Reply to a Flank opening

Whats a good reply from black, after the English opening? And if you know that the opponent as black would start with Sicilian? What is a good move??

Originally posted by Knight Square
Whats a good reply from black, after the English opening? And if you know that the opponent as black would start with Sicilian? What is a good move??

English Opening and Sicilian Defense are not flank openings, the name is reserved for openings like 1. b4 or 1. g4

Originally posted by drjegc
English Opening and Sicilian Defense are not flank openings, the name is reserved for openings like 1. b4 or 1. g4

hmmm, a pawn move either side of the center would count as a flank move if you ask me.

Use your usual opening against the sicilian... Against the english use what you feel comfortable with. One opening is not going to work for everybody, you have to find the ones that suit you. Right now I'm very happy with the King's Gambit with white, Sicilian as black against 1.e4 and Benko Gambit as black against 1.d4. I like these openings because they are all very strong attacking openings. They all lead to sharp/tactical play, which I enjoy much more, and feel I play much better with, than the "boring" positional openings like 1.c4 and 1.d4.

Are you sure? I saw in a Chess Book, under flank openings the 'English Opening' but you are right about the Sicilian

Originally posted by Knight Square
Are you sure? I saw in a Chess Book, under flank openings the 'English Opening' but you are right about the Sicilian

If he's right about one then he must be right about the other...

Originally posted by Knight Square
Whats a good reply from black, after the English opening? And if you know that the opponent as black would start with Sicilian? What is a good move??

An idea for 1.c4 is to play an opening simiral to your defence to 1.d4 (Ideas with g6 if you play king's indian def. or ideas with Nf6, e6, Bb4 if you play Nimjoindian ).
An interesting antisiclian is Bb5 ideas (1.e4 c5 2Nf3 d6/Nc6 3. Bb5)

English is a flank opening according to my books..

Originally posted by Knight Square
Are you sure? I saw in a Chess Book, under flank openings the 'English Opening' but you are right about the Sicilian

yeap you are right English is a flank opening , not the Sicilian ... but I disagree ... both are not flank opening to me ( its curious if there is an inverted Sicilian variation with the English Opening .... 1.c4 e5 and this is a flank opening , but the normal Sicilian 1.e4 c5 isnt !!! 😕 ) to include only the English and not the Sicilian on flank openings is arbitrary ! 😠

Nothing wrong with the Smyslov System for Black.
1...e5, 2...Nf6, 3...Bb4, 4...0-0, 5...Re8 and continue by either trying to push the e-pawn or building for ...d5 with ...c6. Often you can develop the QKt by ...Nd7-c5.

Originally posted by Knight Square
Are you sure? I saw in a Chess Book, under flank openings the 'English Opening' but you are right about the Sicilian

The English is flank and i like eighter 2...d6 transposing to queens gambit or 2....e5 followed by 3. Nc3 Bb4 4.....Bxc3
with the doubled pawns often a very exposible weakness appears

Both the English and the Sicilian are flank openings.

I think the reason many dont consider the Sicilian to be a flank opening is that the term "flank opening" implies something a little unusual (eg Bird's, Grob). The Sicilian is very mainstream.