<Comment deleted by user>
You sure you know the main idea?
Stean, Simple Chess, 1978 or something linke that:
Minority attacks derive from the Pawn structure, Pawn structures derive from the opening. Go back to the eras of Capablanca and Alekhine and you will see Queen's Gambits, hoards of them, with hoards of minority attacks descending from them. Nowadays [1978; still relevant] the Sicilian Defense is all the rage. Sicilians here, Sicilians there, Sicilians absolutely everywhere. Why this saturation with Sicilians? Does the Mafia's influence really extend this far? The answer lies in the minority attack. The whole idea of the Sicilian is for Black to trade his c Pawn for the d Pawn. White almost invariably obliges: 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 Nc6 (or d6 or e6 or g6) 3.d4 cxd4, when Black immediately arrives at a minority attack Pawn structure. Half-open c file, extra central pawn, 2-3 minority on the Queenside; these are all the necessary ingredients. Sounds infallible, so where's the snag? Why doesn't Black win every game? The problem is of course that White has a lead in development in the early stages, which may prove difficult to survive. Black's prospects lie later in the game when the winds of White's initiative have blown themselves out."
The structural weaknesses White accepts because he is trying to avoid Black's plan to launch a minority attack to get a winning endgame and must attack. They are not the cause of Black having winning endgames (otherwise White wouldn't weaken his position in such a way); merely they are a symptom of him having to attack the Black King. The root cause of this is the minority attack, and this is why most Sicilian endgames are winning for him. The minority attack is also a theme in any Rook endgames, so it's not just a late middlegame idea.
Me I took up the Sicilian awhile ago and play mostly the Sicilian Kan and some Taimanov. The Kan is less theoretical. I was advised to play the Kan as an opening with positional and some tactical elements where you have to learn to be patient and manoeuvre and time your pawn breaks well. The Kan is supposed to teach me how to be more positional and more patient which is a tall order!
Other players advise playing the Najdorf even if you do not know all the lines as most other players will not either. It is a great way to learn about tactics and initiative and the interaction of time, space and material. You can generate a lot of mistakes that give you good opportunities to learn.
Here is a relevant video by a grandmaster
Sicilian Defences TIER LIST | Pros And Cons Of Each One | GM Molton
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vSIXbs9Esuc
dragon and najdorf are common in high rated games
In order to learn sicillian play 1.e4 c5 and win like normal; Develop, capture and win
Play Over Complete Games @Shainks You will see Exchange Sacs on c3 For Black & Pawn Storms from White as well as all the themes involving the Center Counterattacks & Defense . You will also be exposed to some nice Sacs by White on e6 d5 b5 Try to have fun learning by keep going on and on @Shainks Don't stop (Give Up) but Play as well . You will also learn from losses but vary the themes to see what works for you but learning is the key
I suggest the 2009 book, Starting Out: The Sicilian, 2nd Edition.
"... For players who are beginning to learn about openings and want a good overview of the many lines that constitute the Sicilian complex, this book is THE answer. ..." (2009)
https://web.archive.org/web/20140627122350/http://www.chesscafe.com/text/hansen123.pdf
https://www.amazon.com/Starting-Out-Sicilian-Everyman-Chess/dp/1857445880?asin=1857442490&revisionId=&format=4&depth=1
How should I learn ? Wow, the learning tools you learned to use in school should be enough to learn what ever you want.
Yep, I never go anywhere without my slide rule!
This topic has been archived and can no longer be replied to.