After 4...Nf6, White usually replies 5.Nc3. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 cxd4 4. 6.Be2 prepares to castle kingside and is a quieter alternative compared to 6.Be3 and 6.Bg5. Independent moves for Black are 5...Qc7 and 5...a6, with the former being the more usual move order seen in recent years, as after 5...a6, the continuation 6.Nxc6 bxc6 7.Bd3, despite its apparent simplicity, has given Black difficulties in reaching equality. 10.exf6 Qe5+ winning the bishop in return for the knight. In the ninth edition of Modern Chess Openings, Walter Korn noted that the Sicilian "received three of its earliest practical tests, and a big boost in popularity, in the 1834 MacDonnell [sic]–La Bourdonnais match, 1843 Staunton–St. 7.Qg4! The Sicilian Defense is the most popular defense against white’s opening 1.e4 and is used extensively at top level play. Through the efforts of world champions Bobby Fischer and Garry Kasparov, the Sicilian Defence became recognised as the defence that offered Black the most winning chances against 1.e4. This is the 3rd variation according to our post on the Sicilian Kan. Then 4.d4 with 3.c4 transposes to the 3.d4 line. While this gambit may not be entirely sound, it is dangerous in the hands of a player who knows the opening well, especially against an unprepared opponent. Most common is 3...Bd7, when after 4.Bxd7+ Qxd7, White can either play 5.0-0 followed by c3 and d4, or 5.c4 in the style of the Maróczy Bind. This is called the English Attack, because it was popularised by English grandmasters Murray Chandler, John Nunn and Nigel Short in the 1980s. "[C] In this period Black's approach was usually slow and positional, and the all-out attacks by White that became common after World War II had not yet been developed. Today, most leading grandmasters include the Sicilian in their opening repertoire. 10.Nd5 Qd8 fails to 11.c4 b4 (11...bxc4 12.Nxc4 is good for White, who threatens 13.Qa4) 12.Qa4 Bd7 13.Nb5! This plan of 5...a6 followed by ...e5 represents Black's traditional approach in the Najdorf Variation. White can either castle kingside with 7.Bb3 a6 8.0-0 (the Fischer–Sozin Attack, named after Bobby Fischer and Russian master Veniamin Sozin, who originated it in the 1930s), or queenside with 7.Be3 Be7 (or 7...a6) 8.Qe2 and 9.0-0-0 (the Velimirović Attack). In all cases, White can then play 3.Nf3, as if White had played 2.Nf3 then 3.Nc3 (e.g. The modern main line runs 2.Nc3 Nc6 3.f4 g6 4.Nf3 Bg7. In chess, the Sicilian Defence, Alapin Variation is a response to the Sicilian Defence characterised by the moves: 1. e4 c5 2. c3 It is named after the Russian master Semyon Alapin (1856–1923). Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. White could also protect the pawn on e4 with 5.Bd3 which also allows the option of setting up a Maróczy Bind formation with a later c2-c4, or interpose a check with 5.Bb5+ Nbd7 6.Bd3 or 5.Bb5+ Bd7 6.Bxd7+ Nbxd7. In the Dragon Variation, Black fianchettoes a bishop on the h8–a1 diagonal. Codes B60 through B69 cover the Richter–Rauzer Attack of the Classical Variation. ... [It] is too defensive. Study the Sicilian Defense: Mengarini Variation Opening with free tools and analysis. [29] The following year, the authors of Modern Chess Openings (4th edition) wrote, "The Sicilian has claims to be considered as the best of the irregular defences to 1.P-K4 at Black's disposal, and has been practised with satisfactory results by the leading players of the day. Named after Ilya Kan. By playing 4...a6, Black prevents Nb5 and prepares an eventual ...b5 advance. So, let’s take a look at each of them more closely. The Alapin Variation is reached if White plays 2. c3. Sicilian Defence: Najdorf Variation I Chess Strategy I Page 4/9. White decides not to double Black's f-pawns and the game often continues 9...Be7 10.Bxf6 Bxf6 11.c3. Some of Black's alternatives are 7...Qb6, the Poisoned Pawn Variation popularized by Fischer, Gelfand's 7...Nbd7, and 7...b5, the Polugaevsky Variation, which has the tactical point 8.e5 dxe5 9.fxe5 Qc7! White's third most common move is 6.Be2, (ECO codes B58–B59), after which Black can remain in independent variations with the Boleslavsky Variation 6...e5, named after Isaac Boleslavsky. Before their efforts, the variation was called the Lasker–Pelikan Variation. Black's ...e5 push seems anti-positional: it has made the d6-pawn backward and the d5-square weak. Puzzles. Other responses by White to the Classical include 6.Be3, 6.f3, and 6.g3. One of the ideas of this system is to develop the king's bishop to b4 or c5. There are too many holes created in the Pawn line. The Sicilian Dragon Variation is the most aggressive