The ...Bd7 System
The Move White Rarely Prepares For
After 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3, White players come prepared for the Najdorf, the Sveshnikov, the Richter-Rauzer, the Dragon and other variations. Years of work go into those systems. Very little goes into 5...Bd7.
That gap is the starting point of The Hidden Sicilian Weapon: The ...Bd7 System by IM Nikola Nikolovski and IM Emil Risteski. The move is rare, yet it has been tested at the highest level by players such as Magnus Carlsen, Arjun Erigaisi and Yu Yangyi, though more often in quicker time controls than in classical chess.
The analysis also goes beyond the existing literature. In the critical 6.f3 line, the published White repertoires stop one after another, and the course’s main line continues from the point where they end.
What Makes the ...Bd7 System Different
The central idea is flexibility. Black does not show his cards early. The bishop on d7 is useful in Dragon structures, in Richter-Rauzer lines, and in Najdorf or Sveshnikov-type of positions after ...e5. Black chooses the setup only after seeing White’s sixth move.
Many players expect a transposition to the Classical Sicilian after ...Nc6, but the differences matter. Against 6.Bg5, White’s most played move, Black plays ...h6 later on and recaptures on f6 with the queen. This wins White’s important dark-squared bishop without accepting doubled f-pawns.
Against the sidelines, Black usually goes for a Dragon setup. Here White no longer has the most dangerous plans with h4, those of the Yugoslav Attack.
The real test is 6.f3, the English Attack setup that avoids ...Ng4. It was long considered a refutation of 5...Bd7. The authors’ analysis goes deeper than the engine’s first impressions, and their conclusion is that Black holds well.
Beyond the Published Analysis
The main line shows how far the course goes. After 6.f3 e5 7.Nb3 Be7 8.Be3 O-O 9.Qd2 a5 10.a4, Black plays 10...Na6. GM Pier Luigi Basso, GM Jose Martinez Alcantara and IM Dragos Ceres do not mention this move in their Sicilian course for White.
After 11.O-O-O, the most popular reply is 11...Nb4. The course instead recommends 11...Nc7, which prepares both ...d5 and ...b5. GM Arjun Kalyan’s Open Sicilian course mentions only 11...Nb4.
GM Sina Movahed’s repertoire follows the line until 12.Bb6, and the main chapter of this course starts there. GM Ivan Cheparinov’s course goes furthest, reaching 12...Qb8 13.Kb1 Bc6 14.Bd3. It does not mention the course’s key move, 14...Kh8!.
This is prophylaxis before ...Nd7. With the king off g8, a later Bxh7 no longer comes with check. Black can then carry out the planned exchanges on d5 safely.
The Authors
Viewers of The Chess Thinking Process – Static Factors and Planning will recognise IM Nikola Nikolovski’s approach here: decide on a plan according to what the position offers. In the ...Bd7 System, Black does exactly that, choosing the setup only after White’s sixth move.
IM Emil Risteski makes his Modern Chess debut with this course. He is an International Master from Macedonia rated 2431 FIDE.
The two authors share the same reasoning. A practical weapon should do two things: put the opponent on unfamiliar ground early, and give Black clear, understandable plans once the surprise is over.
An opening repertoire is only one part of a player’s preparation. For the other end of the game, 9 Steps to Endgame Mastery, which Nikolovski co-authored with IM Filip Pancevski, offers a structured path through the endings that decide so many practical games.
Map of Variations
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 Bd7
6.f3 e5 7.Nb3 Be7 8.Be3 O-O 9.Qd2 a5 10.a4 Na6
- 11.O-O-O Nc7 12.Bb6 Qb8 13.Kb1 Bc6 14.Bd3 Kh8! → Chapter 6
- 11.Bb5 Bxb5 12.axb5 Nb4, and White’s other alternatives after 6.f3 → Chapter 5
6.Bg5 e6 7.Qd2 a6 8.O-O-O h6 9.Bxf6 Qxf6 → Chapter 1
- 7.Ndb5 Bxb5 8.Bxb5+ Nc6 → Chapter 1
- 7.Qd3 h6 8.Bh4 a6 9.O-O-O Nc6 10.f4 g5!? → Chapter 1
6.Be2 e5 7.Ndb5 Bc6 → Chapter 2
- 7.Nb3 Bc6 → Chapter 2
6.Bc4 Nc6
- 7.O-O e6 8.Be3 Be7 9.f4 O-O 10.Qf3 Rc8 11.Bb3 Nxd4 12.Bxd4 b5 → Chapter 3
- 7.Be3 e6 8.Qe2 Rc8 9.O-O-O Ne5! (...Rxc3! ideas) → Chapter 3
6.Be3 Ng4 7.Bg5 h6 8.Bh4 g5 9.Bg3 Bg7 → Chapter 4
6.g3 Nc6 7.Bg2 g6 8.O-O Bg7 9.Nde2 Qc8 → Chapter 7
6.f4 Nc6 7.Nf3 g6 → Chapter 8
6.h3 Nc6 7.Be3 g6 8.Qd2 Bg7 9.O-O-O O-O 10.g4 b5! → Chapter 9
6.Bd3, 6.Bb5, 6.a4, 6.Rg1, 6.h4, 6.Nb3 → Chapter 10
Course Features
- 10 Chapters
- 20 Test Positions
- Memory Booster
- To Go Version of Every Chapter
- Video Instruction
- Multilingual PGN (English, German, French, Spanish)
Add the ...Bd7 System to Your Repertoire
The ...Bd7 System gives you a well-tested Open Sicilian repertoire that most White players have studied little, if at all, with analysis that goes beyond the published sources. Get The Hidden Sicilian Weapon: The ...Bd7 System and take your opponents out of their preparation from move five.