Fighting the Anti-Sicilians

by Ricahard Palliser

The Sicilian Defence is by far Black’s most popular answer to 1 e4 at all levels of chess. The reason is easy to understand: from the very first move Black unbalances the position and can play for a win without needing to take unjustified risks. This is particularly the case with the Open Sicilians, where Black can take comfort in the fact that his superior pawn structure ensures control of the centre and excellent long term chances.

Faced this with type of problem, along with the fact that many Open Sicilians carry with them a massive build-up of opening theory, it’s unsurprising that many White players prefer to avoid the Open Sicilian altogether, preferring one of the many �Anti-Sicilians’ lines on offer.

Genres: Chess

254 pages, Paperback

First published August 1, 2007

Reviews

[Mr_Toad · Rating 3 out of 5]

So - we have the 1.e4 player worried about the vast range of replies available to Black. He's sorted out some ideas to play against the Open Sicilian - one of the many so-called ‘Anti-Sicilians’ lines.

And the Black player who has faith in his knowledge of the Sicilian? He plays 1. ... c5 only to come up against the same problem that White had ie a vast range of possible Anti-Sicilians.

It's getting hard to deal with all these variations but in this book "Palliser devises a compact and practical repertoire for Sicilian players against each of White’s many alternatives.".