Answers.Body: <p>Currently, high-level tournament play tend to emphasize creative preparation in sharp lines. To emulate the spirit of this without actually doing the prep seems to summarize your problem.</p>
  <p>There are ways to take the heat out of some of the fashionable lines. For example I sometimes play this line against the Najdorf. 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.g3 and if 6...e5 then 7.Nde2. This puts the boot on the other foot. Black thinks &quot;White is playing a sideline. I must be better! I must play ..d5!!&quot; and the Bg2 thinks &quot;Go ahead, make my day!&quot;. You have not avoided the open Sicilian, but have slowed things down. White does go for a K-side initiative but slowly, preparing with h3 and Be3, and sometimes playing g4 rather than f4. He is not dreaming of winning a brevity, and it may well be Black who loses patience.</p>
  
Answers.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 4.0
Answers.CreationDate: 2024-06-28T03:34:47.553Z
Answers.Text: Why then not go with Adams attack h3 without g3 first?
Answers.UserDisplayName: Behnam Esmayli
Answers.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 4.0
Answers.CreationDate: 2024-06-28T15:46:34.267Z
Answers.Text: Also possible. I was not trying to be comprehensive.
Answers.UserDisplayName: Philip Roe
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Answers.CreationDate: 2024-06-26T03:12:01.927Z
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Answers.UserDisplayName: Philip Roe
Answers.Body: <p>An interesting variation that I've recently faced and found troublesome (I am significantly lower rated than you) is the <a href="https://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessopening?eco=B53" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Chekhover Variation</a> in the open Sicilian. It is still an &quot;open sicilian&quot; line but it takes black immediately away from sharp prep in the Najdorf or Dragon. At first glance the opening looks dubious because of the tempo black gains on the queen. Master practice shows that it is quite playable.</p>
  <p>Edit:<br />
  <a href="https://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1101787" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Here</a> is Mr Sicilian himself, Miguel Najdorf, losing on the black side of a Chekhover. It is a matter of opinion but I would say the white played &quot;patiently&quot; and &quot;logically&quot;. White slowly organizes their pieces into a kingside attack without the use of any flashy sacrifice.</p>
  
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Answers.Text: Nice! I actually have myself suffered against Qxd4 lines. The N on d4 also often loses tempo, so maybe it is not too much concession on White’s part anyway. Thanks for taking the time to comment.
Answers.UserDisplayName: Behnam Esmayli
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Answers.LastEditDate: 2024-06-27T18:45:05.717Z
Answers.UserDisplayName: Awalrod
Answers.Body: <p>Depends on your ELO, I generally play the closed variation, I find it often brings black outside of their comfort zone, though it lets black equalise early; however it's less common and much slower, which may give you a slight leg up. it works for me, you can get a good feel for it:</p>
  <p>YouTube is a great introduction, but its mostly infotainment, there's a channel Hanging pawns, its solid</p>
  <p>Chess.com for me provides the best detailed explanation, however a lot of their content is behind a paywall</p>
  <p>Pinsandgambits.com, take it with a grain of salt, some of the explanations are great, some are confusing</p>
  <p>oh and theirs another good site simplifychess.com however they can get a bit long winded.</p>
  <p>I'm pretty sure all of the above have a good introduction to the Closed Defence, I highly recommend the YouTube channel HangingPawns</p>
  <p>Here's one possible variation, basically white fianchettoes their light-squared bishop and uses it to control the centre.</p>
  <pre><code>[Event &quot;?&quot;]
  [Site &quot;?&quot;]
  [Date &quot;?&quot;]
  [Round &quot;?&quot;]
  [White &quot;?&quot;]
  [Black &quot;?&quot;]
  [Result &quot;?&quot;]
  [Title &quot;2 Sicilian defence: Closed&quot;]
  [FEN &quot;&quot;]
  [StartPly &quot;0&quot;]
  
  1. e4 c5 2. Nc3 Nc6 3. g3 d6 4. Bg2 Nf6
  </code></pre>
  
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Answers.CreationDate: 2024-06-25T10:06:43.070Z
Answers.LastActivityDate: 2024-06-25T10:43:04.080Z
Answers.LastEditDate: 2024-06-25T10:43:04.080Z
Answers.UserDisplayName: Paweł
Body: <p>When I play the open Sicilian with White, I have this constant unjustified urge to “do something” and “do it immediately or Black will take over”! I am good enough of a player to know this is stupid! I cannot stop feeling that Sicilian is all about: sharp play,  sacrifices, kingside attack, etc. The sample games I see are often the flashy quick games and seldom these long positional ones.</p>
  <p>Under this false impression I often end up playing premature attacks or sacrifice unnecessarily. Just the knowledge that the opening was a Sicilian gets me to make dubious decisions!</p>
  <ul>
  <li><p>Do you have general and specific to Sicilian (say Najdorff) advice
  that can help me stop being nervous and just play chess?</p>
  </li>
  <li><p>Are there variations or setups (mainline not obscure) in open sicilian  that will help me
  practice patience and play logically?</p>
  </li>
  </ul>
  <p>Note: I specifiaclly emphasized open sicilian lines. I don’t want to avoid it. My Lichess rapid is 2260. Blitz 2130.</p>
  
Comments.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 4.0
Comments.CreationDate: 2024-06-25T19:04:16.407Z
Comments.Text: Specifically against Najdorf, play the Be2 kingside castling variations for a while?
Comments.UserDisplayName: Alexander Woo
Tags: <opening><sicilian-defense><psychology><1.e4><attack>
Title: How do I face the Sicilian wisely?
ThreadText: # How do I face the Sicilian wisely?
  
