rh2?! Nf3+ 17.Nxf3 Bxf3 18.Qd2 Qg4! 19.Bf1 Nc6, and Black seems significantly better with White's King stuck in the center and ideas like Be5 or Rac8, Ne5 and Nc4...) 16...Nf3+ 17.Nxf3 Bxf3 18.Qd2 (18.Be2 Bxc3+ 19.bxc3 Qxc3+ 20.Kf1 Bxe2+ 21.Kxe2 Qc4+ 22.Qd3 [If 22.Ke1, then 22...Nc6 with the idea of Nc6-e5-f3 probably forces an improved version of the Q exchange in a few moves anyway] 22...Qxd3 23.cxd3 Nbd7 24.hxg6 hxg6 25.Rg1 and after something like 25...Rf6 White may have enough compensation for one pawn, but I doubt he has enough for two) 18...Bxh5 and Black looks somewhat better, e.g. 19.Nd5 Ra7! 20. Nxb6 Qh3 (Fritz) and Black is a pawn up and White's King probably is not going to be any safer than Black's, and possibly will be less safe.
(B) After the safer 15.f3, Black could try 15...Nbc6 (among other moves) when he seems to have a very playable position, e.g. 16.Nd5 (16.h5? seems to just lose to 16...Nxd4 17.Bxd4 Nxf3+ 18.gxf3 Bxd4, when Black must be winning; White must do something to meet Black's threat of taking on d4 and then f3) 16..Nxd3+ 17.Qxd3 Bxd4! 18.Bxd4 Qe6+ 19.Ne3 Rf4!? (19...Rac8 20.0-0 Rf4 21.Bxb6 Rxh4 also looks okay for Black, and Black has other possibilities here as well) 20.Bxb6 (20.Bc3 Nb4 21.Bxb4 Rxb4 22.h5 Rc8 [22...Rxb2!?] seems fine for Black) 20...Ne5 21.Qb3 (21.Qd2?? Nc4-+, and 21.Qe2 looks quite risky after 21...a5! with the idea of Ba6, when Black seems to get a strong attack) 21...Qxb3 22.cxb3 and after either 21...Rb4 22.Ba5 Rxb3 23.Bc3 Nd3+ (23...Rc8!?) or 21...Rc8!?, I suspect that Black is at least not worse and may have some chances to play for an advantage in this ending.
(C) After 15.0-0, White's Ph4 seems slightly misplaced, Black's bishops are nice on the long diagonals, and Black may even be somewhat better after something like 15...Nxd3 (15...Nc4!?) 16.cxd3 (16.Qxd3?! e5! 17.Nde2 [17.Nf3? Rxf3! is winning] Qc6 18.f3 d5 and Black looks much better) and now after something like 16...Kh8 (White was threatening Qb3+) both sides have their chances but I would prefer to be Black.
Of course, White may have other tries as well or improvements in the lines I have given (long analysis, wrong analysis!), but my general impression is that the 10...c5 idea is probably the critical test of White's rather crude attacking approach. Sometimes the old rules ("respond to an attack on the flank with an attack in the center") still apply.
On a somewhat related topic, and notwithstanding my disagreement with him on this particular line, I like GM Davies' book "The Dynamic Reti" quite a bit. Although I am more of a d4 player, I often use a 1.Nf3 move order and sometimes play Reti lines for variety, and I think Davies has done an excellent job of demonstrating how White can try for an edge/initiative in a number of critical Reti lines. (I note that Randy Bauer's review of the book on Jeremy Silman's website is also very positive.) I recommend this book to anyone interested in developing a Reti repertoire.
- Geof
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Dangerous Pirc line (Read 10575 times)
