This position is typically reached following 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Qb6. The early …Qb6 move has become quite popular in several different Sicilian systems in recent years. Black’s main goal is to disrupt White’s development by eyeing the b2-pawn and to force White to do something about the attacked d4-knight. While Black’s queen is not ideally placed on b6 for the long run, White has no direct means to exploit Black’s early queen excursion.
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The line with 2…Nc6 is a very large branch of the Open Sicilian. It is therefore not surprising that the 4…Qb6 system has found its own niche in this Sicilian opening tree. Many of the general Sicilian ideas apply as well and in some lines play may even transpose to other systems such as the Paulsen or Scheveningen later on.

5.Nxc6 bxc6 is good for Black on positional terms. The c6-pawn then controls part of the center (d5), while the half-open b-file also promises nice counter play. Play could continue with 6.Bd3 d6 7.Nc3 Nf6 8.0-0 e6, and Black has a comfortable position. Now look again.

5.Be3? protects the d4-knight, but loses a pawn to 5…Qxb2. White would then have to play 6.Nb3 to avoid losing more material.

5.Nb3 is the best move in this position and retreats the attacked knight to a safe square where it doesn’t get in the way of other pieces. Note that the knight on b3 also protects the b2-pawn from the influence of the Black queen. Both 5.Nb5 a6 6.Be3 Qd8 7.Nd4 Nf6 and 5.Nxc6?! bxc6 6.Bd3 d6 7.Nc3 Nf6 do not cause Black any trouble. The bizarre 5.c3?! was played by Bronstein against Vasiukov in 1975, but Black stood well following the unusual sequence 5…d6 6.Be3 Nf6 7.Ne6 Qa5 8.Nxf8 Nxe4 9.b4 Qc7 10.Bd3 Nf6 11.Nxh7 Nxh7.

5…Nf6 develops the kingside knight with gain of time. Play would likely transpose next if Black instead chooses 5…e6.
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White will typically try to attack Black’s king in this system after it castles on the kingside.

6.Nc3 is a normal developing move and protects the attacked e4-pawn. White could have also done this with 6.Bd3, but should stay away from awkward moves such as 6.f3 (when Be3 is no longer an option) and 6.N1d2 (which gets the knight in the way of the c1-bishop). Also protecting the e-pawn with the queen would not suit the lady well.

6…e6 is the most accurate continuation as Black now stops White from playing Nd5 and also enables the bishop to f8 to partake in the battle.
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White can castle on either side in this system.

7.f3? is not a good idea in this type of position. There is no need to protect the e4-pawn and White would no longer be able to play Be3 any time soon. The pawn on f3 also gets in the way of White’s queen. Now look to improve the position of an idle piece instead.

7.Be3 attacks Black’s queen and ends her temporary reign on the b6-square. Play would likely transpose following 7.Bd3, while 7.Be2?! lacks the spice and aggression of our main line. An interesting alternative is the funny looking 7.Qe2. The game Anand- Kramnik (2001) then continued with 7…Bb4 8.Bd2 0-0 9.a3 Be7 10.0-0-0 d6 11.g4 a6 12.g5 Nd7 and a sharp and complicated battle to follow.

7…Qc7 retreats the lady to the ideal square in this type of Sicilian position. One may argue that Black lost a tempo since he took two moves to get the queen to c7. But White used this extra move to retreat the active d4-knight to the humble b3-post.
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You must always anticipate what active reply your opponent may have against your moves.

8.Bd3 gets this bishop to the ideal square in this system. From d3, it will later try to pressure Black’s castled king via the d3- h7 diagonal. By protecting the e4-pawn a second time, White also takes the sting out of Black’s idea of playing …Bb4 and …d5 next. This would not have been the case after 8.Be2?! Bb4 9.f3 d5!

8…a6 is a common move in these types of positions and prepares counter play on the queenside with …b7-b5 at the right time. Play would usually transpose later should Black continue with 8…d6 or 8…Be7 instead, while 8…Bb4 9.0-0 Bxc3 10.bxc3 leaves Black with too many weaknesses on the dark squares.
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Often in these types of positions White will keep his options open as far as castling is concerned. The sight of White’s four minor pieces next to each other is aesthetically pleasing.

9.0-0 castles kingside. While this is certainly a fine move, we prefer to delay this decision for a little while. Look to gain space on the kingside instead.

9.f4 is a standard move in these positions regardless of where White will put his king. White now threatens to push the f6-knight back with 10.e5. White has several fine alternatives at this junction. 9.a4 is a more positional approach that stops Black from expanding on the queenside with …b7-b5. Play could continue with 9…b6 10.0-0 Be7 when the position resembles a Scheveningen. 
Certainly White could also castle kingside, but we prefer to delay this decision. Also playable was 9.Na4 with the idea of taking over the b6- square. Then 9…d5 10.Nb6 Rb8 11.exd5 exd5 is ok for Black, who could also consider playing 9…b5.

