The Sicilian Defence is by far Black's most popular answer to 1 e4 at all levels of chess. The reason is easy to understand: from the very first move, Black unbalances the position and can play for a win without needing to take unjustified risks. This is particularly the case with the Open Sicilians, where Black can take comfort in the fact that his superior pawn structure ensures control of the centre and excellent long term chances. Faced this with type of problem, along with the fact that many Open Sicilians carry with them a massive build-up of opening theory, it's unsurprising that many. White players prefer to avoid the Open Sicilian altogether, preferring one of the many 'Anti-Sicilians' lines on offer.These numerous options for White include the primitive but dangerous Grand Prix Attack, one or two wild gambits, but most of all some tedious and niggling variations such as 2 c3, the Closed and Bb5 systems, all of which are designed to stamp out any fun Black was envisaging when playing 1...c5. These annoying lines have become the scourge of Sicilian players, but in this book Richard Palliser, a lifelong Sicilian devotee, decides it's time for Black players to finally fight back.