Every player has his favorite systems that he prefers to reach. But your opponent will often have several options to direct play onto other paths into the first few moves. The 3.c3 choice against the 2…d6 mainline Sicilian is such a system. First considered a bit obscure, it has now become a respected attempt to play for an advantage. Instead of opening up the position with 3.d4, White aims for a more sophisticated plan of building a pawn center with 3.c3 and d2-d4 to follow. White generally aims for a positional edge, but has the option for a sharp pawn sacrifice at move 8 (after playing 7.Nbd2, however). We will be examining this pawn sacrifice from Black’s point of view in another challenge. Here we will learn the positional requirements of such an opening.
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This position is usually reached after 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.c3. Typical for this opening is the intense battle for the center squares e4 and d4.

Moving the a-pawn with 3…a6 is often played sooner or later in Sicilian Defenses. But there are some lines in which playing this move so early is just a waste of time. You should wait to play this move until it really helps your position and take a more active approach about gaining some control in the center first.

3…Nc6 runs right into 4.d4, when you would have trouble pressuring the d4-pawn. After e.g., 4…Bg4?! 5.d5, Black would have to avoid the trap 5…Ne5? 6.Nxe5! Bxd1 7.Bb5+. Try to stop White from advancing the d-pawn to d4 on the next move.

3…Bg4 is a bit premature and allows White to build a nice pawn center with 4.d4. This move is sometimes played later on, but is not desirable here.

3…Nf6 attacks White’s e4-pawn and makes it more difficult for White to play the desired d2-d4 pawn advance next. Black sometimes tries 3…Nc6 and 3…e5, though both give White the edge after 4.d4.

4.Be2 develops a new piece and doesn’t bother to protect the e4-pawn. Note that the desired Nc3 to protect the e4-pawn is impossible with a pawn on c3 and that Black’s pawn on d6 makes an e4-e5 pawn advance undesirable. Sometimes White plays 4.Bd3 instead (with the idea of Bc2 and d2-d4 next). Then Black does best to fight for control of d4 by playing …Bg4 (with the idea of taking on f3 later), …Nc6, …g6, …Bg7, …Nd7 and …b5-b4 later on. Black could meet 4.h3 with the same system as we recommend in our main line.
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Always look out for traps your opponent may set for you.

4…Nc6?! used to be a popular move some years ago. By closing the a4-e8 diagonal, Black would threaten to take the e4-pawn next. But there is a sharp line that favors White after 5.d4! cxd4 6.cxd4 Nxe4 7.d5 Qa5+ (any move by the c6-knight would lose the knight on e4 to Qa4+ next) 8.Nc3 Nxc3 9.bxc3 Ne5 10.Nxe5. White would have a big space advantage in return for the pawn. Now look for a more solid way to close this key diagonal.

4…Bd7 prevents the queen check on a4 and therefore forces White to do something about the e4-pawn. Black obtains a fine position after 5.d3 Nc6 6.0-0 g6 or 5.Qc2 Qc7 6.0-0 g6 as played in Adams-Kasparov (2000). Good, but we slightly prefer a more dynamic setup of our minor pieces on the queenside.

4…Nbd7 looks a bit odd at first, but is probably Black’s best move here. By closing the a4-e8 diagonal, White now has to take time out and protect the e4-pawn. We hope you saw that taking the e4-pawn now with 4…Nxe4?? would lose the knight to 5.Qa4+. It appears that the knight on d7 is now in the way of the bishop on c8, but Black can solve that small “problem” elegantly. If Black moved this knight to c6 instead, there is a sharp line that favors White after 4…Nc6 5.d4! cxd4 6.cxd4 Nxe4 7.d5 Qa5+ (any move by the c6-knight would lose the knight on e4 to Qa4+ next) 8.Nc3 Nxc3 9.bxc3 Ne5 10.Nxe5. White would have a big space advantage in return for the pawn. Black’s best alternative to 4…Nbd7 is 4…g6, when play typically continues with 5.0-0 Bg7 6.Re1 0-0 7.Bf1 Bg4. Note that 4…Bg4, 4…e6 and 4…Bd7 are also playable, but are not quite as reliable.