9…d6 is the normal response to stop White from playing e4-e5 next. Black has now reached the typical pawn tandem e6/d6 of the Scheveningen. These two pawns control many important center squares, but also limit the options of Black’s bishops right now. If Black plays 9…b5 instead, White would reach a fine position with 10.Qf3 Bb7 11.0-0.
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In this line we will see how White can exploit less than perfect defense by Black.

10.Na4? tries to gain control of the b6-square. But after 10…Nd7! Black defends against this idea and will next gain time by attacking the a4-knight with …b7-b5. If White tried to stop this with 11.c4?!, Black gets nice counter play with 11…Nb4, e.g., 12.Be2? b5! Focus more on the kingside.

10.0-0 castles kingside. While this is certainly a fine move, we prefer to delay this decision for a little while. Look to improve the position of the queen instead.

10.Qe2 is usually played to prepare queenside castling. While this is an interesting idea, we prefer a different square for the queen.

10.Qd2?! does not move the queen to the best place as it no longer controls the key g4-square anymore. This will be important if White wants to launch a kingside attack soon.

10.Qf3 develops the queen to the most versatile square in this line and closer to Black’s kingside. Note that White still keeps Black guessing which side he will castle on. White has a few other good moves available. 10.a4 is a more positional approach that stops Black from expanding on the queenside with …b7-b5. Play could then continue with 10…b6 11.0-0 Be7 when the position resembles a Scheveningen. 
Certainly White could also castle kingside with 10.0-0 now, but we prefer delaying this decision. The most aggressive path lies in 10.g4!?, when the idea is to push back the f6-knight with g4-g5 next. Play could later lead to similar positions as our main line.

10…Be7 gets the dark-squared bishop to its only available post and prepares kingside castling. White should continue like in our line against 10…b5. Play might then transpose later unless Black improves by delaying kingside castling for a while. The game Lutz-J. Polgar (2000) is an example of that strategy. Black avoided castling kingside after 10…b5 11.0-0 Bb7 12.Rae1 Be7 13.Qh3 h5 14.Kh1 Ng4 15.Bg1 g5. White should probably wait with Qh3 until after White has castled kingside and consider a move like 13.g4 instead.
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Black should probably delay castling on the kingside for a few more moves.

11.0-0-0 castles on the queenside. This is even more aggressive than our line, but also carries more risk as White’s monarch may become a target on the queenside. After 11…b5 12.g4 chances are about even. Good, but we slightly prefer not giving Black such chances for a counter attack.

White finally decides to castle kingside with 11.0-0. This is actually safer than castling queenside with 11.0-0-0 as White’s king could there become a target more easily than on the kingside. Black would have fine counter chances following 11.0-0-0 b5 12.g4. White can also show his true intentions with 11.g4 right away, though it may be psychologically smart to wait for Black to castle kingside first. Play could continue with 11…b5 12.g5 Nd7 13.0-0-0 Bb7 14.Qh3 Nb4 and White has a small edge.

Black emulates White by also completing kingside development with 11…0-0. But this turns out to be quite dangerous. Black should have probably tried to get counter play on the queenside first with moves such as …b5 and …Bb7.
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It is hard to imagine that Black’s kingside will fall apart in only a few more moves.

12.Rad1?! tries to get the queenside rook closer to the center of action. But there’s no need to get this rook into play yet. There will also be a better square for the rook a bit later.

12.e5?? just throws away an important center pawn after 12…dxe5 13.fxe5 Qxe5.

12.Qh3 is a very direct way to attack Black’s king via the h7-square. White would soon be threatening to advance the e-pawn to e5. Note that White would always meet …e6-e5 with f4-f5. While your move is interesting, we prefer a more direct line of attack.

12.g4!? is the most direct line of play. White will not be able to succeed in his kingside ambitions without the advance of the g-pawn. The idea is simply to push the f6-knight away from its defensive post. White played the more patient 12.Rae1 in Lutz-Smirin (2000) without achieving anything special following 12…b5 13.e5 dxe5 14.fxe5 Nd7 15.Bf4 b4 16.Nd1 Bb7. An interesting alternative is 12.Qh3.

12…b5 is Black’s normal means of seeking counter play on the queenside. Black played the more cautious 12…Nd7 in Bezgodov-Kozlov (1997). White then obtained a strong attack following 13.g5 Re8 14.f5 Nde5 15.Qg3. Perhaps Black needs to play 12…Nb4 right away to be able to exchange the strong d3-bishop soon.
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This game was played by two Grandmasters! If Black tries to slow down White’s advance of the g- pawn by playing …h7-h6, White will usually get reinforcement with h2-h4. The defense would then be harder for Black as White could soon open a line leading to Black’s monarch after playing g4-g5.

