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Sicilian Defense · As White · updated October 2026

Play against the Sicilian like Hikaru Nakamura

A repertoire against the Sicilian built from 98 of Hikaru Nakamura's public Chess.com blitz games. At every position you play the move Hikaru Nakamura chose most often. Where Hikaru Nakamura 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 Hikaru Nakamura or Chess.com.

  • Hikaru Nakamura was #1 in Chess.com blitz in October 2026 (3,470) and scored 86% against opponents averaging 3,016 in these games.
  • You play Hikaru Nakamura's own move in 24 of 40 positions.
  • The whole course is free, and it is updated monthly.

Free · first 5 lines need no account

Blitz rank

#1

Chess.com

Rating

3,470

Games

98

in this opening

Score

86%

in these games

Opponents

3,016

average rating

More about Hikaru Nakamura

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 21 moves

Lines to learn

  1. Line 1 · 8% at top level

    2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Qxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 Nc6 6.Bb5 Bd7 7.Bxc6 Bxc6 8.Bg5 e6 9.O-O-O Be7 10.Qd3 O-O 11.Nd4 Qa5 12.h4

  2. Line 2 · 5% at top level

    2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Qxd4 Nc6 5.Bb5 Bd7 6.Bxc6 Bxc6 7.Nc3 Nf6 8.Bg5 e6 9.O-O-O Be7 10.Qd3 O-O 11.Nd4

  3. Line 3 · 5% at top level

    2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Qxd4 Nc6 5.Bb5 Bd7 6.Bxc6 Bxc6 7.Nc3 Nf6 8.Bg5 e6 9.O-O-O Be7 10.Qd3 Qa5 11.Rhe1

  4. Line 4 · 5% at top level

    2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Qxd4 a6 5.c4 Nc6 6.Qe3 g6 7.h3

  5. Line 5 · 5% at top level

    2.Nf3 e6 3.c3 Nf6 4.e5 Nd5 5.a3 d6 6.d4 cxd4 7.c4 Ne7 8.exd6 Qxd6 9.Qxd4

  6. Line 6 · 5% at top level

    2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 g6 4.O-O Bg7 5.Re1

  7. Line 7 · 4% at top level

    2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Qxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 Nc6 6.Bb5 Bd7 7.Bxc6 Bxc6 8.Bg5 e6 9.O-O-O Be7 10.Qd3 O-O 11.Nd4 Rc8 12.f4 Qa5 13.Kb1 Rfd8 14.h4

  8. Line 8 · 4% at top level

    2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Qxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 Nc6 6.Bb5 Bd7 7.Bxc6 Bxc6 8.Bg5 e6 9.O-O-O Be7 10.Qd3 Qa5 11.Rhe1

  9. Line 9 · 4% at top level

    2.Nf3 g6 3.Bc4

  10. Line 10 · 4% at top level

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

  11. Line 11 · 3% at top level

    2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Qxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 e6 6.e5 dxe5 7.Qxd8+ Kxd8 8.Nxe5 Ke8 9.Nb5 Na6 10.Be3

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

Hikaru Nakamura's main line against the Sicilian, move by move

The most common line at top level: 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Qxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 Nc6 6.Bb5 Bd7 7.Bxc6 Bxc6 8.Bg5 e6 9.O-O-O Be7 10.Qd3 O-O 11.Nd4 Qa5 12.h4.

  1. 2.Nf3 Your move · Hikaru Nakamura's games Hikaru Nakamura played 2.Nf3 in 80 games, scoring 86%.
  2. 2…d6 Reply · Hikaru Nakamura's games A common reply here is 2…d6. At top level, this comes up about 61% of the time.
  3. 3.d4 Your move · Hikaru Nakamura's games Hikaru Nakamura played 3.d4 in 24 games, scoring 88%.
  4. 3…cxd4 Reply · Hikaru Nakamura's games A common reply here is 3…cxd4. At top level, this comes up about 59% of the time.
  5. 4.Qxd4 Your move · Hikaru Nakamura's games Hikaru Nakamura played 4.Qxd4 in 22 games, scoring 91%.
  6. 4…Nf6 Reply · Hikaru Nakamura's games A common reply here is 4…Nf6. At top level, this comes up about 21% of the time.
  7. 5.Nc3 Your move · Hikaru Nakamura's games Hikaru Nakamura played 5.Nc3 in 7 games, scoring 93%.
  8. 5…Nc6 Reply · Hikaru Nakamura's games A common reply here is 5…Nc6. At top level, this comes up about 18% of the time.
  9. 6.Bb5 Your move · Hikaru Nakamura's games Hikaru Nakamura played 6.Bb5 in 6 games, scoring 92%.
  10. 6…Bd7 Reply · Hikaru Nakamura's games A common reply here is 6…Bd7.
  11. 7.Bxc6 Your move · Hikaru Nakamura's games Hikaru Nakamura played 7.Bxc6 in 6 games, scoring 92%.
  12. 7…Bxc6 Reply · Hikaru Nakamura's games A common reply here is 7…Bxc6. At top level, this comes up about 15% of the time.
  13. 8.Bg5 Your move · Hikaru Nakamura's games Hikaru Nakamura played 8.Bg5 in 6 games, scoring 75%.
  14. 8…e6 Reply · Hikaru Nakamura's games A common reply here is 8…e6.
  15. 9.O-O-O Your move · Hikaru Nakamura's games Hikaru Nakamura played 9.O-O-O in 4 games, scoring 100%.
  16. 9…Be7 Reply · Hikaru Nakamura's games A common reply here is 9…Be7.
  17. 10.Qd3 Your move · Hikaru Nakamura's games Hikaru Nakamura played 10.Qd3 in 4 games, scoring 100%.
  18. 10…O-O Reply · Hikaru Nakamura's games A common reply here is 10…O-O. At top level, this comes up about 11% of the time.
  19. 11.Nd4 Your move · Hikaru Nakamura's games Hikaru Nakamura played 11.Nd4 in 3 games, scoring 100%.
  20. 11…Qa5 Reply · Hikaru Nakamura's games A common reply here is 11…Qa5. At top level, this comes up about 8% of the time.
  21. 12.h4 Your move · Stockfish The games give no move to follow here, so this is Stockfish's choice.

Questions about this course

How does Hikaru Nakamura play against the Sicilian?
After 1.e4 c5, Hikaru Nakamura's most common line is 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Qxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 Nc6 6.Bb5 Bd7 7.Bxc6 Bxc6 8.Bg5 e6 9.O-O-O Be7 10.Qd3 O-O 11.Nd4 Qa5 12.h4. At top level it comes up about 8% of the time.
Is this Hikaru Nakamura's course?
No. ChessDrills builds it automatically from Hikaru Nakamura's public Chess.com blitz games.
What is this Sicilian course based on?
98 of Hikaru Nakamura's Chess.com blitz games in the Sicilian Defense as White, against opponents with an average rating of 3,016. Hikaru Nakamura scored 86% in them.
How many lines does the course have?
11 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 Hikaru Nakamura?
GM Hikaru Nakamura was ranked number 1 on the Chess.com blitz leaderboard with a rating of 3,470 when this course was built.