5.d3 protects the e4-pawn and opens the c1-h6 diagonal for White’s bishop on c1. Yet this move is a partial victory for Black, since White was not able to play the desired d2-d4 in one move. White will now need to prepare the d3-d4 pawn advance for later. If 5.Qc2, then Black has to stop White from playing d2-d4 next with 5…Qc7! Following 6.d3, Black has attained fine positions with all 6…e6, 6…b6 and 6…g6.
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Now one key question is what you should do with the bishops.

5…g6 plans to develop the f8-bishop to g7. This is a fine idea. Play typically continues with 6.0-0 Bg7 6.Re1 0-0. Good, now look to get the other bishop on a nice diagonal instead.

5…b5?! is interesting if your idea is to develop the c8-bishop to b7 next. Yet there is a better way to achieve this goal. The pawn on b5 is more of a potential weakness than an attacking unit on the queenside.

5…b6 seems a bit slow at first since Black takes time out to prepare development of a queenside piece. But this move has been the favorite of Garry Kasparov and is probably most accurate here. The best alternative is to prepare the other fianchetto, 5…g6. Then play could continue with 6.0-0 Bg7 7.Re1 0-0 and White will typically prepare the d3-d4 pawn push with Bf1 next.

6.0-0 completes kingside development. White has no other promising plans at this junction.
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Note that there hasn’t been any contact between the two armies yet. This allows both sides to develop their pieces without much disturbance.

6…Bb7 places this bishop on the longest diagonal of the board. From b7, the bishop keeps a close eye on White’s e4-pawn and thus makes it harder for White to play d3-d4 later.

7.Re1 looks a bit odd at first, but this rook will soon support the e4-pawn and White’s center. Often White may choose 7.Nbd2 instead, when after 7…g6 he has the option to continue with the sharp pawn sacrifice 8.d4. We will examine this interesting line in another challenge.
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Black has successfully developed the queenside.

7…e5 fights for pawn presence in the center, but is a bit too committing. This would be a common pawn structure from the Ruy Lopez for Black (with pawns on e5, c5 and d6). Typically White will have a small edge by playing d3-d4 at the right time. We prefer to keep a more flexible pawn formation in the center, which gives us an easier time equalizing.

7…e6 is a fine developing move. Play usually continues with 8.Bf1 Be7 9.Nbd2 and White would be ready for the d3-d4 pawn advance next. A more risky idea by Black is 8…Qc7 and 9…0-0-0. Good, we slightly prefer a different means to get the f8-bishop into play.

7…g6 plans to develop the f8-bishop to g7. This is often a good idea in closed Sicilian positions like these. The main alternative is 7…e6, when play usually continues with 8.Bf1 Be7 9.Nbd2 and White would be ready for the d3-d4 pawn advance next.

8.Nbd2 develops the queenside knight to a fine square from which it eyes the e4-pawn. Getting enough support for the e4-pawn will be key for White to play the desired pawn advance d3-d4 soon. It may appear that this knight is in the way of the bishop on c1. But since White is not sure yet where this bishop will be placed best, the development of the c1-bishop is simply delayed until matters in the center are more defined. Please note that 8.Bf1 would likely transpose soon.
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There will be contact in the center very soon.

8…Bg7 develops the bishop to the ideal g7-square from where it eyes all squares along the long h8-a1 diagonal. This includes the d4 and e5-squares in the center.

9.Bf1 moves the bishop out of the way of the rook on e1 and is White’s most promising plan. Now White suddenly has two pieces protecting the e4- pawn. This means that Black will have to expect the d3-d4 pawn advance next.
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The fight for control over key center squares now intensifies.

9…0-0 castles kingside and is about as popular as our main solution move. But now White can get a lasting edge due to better control of the center with10.d4. Black had difficulty equalizing following 10…e6, e.g., a) 11.b3 Qc7 in Adams-Wolff and b) 11.b4 Qc7 in Sepp-Oll). Try to worsen White’s piece coordination by luring the queen to f3.

