How Petrosian Teaches You to Defend Like a Pro

The player considered the best defensive player in the history of chess was Tigran Petrosian. He was World Champion from 1963 to 1969.

He was especially known for using prophylaxis to avoid trouble. As Fischer once said about him: He has an incredible tactical view, and a wonderful sense of danger... No matter how deeply you calculate, he will 'smell' any kind of danger 20 moves before!

This is a position from the game Reshevsky–Petrosian. How would you defend with Black?

White has a better position thanks to a strong center, more active pieces, and the bishop pair. It’s not easy to find a way to stop their attack. But Petrosian managed to do it:

The game ended in a draw - you can check the rest of it below:

What can you learn from Petrosian?
That in chess, there are 3 basic methods of defending:

• Stopping the direct threat – When you see that your opponent is threatening to capture something or gain an advantage, you must act to prevent it.

• Prophylaxis – You stop the threat before it even happens. One of the true masters of this method was Tigran Petrosian, one of the greatest defensive players in chess history.

• Exchanging attacking pieces – By trading the pieces that are attacking you, you reduce your opponent’s attacking potential. The fewer attacking pieces they have, the less dangerous their attack becomes.

And small desert for the end: