Caissa Codex
B20

Sicilian Defense: Myers Attack, with a4

Chess diagram: Sicilian Defense: Myers Attack, with a4 after 2. a4

Type a move and press Enter: e4, Nf3, O-O, or from and to squares like g1f3 (e7e8q to promote). The board is also played with the mouse.

Play any move on the board to explore from there, or step through the line with ‹ › and the arrow keys.

Statistics from Lichess

109,039 games: White 44.1% / Draw 4.3% / Black 51.6%

The moves played next. Pick one to see it on the board.
Next moveGamesWhite / Draw / BlackW / D / B
47,68248K
21,67722K
17,10417K
6,9256,925
4,3954,395
3,7883,788
2,5292,529
1,9021,902

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

Engine evaluation

−0.03 The position is about equal

Best play: 2... Nc6 3. Nc3 g6 4. Bb5 Bg7 5. d3 Nf6 6. Nf3 O-O 7. O-O

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

Overview

Sicilian Defense: Myers Attack, with a4 (ECO B20, Semi-Open Games) is a variation of the Sicilian Defense, reached after 1. e4 c5 2. a4 (2 moves).

In 109,039 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 44.1%, Black 51.6% and 4.3% were drawn. Black's most played move here is 2…Nc6, in 44% of those games.

Written from the Lichess opening list and explorer. Know this line well? Write about it.

Write a description or report a mistake
What would you like to send?

Markdown supported (headings ###, bold, lists, links). Submissions are reviewed before publishing.

How to play against the Sicilian Defense: Myers Attack, with a4

2…g6 scores best for Black: 55.5%, with Black winning 53.3% and White 42.2% of 6,925 games. The most played, 2…Nc6, scores 54.1% in 48K games, and 2…d6 scores lowest: 52.6%. 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

Other lines from the same position

Instead of 2. a4, the position after Sicilian Defense also goes on to:

Cite this page

Caissa Codex. “Sicilian Defense: Myers Attack, with a4 (B20)”. Lichess data as of 30 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/sicilian-defense-myers-attack-with-a4

https://chesscodex.org/openings/sicilian-defense-myers-attack-with-a4