13.g5 is the common way to proceed with the attack. After 13…Nd7 14.Qh5 g6 15.Qh6, White then plans both Rf3-h3 and f4-f5. Very good, now look for a more subtle, yet also dangerous threat against Black’s king.

13.Qh3 is the less common continuation in this position, but has plenty of spice in it. White now plans to attack the h7-pawn with both the queen and the d3-bishop. White also reaches a promising attacking position with the straight forward 13.g5 Nd7 14.Qh5 g6 15.Qh6 and White plans both Rf3-h3 and f4-f5 next.

13…b4? allows White to play a crushing combination. White would also meet 13…Nb4? in the same manner. The only reliable defense appears to be 13…g6 when Black cuts down the d3-h7 diagonal. Yet White would still have to be preferred following 14.f5.
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14.Na4? would be a reasonable move in a normal position. But you have missed a winning continuation. Black could now defend the kingside with 14…Nd7 and …g7-g6 to come.

14.e5! is the key move of this whole line as it open the d3-h7 diagonal for the light-squared bishop with gain of time.

14…dxe5 is Black’s best attempt as 14…bxc3? 15.exf6 would win a piece for White due to the double attack against h7 and e7. Of course moving the f6-knight is not recommended as h7 would then become unprotected.
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Black should not survive the tactics.

15.g5! attacks Black’s f6-knight, which is the key defender of the h7-pawn and Black’s king. This is the only good way to keep the kingside attack alive as 15.fxe5?! gives Black too many defensive options. After 15…Qxe5, Black could meet 16.Rxf6 with 16…g6 and 16.g5 with 16…Nh5 17.Qxh5 g6 18.Qh6 bxc3. Black could also consider 15…Nxe5?!, but White seems to gain the upper hand after both 16.g5 Nxd3 17.gxf6 and 16…Nh5 17.Qxh5 Nxd3 18.cxd3 bxc3 19.Rf3!

15…Nh5 is a tricky attempt to hold together Black’s position. Clearly all a) 15…g6? 16.gxf6 Bxf6 17.Ne4; b) 15…e4? 16.gxf6 exd3 17.fxe7 and c) 15…bxc3 16.gxf6 g6 17.fxe7 are bad as they leave Black behind a piece.
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Some imagination is needed to finish off Black’s king in the next few moves.

16.Qxh5? appears to be the logical continuation, but is exactly what Black hoped for and needs to survive. Black would now find the time to set up a barrier with 16…g6. Then 17.Qh6 bxc3 18.Rf3 f5! allows Black to defend h7 just in time. Look for something more forcing that keeps the initiative!

16.Bxh7+! is the last difficult move in this line. White temporarily sacrifices a piece to open up the h-file leading to Black’s king. This will leave Black without adequate defense and force him to return material soon to avoid getting mated. Note that the obvious 16.Qxh5? gives Black time to set up a barrier with 16…g6. Then 17.Qh6 bxc3 18.Rf3 f5! allows Black to defend h7 just in time. 
Following 16.Bxh7+! Kxh7 (16…Kh8? is worse after 17.Qxh5) 17.Qxh5+ Kg8, White can get a decisive attack with 18.Rf3, planning 19.Rh3 next. Then 18…g6? 19.Qh6 and 18…f6? 19.g6 both don’t help Black’s cause. In the game Knezevic-Kurajica (1996), Black tried the desperate 18…Bxg5 19.fxg5 Ne7 with the idea of meeting 20.Rh3?! with …f6 21.g6 Nxg6. However the simple 20.Ne4 gets another piece close to Black’s king and also allows White to keep his extra piece. Black will find it impossible to prolong the duration of the game after either a) 20…Bb7 21.Rh3 f5 22.Nf6+ gxf6 23.Qh7 mate or b) 20…Qxc2 21.Rh3 f5 22.Nd6, when mate on h8 is coming next. 
We just witnessed a beautiful miniature leading to a mating attack right out of the opening. Black appeared to make reasonable moves, but failed to close down the d3-h7 diagonal with …g7-g6 at the right time.

This system is a very sharp approach against the Sicilian and forces Black to defend flawlessly. The fact that a known grandmaster fell so early shows the difficult task Black faces. We also noticed that it is often harder to defend against moves like 13.Qh3 that build up the attack than against straight forward moves such as 13.g5, which attacks the f6-knight right away.

Surely White will usually not succeed this quickly. We therefore recommend that you study similar middle game positions to get some ideas what to do against Black’s best defense. Should White perceive a need to avoid this opening variation, he could do so by playing either 3.Bb5 or 3.Nc3.