Sicilian Defense: Closed
Also known as Closed Sicilian
The Closed Sicilian (1.e4 c5 2.Nc3) is White's second most common answer to the Sicilian Defense, after 2.Nf3. Read the guide
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Statistics from Lichess
33,223,220 games: White 49.3% / Draw 4.9% / Black 45.9%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Traditional | 14,711,60714.7M | |
| 7,405,3127.4M | ||
| 6,739,8286.7M | ||
| 2,136,6152.1M | ||
| 1,492,8791.5M | ||
| 324,457324K | ||
| 215,687216K | ||
| 107,780108K |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 31, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.21 The position is about equal
Best play: 2... Nc6 3. Nf3 e5 4. Bc4 Be7 5. d3 d6 6. Nd2 Nf6 7. Nf1
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
By rating
The stronger the players, the better this line does for White: White scores 49% under 1400, 53% at 2200 and up and 51% in master games (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 6.9M | |
| 1400–1799 | 15.5M | |
| 1800–2199 | 19.7M | |
| 2200 and up | 4.4M | |
| Masters, over the board | 46K |
Master games
- Carlsen, M. – Vachier Lagrave, M.
- Carlsen, M. – Nepomniachtchi, I.
- Carlsen, M. – Giri, A.
- Carlsen, M. – Anand, V.
- Carlsen, M. – Aronian, L.
Rated blitz, rapid and classical Lichess games by rating band, and over-the-board games of players rated 2200+ from the Lichess masters database, updated Sep 26, 2026
Description
The Closed Sicilian (1.e4 c5 2.Nc3) is White's second most common answer to the Sicilian Defense, after 2.Nf3. Instead of opening the centre with an early d4, White usually builds up slowly with g3, Bg2 and d3, or with f4.
Move order
2.Nc3 keeps White's options open. Black's replies are much the same as against 2.Nf3: most often 2...Nc6, but also 2...e6 and 2...d6. White can still play 3.Nf3 and reach a position from the 2.Nf3 lines, and many other lines transpose to the Open Sicilian, the Moscow Variation or the Rossolimo Variation. 2...e5 transposes into a Vienna Game.
The idea
The main line runs 2...Nc6 3.g3 g6 4.Bg2 Bg7 5.d3 d6. White then chooses between 6.Be3 followed by Qd2 and possibly long castling, and 6.f4 followed by Nf3 and short castling.
Main lines
- 2...Nc6, the Traditional move, Black's most common choice:
- 3.g3, the Fianchetto Variation, leading to the main line above, then 6.Be3 or 6.f4;
- 3.f4, the Grand Prix Attack. This is how the Grand Prix is usually reached nowadays, rather than with 2.f4 at once. The modern main line is 3...g6 4.Nf3 Bg7, when White plays the positional 5.Bb5 or the more aggressive 5.Bc4;
- 3.Nge2, the Chameleon Variation: White keeps the choice between a Closed Sicilian with g3 and an Open Sicilian with d4.
- 2...e6, for example 3.g3 d5, the Korchnoi Defense.
- 2...d6 is also common.
Strengths and weaknesses
Strengths
- White avoids the heavily analysed Open Sicilian main lines.
- Flexible: White can still transpose to other Sicilian systems.
Weaknesses
- Black can often steer the game into a familiar Sicilian line.
- Lines with an early Nge2 are not very challenging for Black. After 2...Nc6 3.Nge2 g6 4.d4 the game reaches an Accelerated Dragon where White can no longer set up the Maróczy Bind with c4.
Who should play it
The Closed Sicilian suits White players who prefer slow manoeuvring and kingside play to memorising long forcing lines.
The numbers
On Lichess Black does slightly better below 1800: 49.4% against 46.9% under 1400 and 48.5% against 47.6% at 1400–1799. From 1800 up White is ahead: 49.7% against 45.5% at 1800–2199 and 49.4% against 43.9% from 2200 up. In about 45,600 master games White won 31.3%, Black 28.9%, and 39.8% were drawn.
Suggest an improvement or report a mistake
How to play against the Sicilian Defense: Closed
2…e6 scores best for Black: 49.5%, with Black winning 47.0% and White 48.1% of 6.7M games. The most played, 2…Nc6, scores 48.3% in 14.7M games, and 2…d6 scores lowest: 47.2%. Stockfish's first choice is 2…Nc6.
Main answers: those played in at least 5% of these games. Score: Black's wins plus half the draws, in rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500. How to play against other popular openings
Popularity by year
The Sicilian Defense: Closed has stayed between 1.1% and 1.4% of Lichess games a year since 2016 (1.3% in 2025).
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 1.1% | 403,446 |
| 2017 | 1.2% | 677,462 |
| 2018 | 1.3% | 1,039,461 |
| 2019 | 1.4% | 1,698,042 |
| 2020 | 1.4% | 4,009,888 |
| 2021 | 1.3% | 5,039,121 |
| 2022 | 1.2% | 4,643,662 |
| 2023 | 1.2% | 4,699,899 |
| 2024 | 1.3% | 4,550,050 |
| 2025 | 1.3% | 4,475,951 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 1.3% | 1,460,358 |
Share of rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500 (blitz, rapid and classical) that reach this position, by year; 2026: January to April. Which openings are rising and falling
Variations (4)
All 21 named lines that continue from here
No line matches.
- B23 Closed 2 moves
- B23 Carlsen Variation 5 moves
- B23 Traditional 2 moves
- B74 Sicilian Defense: Dragon Variation, Classical Variation, Stockholm Attack 14 moves
- B23 Closed 3 moves
- B23 Sicilian Defense: Closed, Chameleon Variation 3 moves
- B24 Sicilian Defense: Closed, Fianchetto Variation 3 moves
- B23 Sicilian Defense: Closed, Grob Attack 3 moves
- B23 Sicilian Defense: Closed, Portland Attack 4 moves
- B23 Sicilian Defense: Grand Prix Attack 3 moves
- B24 Sicilian Defense: Closed 3 moves
- B23 Korchnoi Defense 3 moves
- B23 Schofman Variation 6 moves
- B24 Closed 4 moves
- B25 Closed 5 moves
- B24 Smyslov Variation 7 moves
- B25 Closed 6 moves
- B26 Closed 6 moves
- B25 Botvinnik Defense, with Nge2 6 moves
- B25 Botvinnik Defense, with f4 6 moves
- B25 Sicilian Defense: Closed, Botvinnik Defense, Edge Variation 7 moves
Sources
- History and theory: adapted from the Wikipedia article Sicilian Defence, version of 27 October 2026, under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Results: Lichess opening explorer, figures collected from September to November 2026.
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Sicilian Defense: Closed (B23)”. Lichess data as of 31 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/sicilian-defense-closed