Finally.

Crush the Sicilian - Two of my favorite responses against 1.c5!

Phantom_Beast23

Updated: Jan 23, 2021, 10:10 AM | 37

Hi, this is @Phantom_Beast23, and after finally finishing my study on ways to refute the Sicilian, I have found two great ways to respond. Obviously, like all openings, these have flaws, but the initiative or the motive is just what I love about these two responses. The Sicilian is just such an aggressive opening and a famed one too which is why I decided to study the refutations against this first. I never really liked the opening, but after some of the research I did, I realized how truly beautiful the opening really is.

I was also planning this blog to be one about Garry Kasparov, but I was just too eager to make this blog firstI also thought that it would make sense since I wanted people to also know how much time I had actually spent studying lol.

Anyways let's start.

The Alapin Variation:

This is probably my most favorite variation or defense against the Sicilian. It helped my gain 60 rating points in blitz and overall is just so solid. The move is just really solid but it can blow up in your face if it's not correctly defended! It's also nice as it's not as common as the Open Sicilian or the Closed. Ive seen it's not as studied as some of the other moves, so I would recommend to start studying this variation

One reason the Alapin is so good is because you can gain a positional advantage early in the game since c3 adds as a supporter to the crucial d4 square which also supports 3.d4 at some point or 4.d4 If you choose to go 3.Nf3. When I learned this opening, it honestly blew my mind, especially after the success I had with it.

Fun Fact - In the match, Deep Blue vs. Garry Kasparov, Deep Blue decided to play the Alapin knowing how Kasparov excelled at the Open Sicilian!

Here's a game I played featuring the Sicilian Alapin!

This game was in a school USCF tournament that was hosted on chess.com. I ended up getting 6/8 in my section! This was probably the best game in the tournament! My opponent definitely had his mistakes, but it was still a very nice game in my opinion. For more detail about the game, check the annotations above.

For people that want to see the game, https://www.chess.com/live/game/6173909986

I also wanted to share a game that was played by GMs Judit Polgar and Garry Kasparov. This game was played back in 2002 in which ended in a draw. This game featured the Delayed Alapin( I couldn't insert this as a game so here is the link if interested: https://www.chess.com/games/view/76126)

This was a nice, solid game. It didn't last very long, but the game itself was pleasant with a bunch of solid moves. Not too exciting, but nice.

Another nice thing is that, there's no full way that can truly refute this. Even after Nc6 comes at some point, Nf3 just comes and after that, there's honestly no great way to get rid of this unless you want to trade off everything, which is common in Alapin games.

I honestly salute the guy that was brilliant enough to come up with this lol.

Anyways, let's see some pros and cons for a full assessment on this opening:

Pros

- After 3.d4 or 4.d4, this controls a lot of the center squares, and if black plans to trade off everything, You'll still end up being up on development

- Can give an advantage sometime in the middle game if pieces are developed as black wont be able to move much

Cons

- Requires some theory which people tend to dislike (This took me some time to think as I was tempted to say there's no big con, but it's impossible for an opening to have no cons)

Anyways, I'd probably rate this as an A just because it's honestly amazing, though it might be a bit bias to me since I've had a ton of success.

The only reason(s) this isn't an A+ is because no opening is perfect, and it requires some theory, especially if you're at the higher level.

2. Smith Morra Gambit

I personally don't have much experience with the Smith Morra, as I've only played it twice. Though when I was studying openings, I found this opening intriguing as it's like the Scandinavian for white against the Sicilian. I don't have as much to talk about as I did with Alapin, but I still wanted to talk about this nonetheless.

This isn't as common as the open air even the Sicilian, and isn't even common with GMs or people at that level. But I would definitely recommend trying it if you are U1900.

This is kind of like the Danish Gambit where you sacrifice a pawn or two to get ahead in development. Obviously, we all know that being ahead in development can shape out the future of the game so the Smith Morra is definitely good. The opening isn't as explosive as the Danish Gambit, as with the the Danish, you can create a few traps here and there, unlike the Smith Morra.

There's a few variations that are played in the Smith Morra. My personal favorite is the one below:

It's a very nice opening position, especially for white since they're now ahead. White is pretty far ahead in development. Black's positions is actually solid too, as e6 is a very defensive move, hard for white to penetrate.

This line is very flexible with different moves as well which is something a lot of people like which is one reason I would recommend this.

I also wouldn't recommend playing this unless you're a Mozart at the opening as to play it efficiently, it needs to be properly studied. It's the main reason I don't play it often too.

Here's a cool game that was played between Miguel Najdorf, and Savielly Tartakower. What's cool is that both of these players have their names in the Sicilian as Najdorf was the founder of the Najdorf variation of the Sicilian, and Tartakower is the founder of the Tarkatower variation in the Sicilian , though it's not as commonly played. The Tartakower variation is what was played in this game:

For people that want the game annotated, my annotations are above. I wanted to show this game because it was the perfect game to show why the Smith Morra isnt as played as unlike the Alapin or the Open Sicilian, it's hard to get an advantage in the middle game, which is why a lot of people don't play it.

Anyways, now time for a pros and cons assessment

Pros

- Leads to early development

- Great compensation for two pawns

Cons

- Doesn't have a great response once the game is reached to the Mid-Game point and can lead to awkward positions

I would give this a solid B+ as if you're opponent doesn't know how to respond, then they're finished. And chances are. they won't know how to respond as it's not as popular as the Open or Alapin. But if they do know Smith Morra theory, then it may end up as a tough game which is why I'm not the biggest fan of it.

Anyways, here some other responses that could be used against the Sicilian (Maybe not the best ones though):

The Sicilian Defense: Open Variation

Probably the most famous one of all time. It's really nice, as the knight is now developed and gives a chance for all the other pieces to be developed too. The only reason I don't play it is because it's too common, and people always beat me with it lol. Maybe I could make a "Why NOT to play the Open Sicilian" Blog!

Sicilian Defense: Closed

The Sicilian Closed is the 2nd most played move for white behind nf3. While it does develop the knight, it can lead to a really long and boring game. It isn't as spicy as the Alapin or Open Sicilian. It's considered very Drawish as well

The Sicilian Defense..2.d3

Believe it or not this isn't too rarely played as d6 can be a useful move once all the pieces have been developed. It also allows the bishop to giving it a bunch oof squares to moves.

Sicilian Defense: Staunton Crochane Variation

I honestly like this variation a lot, and I honestly don't get why it's not played more often. It really gives a "English Symmetrical" feeling to the game. The only thong I have against this opening is that is d4 becomes hard to move which is a pretty important move for anti-sicilian payers.

Sicilian Defense: Wing Gambit

Ah yes, the wing gambit. We all know about it. It's one of the craziest gambits ever played and is also considered as a semi-troll opening. I believe Frank Marshall played this variation a lot and he was also quite successful with it.

There's obviously more, but these are some of my favorite ones!

Anyways, that's basically it for today, I hope you honestly enjoyed this. Also, sorry I closed, I had some other things going on, so overall, this blog technically took me 12 whole days to write! I wanted to share some knowledge about the Sicilian which I read about and improved my play against it.

I also recently made a YouTube channel which can be found below!

Youtube - Not enough time due to school, but will start uploading soon

And as always, make sure to check my other Blogs, They're pretty good as I take my time and effort to do them! I also hope to get Top Blogger soon so your support would be much appreciated!

Thank you,

@Phantom_Beast23

Crush the Sicilian - Two of my favorite responses against 1.c5!

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