Petrov's Defence

"Russian Game" redirects here. For the film, see The Russian Game.

Petrov's Defence

a b c d e f g h 8 8 7 7 6 6 5 5 4 4 3 3 2 2 1 1 a b c d e f g h
Moves	1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nf6
ECO	C42–C43
Named after	Alexander Petrov
Parent	King's Knight Opening
Synonym(s)	Petroff Defence Petrov's Game Russian Defence Russian Game

Petrov's Defence or the Petrov Defence (also called Petroff Defence, Petrov's Game, Russian Defence, or Russian Game [Russian: Русская партия]) is a chess opening characterised by the following moves:

1. e4 e5

2. Nf3 Nf6

Although this symmetrical response has a long history, it was first popularised by Alexander Petrov, a Russian chess player in the mid-19th century. In recognition of the early investigations by the Russian masters Petrov and Carl Jaenisch, this opening is called the Russian Game in some countries.

The Petrov has a drawish reputation; however, it offers attacking opportunities for both sides, and a few lines are quite sharp. Often a trade occurs and Black, after gaining a tempo, has a well-placed knight. Pillsbury's game in 1895^[1] against Emanuel Lasker testifies to this. The Black counterattack in the centre also avoids the Ruy Lopez, Giuoco Piano (and other lines of the Italian Game), and the Scotch Game. The Petrov has been adopted by many of the world's leading players, including world champions Vasily Smyslov, Tigran Petrosian, Anatoly Karpov, and Vladimir Kramnik, along with grandmaster Fabiano Caruana and others.

The Encyclopaedia of Chess Openings codes for Petrov's Defence are C43 (for 3.d4) and C42 (for all other lines).^[2]

Analysis

White's two main choices are 3.Nxe5 and 3.d4. 3.Nxe5 is more popular but they often lead to similar positions and "there is no clear reason to prefer one move over the other".^[3]

3.Nc3 may transpose to the Four Knights Game. 3.Bc4 may lead to the Boden–Kieseritzky Gambit or transpose to the Two Knights Defence or Bishop's Opening. Occasionally seen is the quiet 3.d3.

Examined in this article are the following common variations:

• 3.Nxe5
  • 3...d6
    • 4.Nf3 Nxe4 (Classical Variation)
      • 5.d4 (main line)
      • 5.Nc3 (Nimzowitsch Attack)
      • 5.Qe2 (Cozio Attack)
      • 5.d3 (French Attack)
      • 5.c4 (Kaufmann Attack)
      • 5.Bd3 (Millennium Attack)
    • 4.Nc4 (Paulsen Attack)
    • 4.Nd3 (Karklins-Martinovsky Variation)
    • 4.Nxf7 (Cochrane Gambit)
  • 3...Nxe4 (Damiano Variation)
  • 3...Nc6 (Stafford Gambit)
• 3.d4
  • 3...Nxe4
    • 4.dxe5 d5 5.Nbd2 (main line)
    • 4.Nxe5 d6 5.Nf3 (3.Nxe5 main line, by transposition)
    • 4.Bd3 d5 (Trifunović Variation and others)
    • 4.Bd3 Nc6 (Murey Variation)
  • 3...exd5 4.e5 Ne4
    • 5.Qxd4 d5 6. exd6 Nxd6 (main line)
    • 5.Qe2 (Steinitz Variation)
  • 3...exd5 4.Bc4 (Urusov Gambit)
  • 3...d5 (Symmetrical Variation)
  • 3...d6 (Philidor Defence, by transposition)
• 3.Bc4 (Italian Variation)
  • 3...Nxe4 4.Nc3 (Boden–Kieseritzky Gambit)
• 3.Nc3 (Three Knights Game)
  • 3...Nc6 (Four Knights Game, by transposition)
  • 3...Bb4
• 3.d3 (Closed Variation)

Classical Variation: 3.Nxe5 d6 4.Nf3 Nxe4

	a	b	c	d	e	f	g	h
8									8
7									7
6									6
5									5
4									4
3									3
2									2
1									1
	a	b	c	d	e	f	g	h

Position after 3.Nxe5 d6

After 3.Nxe5, the Classical Variation, the standard reply for Black is 3...d6. After 4.Nf3 Nxe4, White's main options are 5.d4, intending to undermine the knight on e4, and 5.Nc3, aiming for rapid development with queen's side castling and a king's side attack. Other moves offer little hope for an advantage.

Main line: 5.d4

This is the most common line and typically most often continues 5...d5 6.Bd3. The position is similar to an Exchange French in which Black has played the extra move ...Nf6–e4, though this extra move is not necessarily to Black's advantage. White will try to drive Black's advanced knight from e4 with moves like c4 and Re1. In practice White is usually able to achieve this, but at some structural cost such as having to play c4, which balances out.^[4]

Nimzowitsch Attack: 5.Nc3

A completely different approach is to meet 4...Nxe4 with 5.Nc3 Nxc3 6.dxc3 with rapid development and queenside castling. For instance, White can plan a quick Be3, Qd2, and 0-0-0, and play for a kingside attack, trusting that the doubled c-pawns will help protect the king, and that a strong initiative and attacking potential will offset the longterm disadvantage of having doubled pawns. In the 5.Nc3 line, Black must avoid 5...Bf5?? 6.Qe2! which wins a piece due to the pin (if 6...Qe7 7.Nd5, forcing 7...Qd7 because of the threat to the c7-pawn; then 8.d3 wins the piece). Viswanathan Anand resigned after only six moves after falling for this against Alonso Zapata at Biel in 1988.^[5]

Other lines

• 5.Qe2, the Lasker Variation, forces simplification and a likely draw after 5...Qe7 6.d3 Nf6.
• 5.d3 is a quieter line. Play may transpose into an Exchange French after 5...Nf6 6.d4 d5.
• 5.c4, the Kaufmann Attack, was also explored by Keres. The idea is to discourage ...d5 before undermining the Black knight on e4, however this plan is rather slow, and Black can instead choose to retreat the knight to g5, e.g. 5...Be7 6.d4 0-0 7.Bd3 Ng5 with equality. Alternatively, Black can counter White's plan with 5...Nc6, intending to answer 6.d4 with 6...d5!^[6][7]
• 5.Bd3 is the Millennium Attack.