9…e5? tries to discourage White from playing d3-d4 next by pushing the e7-pawn to e5. But White could play 10.d4 anyway and Black would have a vulnerable pawn on d6 that could soon be attacked with Nc4. The e5-pawn would also block the vision of the bishop on g7. Better look again.

9…Ne5!? is an unusual method to discourage White from playing d3-d4 next. About as popular as this move is the seemingly obvious 9…0-0. But then White gets a lasting edge due to better control of the center after 10.d4. Black had difficulty equalizing following 10…e6, e.g., a) 11.b3 Qc7 in Adams-Wolff and b) 11.b4 Qc7 in Sepp-Oll.

With 10.d4, White advances the d-pawn nevertheless even though he will not reach perfect piece coordination. But the alternative 10.Nxe5 dxe5 does not promise White much. After e.g., 11.a3 0-0 12.b4 Qc7, Black can next place his rooks on c8 and d8 and stands solid in the center.
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Black’s strategy is to attack White’s pawn center.

10…cxd4 seems like a logical pawn exchange. If White recaptures with 11.cxd4, then Black would be able to get a rook to the c-file first. The d4- pawn would also be more vulnerable now and the long h8-a1 diagonal would not be as cemented anymore. But after the surprising 11.Nxd4!, White would threaten to push back both of your knights with 11.f4 and 12.e5. The White position would be easier to play due to this big threat, e.g., 11…e6 12.f4 Ned7 13.e5 dxe5 14.fxe5 Nd5 15.Nc4 0-0 16.Qg4.

10…Nxf3+ exchanges a pair of knights. This is in general beneficial for the side which has less space in the opening, since too many pieces on the board easily get into each other’s way when your position is a bit cramped. But Black had to move his knight three times in order to trade it for White’s f3-knight that only moved once. So, we can see that this maneuver was quite time consuming for Black. The only reason why it is playable here is because White cannot recapture with the d2-knight on f3. Note that the apparent alternative 10…cxd4 was a poor choice here. After the surprising 11.Nxd4!, White would threaten to push back both of your knights with 11.f4 and 12.e5 next.

11.Qxf3 recaptures with the queen. Now the lady takes away a nice square from the knight on d2, but White had to keep the e4-pawn protected (11.Nxf3? lost the e4-pawn to 11…Nxe4). The adventurous 11.gxf3 weakens the kingside pawn structure, but strengthens the center. It has not been played to our knowledge, but may be worth exploring.
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White would much rather have a knight on f3 and the queen on d1.

11…0-0 completes kingside development and is the most logical move now that White is not threatening anything. In the game Van Houtte-Ahn Black took on d4 right away with 11…cxd4?!. Then after 12.cxd4 0-0, White had the option to easily improve the position of his queen with 13.Qa3 and had no trouble holding the balance. Therefore we prefer to keep White’s pawn on c3 for now. After castling kingside, Black does not have to fear 12.d5, since then 12…e6! would guarantee him enough counter play, e.g., 13.c4 Nd7.

Black has a harmonious position here, whereas White still has to find a good square for the d2-knight, the f1-bishop, the c1-bishop and also needs to move the queen again sooner or later. White has tried several plans at move 12. The game Breyther-Von Herman (1997) featured 12.Qe2. Following 12…cxd4 13.cxd4 Rc8 14.f3 Nd7 15.Nb3 e5, Black soon gained the initiative on the kingside. The queen on e2 is a bit awkward as it doesn’t allow the f1-bishop to move to a better square. 

The game Torre-Ftacnik instead saw 12.Bd3 Nd7 13.Nb3, when Black then played the ingenious 13…d5! and soon had a slight advantage. Note that White could then not continue with the desired 14.e5? due to the pawn fork 14…c4. If White took on d5 instead, then Black could capture on d4 and would either regain the d5-pawn next or keep the d4-pawn after c3-c4. The system with 9…Ne5 does not allow White to obtain a nice pawn center with all of his pieces soundly supporting it from good squares.

The final position is imbalanced and promises Black good counter play and reasonable winning chances, while he has no serious weakness. As we saw in above games, Black has several good options to fight back in the center no matter what White does next. Should you feel uncomfortable in this position, you have many alternatives to look at on moves 4 and 5.