Sicilian Defense: Modern Variations
B50 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6
White scores 49.8% here across 3,018 club games — but the 7.1% who answer Nc3 score 45.1%, 5 points worse.
What White actually plays here
Across 3,018 games from a Lichess-derived book of club play, White scores 49.8% in this position. These are the replies people choose, and how each one works out.
| Reply | Games | Share | White scores | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| d4 | 1,474 | 48.8% | 51.2% | holds up |
| Bc4 | 551 | 18.3% | 47.2% | holds up |
| Bb5+ | 288 | 9.5% | 50.3% | holds up |
| Nc3 | 214 | 7.1% | 45.1% | below the line |
| c3 | 179 | 5.9% | 54.5% | holds up |
| h3 | 91 | 3.0% | 50.5% | holds up |
| c4 | 87 | 2.9% | 55.2% | holds up |
| d3 | 40 | 1.3% | 43.8% | below the line |
| Be2 | 31 | 1.0% | 41.9% | below the line |
"Below the line" means the reply scores at least three points worse than the position does overall. Replies played fewer than 25 times are left out: the sample is too small to read.
Is this costing you anything?
A table of averages cannot tell you whether you go wrong here — only your own games can. Opening Leak Lab reads your Chess.com or Lichess archive, finds the decisions you repeat, and checks each one against this book and a bundled Stockfish.
Related openings
- Sicilian Defense B50