Reviving the KID with Sam Shankland

When discussing the King's Indian Defence, few names come to mind before Bobby Fischer, the American genius who won countless attacking masterpieces with the KID. His play was so convincing that he convinced himself the classical main line (Mar del Plata) was a forced loss for White. After Fischer, the torch passed to Kasparov who combined extensive opening preparation in the KID with the tactical brilliance of his predecessor.

The modern era of engines extinguished much of the magic that the KID offered. Radjabov and Nakamura attempted to revive the opening in the early 2000s and 2010s, but their eventual shift to solid repertoires based on the QGD and Semi-Tarrasch sadly prevents them from being considered successors to Fischer and Kasparov.

Who would prove themselves worthy to take up the gauntlet, sacrificing a +0.50 engine evaluation for swashbuckling complications and chances to win with the Black pieces?

"In the midst of chaos, there is also opportunity" - Sun Tzu.

In May 2024, Sam Shankland unleashed Shankland 2.0, scoring 6.5/9 on his way to tying for first at the strong Sharjah Masters open tournament. The KID brought him two of his four wins, of which I have analyzed one below with my comments.

The next game was played today at the Biel Masters tournament and it is a very impressive piece of preparation indeed.

~Hurburt