Stigma wrote on 03/15/11 at 21:59:45:
@Arcticmonkey:
I do indeed play the Kan, though i have an interest in the Taimanov and the Scheveningen as well. All share similar pawn structures and all can be reached from 2...e6, so I really want to stick with this move! I have played some ...Nc6 Sicilians in the past, but I believe the Rossolimo 3.Bb5 is White's very best Anti-Sicilian and I really want to avoid it. 3.c3 is annoying against either 2...e6 or 2...Nc6, but i would rather have one problem than two.
fling wrote on 03/13/11 at 10:05:43:
Since I play the Kan, I can add some short notes to this great post.
Btw, I actually think that 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 e6 3. b3 is the hardest to meet, because many of the good systems against b3 are based on ..e5 and d6.
After 3.d3, Black has many options to choose from, and I think that here Nf3 is often a bit premature, since White will often have to move the knight to be able to play f4. The positions will usually be a KIA. I normally go for the ...g6 and ...Nge7 set-up followed by ...Bg7, ...Rb8 and b5, but have been looking at actually playing ...Nf6 and and early ...b5 without ...Rb8. This is recommended in the Easiest Sicilian, and it looks good indeed. Whatever you choose, there is lots of play in these positions.
Anyway, 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 e6 3.c3 is a bit tricky, since the systems with an early ...Bg4 are indeed ruled out, especially the ...Nc6 and ...Bg4 lines in the ...d5 variation. However, as mentioned 3....Nf6 4.e5 Nd5 can lead to pretty ok (=winning chances) positions for Black, but only if White wants to. That is the same problem for many openings, though.
I don't think 3.b3 is a big problem. How does White achieve anything against the Taimanov style 3.b3 a6 4.Bb2 Nc6 5.g3 d5? All the lines I've looked at there seem comfortable for Black.
Against the KIA I don't mind going French with 3...d5 or 3...Nc6/4...d5. Btw. I've found that the most dangerous move order for White against a French setup is with Qe2 instead of Nbd2, so 3...d5 4.Qe2!? and 3...Nc6 4.g3 (still keeping Black guessing) 4...d5 5.Qe2. If Black plays an early ...g6 instead White can switch plans wiith d3-d4 or an early h4.
For 3.c3 the Delchev repertoire (Safest Sicilian) was mentioned earlier, but last time I played that I got an extremely lifeless and drawish position against a lower-rated player, and lost when I tried too hard to complicate. That was what spurred me to start the thread in the first place.
Interesting. I have never tried your line with ...a6 and a quick d5. Will be next time. My tries have usually been with ...b6, and ...Bb7. White can play d4 against this, getting some chances of a good Maroczy bind. However, most seem to want to keep the position closed, starting that way.
I agree that Qe2 is indeed interesting. I have played this myself as White. Most players are more used to Re1 in these lines, but since often Qe2 form part of overprotecting e5, it is often not bad to play it early. A KIA with c3 gives Black a hook to play against, compared to lines with the pawn on c2 and therefore the variations Delchev gives seems pretty decent.
After my last post I checked Palliser's book on Anti-sicilians, and he recommends a line I looked at long time ago in Chandler's Complete c3 sicilian. I am at work right now, but IIRC:
If 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 e6 3.c3 d5 4.exd5 Qxd5 5.d4 Bg4, this transposes to the line given by Arcticmonkey and this is more unbalanced and seems good for Black to me. The independent tries are usually when White takes on c5, but Palliser covers that too.
I think McDonald (How to play against e4) covers some other tries for Black (read not ...Qb6 or ...Nh6) in the advance French. Can't remember what they are, though.
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Best line for winning chances against c3 Sicilian? (Read 61993 times)
