Should I Play The Najdorf Sicilian as black as a 1475?

@tpr said ^

"Should I Play The Najdorf Sicilian as black as a 1475?"

• No, you can, but be prepared to lose horribly.

"I have learned the opening theory"

• No, you have not. Here is an example with like 20 moves of theory:
  https://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1993385

The only correct answer here is play what you like.

If you are playing in and around your skill level, you won't "lose horribly" because your opponents will not know the theory either, they will not be able to punish you, etc. If you are playing up at least 3 full classes, maybe. But most of that will be tactical oversights on your part, and less theoretical insults.

Chess theory at your level is like fast cars and fast women. Overrated. Unusable. Starts to smell funny after a while.

Most players here don't really know the theory, no matter what they say in forums, so play what you like.

Your opening repertoire should be short and narrow. If you think you know the Najdorf for the first several moves, build upon it. Just don't embarrass yourself by saying you, as a 1400 player, 'know the theory'.

Be humble:

"I'd like to play the Najdorf. I know some of the lines and want to include it in my repertoire. What do you think?"

Short answer: No

Long answer: Are you comfortable in the middlegame positions you are getting? Opening theory is generally worthless at the 1475 level because your fundamentals will be weak so any small advantage you get from the opening will not really lead to anything.

@Mrityunjay15 said ^

I have learned the opening theory

You probably didn't. Where did you learn it?

I play the Najdorf as my main weapon against 1.e4. In my opinion, the true nature of the Najdorf is strategic, not tactical. However, its strong focus on counterattack gives the game a very high tactical level, despite its solid strategic foundation. It is a double-edged defense, in which even the slightest mistake can prove fatal. Therefore, if you want to play it successfully, you need solid and in-depth strategic and tactical preparation—not strictly tied to the Najdorf itself. Knowing a lot of theory isn’t the answer: sooner or later, you’ll always find yourself in an unfamiliar, tense, and unbalanced position. In my opinion, it’s not advisable to play the Najdorf with an ELO rating below 1800. However, if you play chess just for fun and don’t mind winning or losing due to chance, give it a try and good luck!

"... It is illogical for one who has not earned his master title to ape the complicated opening variations played by, say, a world champion. After all, while the opening is indeed important in chess, it is still only one part of the game; victory can be found as well in the middlegame or endgame. Your only task in the opening is to reach a playable middlegame. ... How should we lay the foundations of our opening repertoire? It is hard to come up with a single answer to satisfy every player. Individuals will have different objectives in the opening, as well as different playing strengths. Nevertheless, to all players I can recommend the following: simplicity and economy. These are the characteristics of the opening systems of many great masters. They do not strain unduly for advantages in the opening; they would just as soon move on to the next phase of the game, hoping their skill will overcome the opponent in the middlegame or endgame. ... the most complicated variations demand huge amounts of time for home analysis, time available only to professional chess players. ... I will discuss here only openings and defenses that in my opinion offer simplicity and economy. ... The Dragon and Najdorf Variations ... have been analyzed to twenty moves and more; if a player without adequate preparation walks into an analyzed sequence he may lose even to a weaker opponent. Under no circumstances should you handle these variations in serious games unless you are a professional chess player with unlimited time for study. ..." - GM Lajos Portisch (1974)

@KMcGeoch said ^

Actually I'm of opinion that you can play any opening regardless of rating.

For example a 1475 is unlikely to know all the theory of the Najdorf but that equally applies to their opponents if they're playing people of a similar strength. As long as you know the general ideas, what you're aiming for and how to handle the most common line you'll be fine.

At least with Najdorf the lines I found tri...

thanks for the advice time to play grob

@rbhoopathi04 said ^

thanks for the advice time to play grob

IM Michael Basman played unorthodox openings like the Grob for his whole career. Tony Miles beat Karpov with the St George.

Basman even beat Jonathan Speelman who at one time was 5th in World Rankings with the Borg that's a Grob reversed in https://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1026276

Unorthodox lines are unorthodox for a reason but it's surprising how playable some lines can be. However I'd generally recommend lines seen more often at GM levels since they're more robust. Having said that things like the Blackmar-Diemer Gambit are never seen in GM play but are really effective at lower levels

If it works it works. Using openings is really feedback heavy on what your player pool looks like.

@KMcGeoch said ^

thanks for the advice time to play grob

IM Michael Basman played unorthodox openings like the Grob for his whole career. Tony Miles beat Karpov with the St George.

Basman even beat Jonathan Speelman who at one time was 5th in World Rankings with the Borg that's a Grob reversed in https://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1026276

Unorth...

ok i agree, i will play the bongcloud in my next tournament if i dont win its ur fault

@rbhoopathi04 said ^

ok i agree, i will play the bongcloud in my next tournament if i dont win its ur fault

While I would advise players to play lines they're familiar with it's up to you what you play. It's also not my fault if you get a winning position out the opening with the bongcloud and then mess up the endgame.

If you spend dozens of hours studying all the lines and going over games by Carlsen and Nakamura to understand exactly how they handle it you might even win. Having said that I'm sure there are better uses of your time.

Also most important thing is to take responsibility for your actions. If someone online says jump off a cliff then only an idiot would do so if it's clear it's a bad idea.