Through years of experience playing the Sicilian Defense as Black, I have often encountered this variation. When White chooses the Alapin Variation, his goal is to neutralize Black’s tendency to create open and dynamic positions, directing the game toward structures that are familiar to them. Instead of continuing with the most popular Qd5, I suggest Nf6. The idea is to capture the d5 pawn with a knight and avoid an early queen’s centralization. The continuation I suggest is also a gambit since it allows White to defend the pawn on d5. The positions are very sharp and give black good counterplay.