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Sharp Sicilian counter-attack

Sharp Sicilian counter-attack

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Sicilian counter-attack, also known as the Pin Variation is a very sharp way of playing in the Sicilian Defense. Black immediately develops minor pieces and creates threats in the center. It was played by such strong players like Alekhine, Aronian or Muzychuk. Nowadays it lost its popularity but White has to play in a very accurate way to get a good position. Among players with rating below 2000, not that many know how to play against it properly. So it gives an advantage to the better-prepared side. There are also a lot of tricky lines, so it can be a surprising weapon, especially in blitz games.

That line is also in my opening repertoire and I play it sometimes.
Below you can find the position from my game (Black to move). When you solve the puzzle, you will see the whole game with short comments.
You can also watch the whole game with live commentary:

Hopefully, that short article will increase your interest in that tricky Sicilian line.

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