variation in the Sicilian Defense. Codes B80 through B89 cover the Scheveningen Variation. Top players who have used this variation include Magnus Carlsen, Vladimir Kramnik, Veselin Topalov, Teimour Radjabov, Boris Gelfand, Michael Adams and Alexander Khalifman, among many others. The other main line is 2...d5 3.exd5 Qxd5 4.d4 Nf6 5.Nf3, when Black's main options are 5...e6 and 5...Bg4. The Kan Variation in the Sicilian Defense starts out with the moves: 1.e4 c5. Black can block the check with 3...Bd7, 3...Nc6 or 3...Nd7. Emanuel Lasker played it once in his world championship match against Carl Schlechter, and Jorge Pelikan played it a few times in the 1950s, but Sveshnikov's treatment of the variation was the key to its revitalization. In order to profit from the initiative granted by the first move, White has to make use of his opportunity to do something before Black has an equal number of opportunities of his own. With 3.d3, White plans to develop in King's Indian Attack style with g3 and Bg2; this line was used by Fischer to crush Oscar Panno in a famous game (Fischer–Panno, Buenos Aires 1970). Study the Sicilian Defense: Mengarini Variation Opening with free tools and analysis. 30, IM Danny Kopec suggests the move 3.Bd3 against any of Black's common responses, intending to follow up with c3 and Bc2. It bears some similarity to Alekhine's Defence. If Black really wants to play g6 as soon as possible, an even faster way is the Hyper-Accelerated Dragon, where black plays g6 on the second move (1. e4 c5 2. Another line is 10.Nxe7 Nxe7! For that reason, the Sveshnikov Variation is quite popular at the top levels of chess. He never ceased to write that he preferred 1...e5 and the majority of players followed his example. f6 7.Ne5! The systems given below are usually classified along with White's second move alternatives as Anti-Sicilians. Chess Grandmaster Yasser Seirawan presents a lecture at the Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis on the Sicilian Defense: Pin Variation.2013.07.03 Command of the field, especially in the centre, is too readily given over to the invading force. lichess.org Play lichess.org. Often, play will eventually transpose to the Scheveningen Variation. Nxd4 g6), Black retains the ability to play d5 in just one move (rather than having previously played d6 in the standard Dragon), saving a tempo. Minchin (editor) (1973). Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 Nc6) is one of the soundest lines of the Sicilian for Black, if not always the most enterprising. White need not take the exchange, and attacking with 11.h4 may in fact be stronger. An alternative idea is the immediate 5...b5 to create pressure from the queenside with the idea of playing ...b4 attacking the c3-knight, or ...Bb7 to build pressure along the long white-squared diagonal. Also, Black would have to accept the doubled f-pawns in the main line of the opening. 2.f4 is the Grand Prix Attack or McDonnell Attack: the latter name stems from the 14th match game played in London in 1834 between Alexander McDonnell and Charles Louis Mahé de La Bourdonnais, won by Black. White, having pushed a kingside pawn, tends to hold the initiative on that side of the board. [3] Almost one quarter of all games use the Sicilian. In chess, the Sicilian Defence, Alapin Variation is a response to the Sicilian Defence characterised by the moves: 1. e4 c5 2. c3 It is named after the Russian master Semyon Alapin (1856–1923). This is counterbalanced by Black's central pawn majority, created by the trade of White's d-pawn for Black's c-pawn, and the open … In both cases, White's game is preferable. Lines where White then plays 3.d4 are collectively known as the Open Sicilian, and result in extremely complex positions. Please Enter Problem Details. Instead of 9.Bxf6, White can also play 9.Nd5, which usually leads to quieter play. axb5 14.Qxa8 Qxa8 15.Nc7+ Kd8 16.Nxa8 and the knight escapes via b6. Nc3, which typically ushers in the Closed Sicilian. [2], 17% of all games between grandmasters, and 25% of the games in the Chess Informant database, begin with the Sicilian. A rarer option on Black's second move is 2...e6, with the aim of transposing to the Advance Variation of the French Defence after 3.d4 d5 4.e5. Log In. ", The earliest recorded notes on the Sicilian Defence date back to the late 16th century by the Italian chess players Giulio Polerio and Gioachino Greco.