B33

Sicilian Defense: Lasker-Pelikan Variation, Sveshnikov Variation, Chelyabinsk Variation

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Statistics from Lichess

1,007,360 games: White 47.6% / Draw 7.3% / Black 45.1%

The moves played next. Pick one to see it on the board.
Next move	Games	White / Draw / BlackW / D / B
	935,952936K
	41,81142K
	18,16418K
	7,4197,419
	1,1501,150
	1,0781,078
	788788
	359359

Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 30, 2026

Engine evaluation

+0.17 The position is about equal

Best play: 9... Be7 10. Bxf6 Bxf6 11. c3 Rb8 12. Nc2 Bg5 13. a4 bxa4 14. Ncb4

Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.

By rating

Players	Games	White / Draw / BlackW / D / B
Under 1400	1,648
1400–1799	91K
1800–2199	636K
2200 and up	293K
Masters, over the board	14K

Master games

Giri, A. – Carlsen, M. ½–½, 2015
Nepomniachtchi, I. – Carlsen, M. ½–½, 2020
Dominguez Perez, L. – Carlsen, M. 1–0, 2019
Nepomniachtchi, I. – Carlsen, M. 0–1, 2021
Duda, J. – Carlsen, M. ½–½, 2019

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 27, 2026

Overview

Sicilian Defense: Lasker-Pelikan Variation, Sveshnikov Variation, Chelyabinsk Variation (ECO B33, Semi-Open Games) is a variation of the Sicilian Defense: Lasker-Pelikan Variation, Sveshnikov Variation, reached after 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 e5 6. Ndb5 d6 7. Bg5 a6 8. Na3 b5 9. Nd5 (9 moves).

In 1,007,360 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 47.6%, Black 45.1% and 7.3% were drawn. Black's most played move here is 9…Be7, in 93% of those games.

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Description

Popularity by year

The Sicilian Defense: Lasker-Pelikan Variation, Sveshnikov Variation, Chelyabinsk Variation peaked in 2020 at 0.054% of Lichess games and has slipped since: 0.034% in 2025.

0.031%0.034%0.054%

Numbers by year

Year	Share of games	Games
2016	0.031%	10,928
2017	0.035%	19,080
2018	0.038%	29,958
2019	0.052%	65,483
2020	0.054%	158,998
2021	0.041%	159,511
2022	0.037%	140,626
2023	0.036%	134,452
2024	0.033%	117,733
2025	0.034%	117,851
2026 (Jan–Apr)	0.035%	38,331

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

Cite this page

Caissa Codex. “Sicilian Defense: Lasker-Pelikan Variation, Sveshnikov Variation, Chelyabinsk Variation (B33)”. Lichess data as of 30 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/sicilian-defense-lasker-pelikan-variation-sveshnikov-variation-chelyabinsk-variation