Lifetime Repertoires Taimanov & Kan Sicilian + PGN Jun 22, 2026 Chessable

This “Spear and Shield” Sicilian
Gives You Two Ways To Beat 1.e4

On one hand, you cut and thrust with the pointed piece play of the Taimanov. On the other, you deflect White’s aggression with the Kan, before bashing them back with a counterattack. Between these two, you’re twice as hard to prepare against, and you have twice the winning chances.

Grandmaster Baskaran Adhiban shows you exactly how to make the most of both.

He’s “The Beast” of Indian chess.

He walked into the 2017 Tata Steel Masters as its lowest-rated player.

Then he upset one super-GM after another to finish 3rd — behind only Magnus Carlsen (16th World Champion) and Wesley So (3-time U.S. Champion).

At the 2019 World Team Championship, Adhiban went 6 out of 9 without losing a game. He won gold, while his rating hit 2701.

And he’s played this “spear and shield” double-Sicilian himself.

He uncorked the Taimanov in the final round to win the 47th Biel Chess Festival.

Adhiban with the Taimanov about to take
down a former world #95 Grandmaster

Then at the 1st Festival Caissa Rapid Open, he played the Kan to cement his score of 8/9, finishing clear 1st.

Adhiban knows which ideas stand the test of time and which ones don’t. He’s faced the toughest lines White has to offer and came out on top.

The result:

A Double Black Repertoire That Holds Up
Whether You’re Playing At The
Club or Gunning for 2700

Your starting moves stay the same — 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 e6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4.

With this flexible setup, you dictate how
the fight goes in the next 10 to 15 moves
— tactical or positional

From here, Adhiban gives you 2 ways to fight for the full point.

Want a setup that adapts, counters, and seizes the initiative from White? Then you play the Taimanov with 4…Nc6 and 5…Qc7.

The starting position of the
Taimanov Sicilian

At the heart of his Taimanov repertoire is the chapter on Be3-Qf3 by White.

These computer lines were a serious challenge. But Adhiban has found the right counter, which you can sum up in a sentence:

You create one threat after another through the dark squares.

You never let White put their good-looking position to good use.

Watch how — threat after threat — your
attack gains momentum, while White’s
gets nowhere

And if their sharpest tries are no longer a problem? You can bet the rest give you even better winning chances.

The English Attack — you beat White to the punch by pinning their c3-knight. Then you pile on the pressure until their structure takes permanent damage.

The Maroczy Bind — it never gets a grip. Your pieces run too active along the b8-h2 diagonal.

And those fianchetto lines?

The slower White plays, the easier it gets for you.

You just line up your pawns and pieces along the 3rd rank to complete your development.

Then square by square, you grab your bigger share of central space. And White can’t stop it, because their setup is more solid than aggressive.

If on move 4 you want a resilient defense built on ideas — one where your pawns and pieces are almost never out of place…

Then you play the Kan with 4…a6.

The starting position of
the Kan Sicilian

This little pawn move makes your life easy.

By holding back the b8-knight, you pass the move back to White.

You make them show their hand first.

Then you answer back with the plan that gives you the most harmonious and ambitious position, for as little theory as possible.

Like lining up a double fianchetto to take control of the key squares in the center…

You control the terrain, so you can take
your time bringing in reinforcements for
the queenside breakthrough

Melting White’s space advantage with …d5 then …f6…

White cannot hang on to their extra
space, and your bishops are about
to become their problem

Or counterattacking from the diagonals and creating threats faster than anything White could muster.

In this position where their king
is almost mated, White must find
“only” moves to survive your
attack along the diagonals

“But what if White tries to sidestep the Taimanov and Kan altogether?”

Adhiban has that covered, too…

Through 10 focused chapters that take on 15 of White’s second-move alternatives — the Alapin (2.c3), the Closed Sicilian (2.Nc3), the King’s Indian Attack (2.d3), even the oddball 2.Na3. No loose ends.