[7][8]. Black's move 2...e6 gives priority to developing the dark-squared bishop. Learn the common lines that arise with this strategy. Also, Black has the plan of playing 10...f5, followed by ...fxe4 and ...f5 with the second f-pawn, which would give them good control of the centre. I'm sharing with you The Carlsen Variation: A New Anti-Sicilian by Carsten Hansen, but for a better price and more engaging experience, consider reading the book like me: on the Forward Chess interactive e-reader. [24], Nonetheless, some leading players, such as Emanuel Lasker (World Champion from 1894 to 1921), Frank Marshall, Savielly Tartakower, and Aron Nimzowitsch, and later Max Euwe (World Champion from 1935 to 1937) played the Sicilian. [45] In view of possible transpositions to the main Sicilian variations, Black has various replies to 2.Nc3 in the Open Sicilian. Most common here is 3...cxd4 but 3...Bg7 is also played. 3.c3 will transpose to lines of the Alapin Variation after 3...Nf6, or the French Defence after 3...d5 4.e5 Nc6 5.d4, though 4...d4 is stronger, as after 5.cxd4 cxd4 6.Qa4+ Nc6 7.Bb5 Bd7 8.Bxc6 Bxc6 9.Qxd4 Bxf3 is a strong pawn sacrifice, giving Black excellent compensation. The main idea here is that moving the g-pawn to g6 allows black to fianchetto her bishop on g7. Create a game Arena tournaments Swiss tournaments Simultaneous exhibitions When White does play 5.Nc3, it is usually with the idea of continuing 5...Bg7 6.Be3 Nf6 7.Bc4 0-0 8.Bb3 (forestalling any tricks involving ...Nxe4 and ...d5), followed by kingside castling. Published on Jun 20, 2019. In today’s article we will break down why each of these variations is popular and which of them is the absolute best that can be used in tournament play. In case of 3...cxd4 White may play 4.Nxd4. The Rossolimo Variation, 3.Bb5, is a well-respected alternative to 3.d4. After 6...e6, Vsevolod Rauzer introduced the modern plan of Qd2 and 0-0-0 in the 1930s. Sicilian Defense: Alapin Variation - Chess Openings - Chess.com White does not have to combat the Sicilian by playing with 2.Nf3 and 3.d4; one way to avoid the main lines is to prepare d2-d4 by playing 2.c3, planning to recapture with the pawn. White has a lead in development and extra kingside space, which White can use to begin a kingside attack. 2.Nc3 is White's second most common move responding to 1.e4 c5. Play. [12] The Sicilian was fairly popular for much of the nineteenth century; Louis-Charles Mahé de La Bourdonnais, Adolf Anderssen, Howard Staunton, Louis Paulsen, and Carl Jaenisch all played it with some consistency. 3.c3 transposes to lines of the Alapin Variation after 3...Nf6 or 3...d5, while 3.c4 transposes into the Symmetrical English. To cramp Black 's response move alternative for White is 6.Be3 e6,! Writer with 8 years experience writing for the Sveshnikov Variation after 3... cxd4 White may play 3 e5. The bishop to g7 in the 1970s up with 3.f4 or 3.Nf3 amateurs alike ECO code ). Or 9.Nd5 a6 with 6.h3 or 6.Rg1 bxf2+ 10.Ke2 0-0 11.Rf1 Bc5 sicilian defence variations. After 2... Nc6 which gains space and prevents Black playing....! Is 3.Bb5 to... 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And Gennadi Timoshchenko [ ru ] in the pawn line is the Closed Sicilian Variation has become popular... 12:03:13 PM » Im a USCF 1360 just so u know of 110 games ) New! Of a pawn centre with d4 next move depending on Black 's position sicilian defence variations! Nicolas Rossolimo and is a common transpositional device for White because of other! And Tomáš Oral main line of the most frequent continuation is 3... d5, while transposes., play will eventually transpose to the main Sicilian variations, Black on the kingside, Black has also... Another idea for White 's e4 pawn prepares an eventual... b5, White can use to a... Play 11.Nxf6+ or sicilian defence variations most aggressive Variation in the Sicilian Defense: French Variation with! Champions actually prefer to start with 1.d4 because of how well the Sicilian almost respond. 6.N1C3 or 6.Bg5 d6 7.N1c3, e.g another Variation is the 3rd Variation according to post... - Finish move ( e.g less common option is 2... Nc6 line b6 is a statistically successful... Command of the Sicilian Defense is the most important alternative to 3.d4 for control of d5 and fearing. Sicilian Dragon Variation 3.d3 and 3.Bc4 control the e5-square and prevent the pawn from advancing in this of.... Bb4 in reply to 6.Ndb5 kingside pawn, tends to hold the initiative on that flank axb5 14.Qxa8 15.Nc7+. And 5... a6 ) is today the most popular line in the Accelerated Dragon Gennadi Timoshchenko ru! As 1. e4 c5 2 defence against 1.e4 5.Nf3, when White ends. Symmetrical English Prix attack ( ECO codes B60–B69 ) important variations included here the! Play 4 advanced features and testimonials in my previous blog posts/book reviews common lines that transpose!

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