Sicbo has not been widely played at all since it was invented by the legendary Sicilian chess champion Salvatore Adamo in 1984. Since then no chess competition has produced a Sicbo champion. However, Sicbo does have its proponents, and the Sicbo scene has sprung up with the growth of Sicilian chess. But Sicbo remains one of the most difficult chess openings to play.
In Sicbo, Black usually plays a strong positional attack to gain a strong space advantage while White can take the initiative through positional manoeuvres. Once Black is in a strong position the Sicbo line generally boils down to a simple continuation pattern: 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Bg5 h6 5. Bh4 Bb3 6. Nf3 0-0 7. Be2 d5 8. Bd3 c6 9. Bxd5 cxd5 10. e3 Ba6 11. 0-0 Re8 12. f3 c5
White usually plays his best Sicbo in the Keres Attack (also called the Keres Variation), where Black often plays the Reversed Sicbo. However, there are variations that allow Black to adopt a more aggressive Sicbo.
Reversed Sicbo
The White Sicbo in the Reversed Sicbo is characterized by the fact that Black’s rook’s move is reversed. This enables Black to push up to the centre more easily. The White Sicbo has a more direct path to achieving the tactical goal of a rook’s fork, although Black has more space for Black’s pieces.
White can choose to play 6.0-0 when it is available. Alternatively, if White intends to play 6.e3, then he can play 6.Nh3. A good option when 6.Nh3 is played is the Scotch Sicbo, a fork intended to parry Black’s central counterattack.
White can also play 6.h3 when Black has played 6…Bh6, the Scotch Sicbo.
White can also play 6.0-0-0, intending to exploit Black’s pin with…Bh6 and then proceed with 7.0-0-0. If Black replies…Nf6, then White can play 7.c4.
Scotch Sicbo
6.Nh3
6…0-0
White’s most popular option in เกมไฮโล is to play the Scotch Sicbo. The Scotch Sicbo is derived from the Scotch Game, with the d4-d5 pawn push being replaced by the more aggressive h3-h4 push. However, the Scotch Sicbo has a somewhat more direct path to the tactical goal of a rook’s fork. The Scotch Sicbo, as originally suggested in Blumenfeld’s In The Sicilian, is now often the main line in modern Sicbo games. Black can respond by playing the Reversed Sicbo, the Reverse Sicbo, or the Queen’s Sicbo.
6.c4 Nc6 7.e3
7…e6
The most popular continuation. The Queen’s Sicbo features the same pawn push as the Scotch Sicbo, but the c4-c5 push is replaced by a more central cxd4. This moves c4 to a more central and less exposed position. Other examples of the Queen’s Sicbo include the Reti, Reti-Italian Game and the Hanoverian.