  (Asked by: username_0 on 2024-06-24)
  
  When I play the open Sicilian with White, I have this constant unjustified urge to “do something” and “do it immediately or Black will take over”! I am good enough of a player to know this is stupid! I cannot stop feeling that Sicilian is all about: sharp play, sacrifices, kingside attack, etc. The sample games I see are often the flashy quick games and seldom these long positional ones.
  
  Under this false impression I often end up playing premature attacks or sacrifice unnecessarily. Just the knowledge that the opening was a Sicilian gets me to make dubious decisions!
  
  * Do you have general and specific to Sicilian (say Najdorff) advice
    that can help me stop being nervous and just play chess?
  * Are there variations or setups (mainline not obscure) in open sicilian that will help me
    practice patience and play logically?
  
  Note: I specifiaclly emphasized open sicilian lines. I don’t want to avoid it. My Lichess rapid is 2260. Blitz 2130.
  
  **Tags:** opening, sicilian-defense, psychology, 1.e4, attack
  
  > **Comments:**
  > **username_1**: Specifically against Najdorf, play the Be2 kingside castling variations for a while?  
  
  ---
  
  ## 3 answers
  
  ### Answer by username_2 on 2024-06-26. Score: 1 | Accepted answer
  
  Currently, high-level tournament play tend to emphasize creative preparation in sharp lines. To emulate the spirit of this without actually doing the prep seems to summarize your problem.
  
  There are ways to take the heat out of some of the fashionable lines. For example I sometimes play this line against the Najdorf. 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.g3 and if 6...e5 then 7.Nde2. This puts the boot on the other foot. Black thinks "White is playing a sideline. I must be better! I must play ..d5!!" and the Bg2 thinks "Go ahead, make my day!". You have not avoided the open Sicilian, but have slowed things down. White does go for a K-side initiative but slowly, preparing with h3 and Be3, and sometimes playing g4 rather than f4. He is not dreaming of winning a brevity, and it may well be Black who loses patience.
  
  > **Comments:**
  > **username_0**: Why then not go with Adams attack h3 without g3 first?  
  > **username_2**: Also possible. I was not trying to be comprehensive.  
  
  ---
  
  ### Answer by username_3 on 2024-06-27. Score: 1
  
  An interesting variation that I've recently faced and found troublesome (I am significantly lower rated than you) is the [Chekhover Variation](https://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessopening?eco=B53) in the open Sicilian. It is still an "open sicilian" line but it takes black immediately away from sharp prep in the Najdorf or Dragon. At first glance the opening looks dubious because of the tempo black gains on the queen. Master practice shows that it is quite playable.
  
  Edit:  
  [Here](https://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1101787) is Mr Sicilian himself, Miguel Najdorf, losing on the black side of a Chekhover. It is a matter of opinion but I would say the white played "patiently" and "logically". White slowly organizes their pieces into a kingside attack without the use of any flashy sacrifice.
  
  > **Comments:**
  > **username_0**: Nice! I actually have myself suffered against Qxd4 lines. The N on d4 also often loses tempo, so maybe it is not too much concession on White’s part anyway. Thanks for taking the time to comment.  
  
  ---
  
  ### Answer by username_4 on 2024-06-25. Score: 0
  
  Depends on your ELO, I generally play the closed variation, I find it often brings black outside of their comfort zone, though it lets black equalise early; however it's less common and much slower, which may give you a slight leg up. it works for me, you can get a good feel for it:
  
  YouTube is a great introduction, but its mostly infotainment, there's a channel Hanging pawns, its solid
  
  Chess.com for me provides the best detailed explanation, however a lot of their content is behind a paywall
  
  Pinsandgambits.com, take it with a grain of salt, some of the explanations are great, some are confusing
  
  oh and theirs another good site simplifychess.com however they can get a bit long winded.
  
  I'm pretty sure all of the above have a good introduction to the Closed Defence, I highly recommend the YouTube channel HangingPawns
  
  Here's one possible variation, basically white fianchettoes their light-squared bishop and uses it to control the centre.
  
  ```
  [Event "?"]
  [Site "?"]
  [Date "?"]
  [Round "?"]
  [White "?"]
  [Black "?"]
  [Result "?"]
  [Title "2 Sicilian defence: Closed"]
  [FEN ""]
  [StartPly "0"]
  
  1. e4 c5 2. Nc3 Nc6 3. g3 d6 4. Bg2 Nf6
  
  ```
  
  
  ---
  
  