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Sicilian Defense · As White · updated October 2026

Play against the Sicilian like Artin Ashraf

A repertoire against the Sicilian built from 109 of Artin Ashraf's public Chess.com blitz games. At every position you play the move Artin Ashraf chose most often. Where Artin Ashraf has fewer than 3 games, the course takes the other top-50 players' most played move, then Stockfish's. Learn a line on the board, then each position comes back in a short daily review until it sticks.

Not affiliated with or endorsed by Artin Ashraf or Chess.com.

  • Artin Ashraf was #25 in Chess.com blitz in October 2026 (3,241) and scored 60% against opponents averaging 3,095 in these games.
  • You play Artin Ashraf's own move in 25 of 40 positions.
  • The whole course is free, and it is updated monthly.

Train lines

Learn a new line move by move. Lines due for review go to your daily review first.

Next: line 1

Free · first 5 lines need no account

Blitz rank

#25

Chess.com

Rating

3,241

Games

109

in this opening

Score

60%

in these games

Opponents

3,095

average rating

More about Artin Ashraf

Use arrow keys to navigate the board. Press Enter to select a piece, then use arrow keys and Enter to move. Press Escape to cancel a move.
Line 1 after 11 moves

Lines to learn

  1. Line 1 · 11% at top level

    2.c3 Nf6 3.e5 Nd5 4.Nf3 e6 5.d4 cxd4 6.Bc4 d6 7.cxd4

    Next

  2. Line 2 · 7% at top level

    2.c3 d5 3.exd5 Nf6 4.Nf3 Nxd5 5.d4 cxd4 6.cxd4 Nc6 7.Nc3

    New

  3. Line 3 · 5% at top level

    2.c3 Nf6 3.e5 Nd5 4.Nf3 d6 5.d4 cxd4 6.Bc4 Nb6 7.Bb3 Nc6 8.exd6 Qxd6 9.O-O Be6 10.Na3 Bxb3 11.Qxb3

    New

  4. Line 4 · 5% at top level

    2.c3 Nf6 3.e5 Nd5 4.Nf3 e6 5.d4 cxd4 6.Bc4 Be7 7.Qxd4

    New

  5. Line 5 · 5% at top level

    2.c3 Nf6 3.e5 Nd5 4.Nf3 e6 5.d4 cxd4 6.Bc4 b6 7.Bxd5

    New

  6. Line 6 · 5% at top level

    2.c3 d5 3.exd5 Qxd5 4.Nf3 Nf6 5.d4 e6 6.Na3

    New

  7. Line 7 · 5% at top level

    2.c3 d5 3.exd5 Qxd5 4.Nf3 g6 5.d4

    New

  8. Line 8 · 5% at top level

    2.c3 e6 3.d4

    New

  9. Line 9 · 4% at top level

    2.c3 d6 3.d4 Nf6 4.Bd3 e5 5.Nf3 Nc6 6.d5 Ne7 7.Nbd2

    New

  10. Line 10 · 4% at top level

    2.c3 e5 3.Nf3 Nc6 4.Bb5 Bd6 5.d4

    New

  11. Line 11 · 3% at top level

    2.c3 Nf6 3.e5 Nd5 4.Nf3 Nc6 5.d4 cxd4 6.Bc4 Nb6 7.Bb3 d5 8.exd6 Qxd6 9.O-O

    New

  12. Line 12 · 3% at top level

    2.c3 Nf6 3.e5 Nd5 4.Nf3 Nc6 5.d4 cxd4 6.Bc4 Nb6 7.Bb3 d6 8.exd6 Bf5 9.Nxd4

    New

  13. Line 13 · 3% at top level

    2.c3 Nf6 3.e5 Nd5 4.Nf3 Nc6 5.d4 cxd4 6.Bc4 Nb6 7.Bb3 d6 8.exd6 Qxd6 9.O-O Be6 10.Na3

    New

  14. Line 14 · 3% at top level

    2.c3 Nf6 3.e5 Nd5 4.Nf3 Nc6 5.d4 cxd4 6.Bc4 Nb6 7.Bb3 d6 8.exd6 Qxd6 9.O-O Bf5 10.Nxd4

    New

  15. Line 15 · 3% at top level

    2.c3 Nf6 3.e5 Nd5 4.Nf3 Nc6 5.d4 cxd4 6.Bc4 Nb6 7.Bb3 d6 8.exd6 Qxd6 9.O-O e6 10.cxd4

    New

Ordered by how often they come up in top-level games. Learned lines join your daily review.

Artin Ashraf's main line against the Sicilian, move by move

The most common line at top level: 2.c3 Nf6 3.e5 Nd5 4.Nf3 e6 5.d4 cxd4 6.Bc4 d6 7.cxd4.

  1. 2.c3 Your move · Artin Ashraf's games Artin Ashraf played 2.c3 in 57 games, scoring 62%.
  2. 2…Nf6 Reply · Artin Ashraf's games A common reply here is 2…Nf6. At top level, this comes up about 53% of the time.
  3. 3.e5 Your move · Artin Ashraf's games Artin Ashraf played 3.e5 in 30 games, scoring 67%.
  4. 3…Nd5 Reply · Artin Ashraf's games A common reply here is 3…Nd5.
  5. 4.Nf3 Your move · Artin Ashraf's games Artin Ashraf played 4.Nf3 in 20 games, scoring 60%.
  6. 4…e6 Reply · Artin Ashraf's games A common reply here is 4…e6. At top level, this comes up about 21% of the time.
  7. 5.d4 Your move · Artin Ashraf's games Artin Ashraf played 5.d4 in 7 games, scoring 43%.
  8. 5…cxd4 Reply · Artin Ashraf's games A common reply here is 5…cxd4.
  9. 6.Bc4 Your move · Artin Ashraf's games Artin Ashraf played 6.Bc4 in 4 games, scoring 50%.
  10. 6…d6 Reply · Artin Ashraf's games A common reply here is 6…d6. At top level, this comes up about 11% of the time.
  11. 7.cxd4 Your move · Stockfish The games give no move to follow here, so this is Stockfish's choice.

Questions about this course

How does Artin Ashraf play against the Sicilian?
After 1.e4 c5, Artin Ashraf's most common line is 2.c3 Nf6 3.e5 Nd5 4.Nf3 e6 5.d4 cxd4 6.Bc4 d6 7.cxd4. At top level it comes up about 11% of the time.
Is this Artin Ashraf's course?
No. ChessDrills builds it automatically from Artin Ashraf's public Chess.com blitz games.
What is this Sicilian course based on?
109 of Artin Ashraf's Chess.com blitz games in the Sicilian Defense as White, against opponents with an average rating of 3,095. Artin Ashraf scored 60% in them.
How many lines does the course have?
15 lines covering 40 positions, ordered by how often they come up in top-level games. The first 5 lines need no account; saving your progress with an email unlocks the rest, free.
Who is Artin Ashraf?
FM Artin Ashraf was ranked number 25 on the Chess.com blitz leaderboard with a rating of 3,241 when this course was built.

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