3.Nxe5 d6, alternatives for White

These lines are all relatively uncommon today.

• 4.Nxf7 (Cochrane Gambit). This line was labelled "speculative but entertaining" by Nick de Firmian in Modern Chess Openings.^[8] He evaluates the position in Topalov–Kramnik, Linares 1999 as offering chances for both sides after 4...Kxf7 5.Nc3 c5!? 6.Bc4+ Be6 7.Bxe6+ Kxe6 8.d4 Kf7 9.dxc5 Nc6.^[8]
• 4.Nc4 (Paulsen Variation). This move was labelled "ineffective" by de Firmian, though it is occasionally seen at grandmaster level.
• 4.Nd3 (Karklins–Martinovsky Variation). US master Andrew Karklins has experimented with 4.Nd3!?, now called the Karklins–Martinovsky Variation. Janjgava assesses it as "poor",^[9] but it was played in the World Chess Championship 2018 between Magnus Carlsen and Fabiano Caruana.^[10]

3.Nxe5, alternatives for Black

Damiano Variation: 3...Nxe4

The Damiano Variation, 3...Nxe4, has traditionally been regarded as an error, though it has occasionally been seen in recent grandmaster play. Black must play accurately to avoid an immediately losing position. After 4.Qe2 there are several moves that Black must avoid.

• 4...Nf6?? 5.Nc6+ wins the queen.
• 4...d5? 5.d3 Qe7 6.dxe4 Qxe5 7.exd5 and Black loses a pawn.
• 4...d6? 5.Nxf7! Kxf7 6.Qxe4 and Black has lost a pawn and the ability to castle.

Best is 4...Qe7 5.Qxe4 d6 6.d4 dxe5 7.dxe5 Nc6, and after 8.Nc3 Qxe5 9.Qxe5+ Nxe5 10.Nb5 (or 10.Bf4) White has a moderate advantage.^[11][12]

Stafford Gambit: 3...Nc6?!

Recently dubbed the Stafford Gambit, 3... Nc6?! is considered dubious, but it sets a number of traps. It was advocated by Eric Rosen in the early 2020s and became popular in online games. After 4.Nxc6 dxc6, White wins a pawn but must play carefully. After 5.e5 (5.d3 is better) Ne4 6.d3?? (White should play 6.Nc3, 6.d4, or 6.Qe2) 6...Bc5! and White resigned in Lowens–Stafford, US correspondence game 1950.^[13][14] After 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.Nxe5 Nc6 4.Nxc6 dxc6 5.d3 Bc5, White must avoid the Légal Trap 6.Bg5?? Nxe4!, and if 7.Bxd8 (relatively best but still losing is 7.Be3) 7...Bxf2+ 8. Ke2 Bg4#. Instead, White should play 6.Be2 Bc5 7.c3! with d3–d4 to follow, and Black has insufficient compensation for the pawn, though White must still play carefully.^[15]

Other lines

• 3...Qe7?! is inferior, as 4.d4 d6 5.Nf3 Qxe4+ 6.Be2 gives White a large lead in development.

3.d4

This move was favoured by Wilhelm Steinitz, who recommended it in his The Modern Chess Instructor (1889) and played it three times against Harry Nelson Pillsbury in the Saint Petersburg 1895–96 tournament, winning two games and drawing one.

	a	b	c	d	e	f	g	h
8									8
7									7
6									6
5									5
4									4
3									3
2									2
1									1
	a	b	c	d	e	f	g	h

3.d4

3...Nxe4

	a	b	c	d	e	f	g	h
8									8
7									7
6									6
5									5
4									4
3									3
2									2
1									1
	a	b	c	d	e	f	g	h

Position after 19.Nd2

After 3...Nxe4, 4.Bd3 d5 (4...Nc6!? 5.Bxe4 d5, intending 6.Bd3 e4, is also possible) 5.Nxe5, when either 5...Nd7 or 5...Bd6 gives roughly equal chances.

A long and complicated tactical sequence which has frequently been seen in master games is 3...Nxe4 4.Bd3 d5 5.Nxe5 Bd6 6.0-0 0-0 7.c4 Bxe5 8.dxe5 Nc6 9.cxd5 Qxd5 10.Qc2 Nb4 11.Bxe4 Nxc2 12.Bxd5 Bf5 13.g4 Bxg4 14.Be4 Nxa1 15.Bf4 f5 16.Bd5+ Kh8 17.Rc1 c6 18.Bg2 Rfd8 19.Nd2 (diagram) and White has the slightly better endgame after either 19...Rxd2 20.Bxd2 Rd8 21.Bc3 Rd1+ 22.Rxd1 Bxd1 or 19...h6 20.h4.^[16][17]

3...exd4

After 3...exd4, the usual continuation is 4.e5 Ne4 (4...Qe7?! 5.Be2 is better for White) 5.Qxd4 (5.Qe2 is also possible) d5 6.exd6 Nxd6, followed by 7.Nc3 Nc6 8.Qf4 or 7.Bd3 Nc6 8.Qf4.

4.Bc4 transposes into the Urusov Gambit, which is not considered wholly sound.

Other lines

• 3...d5 usually ends up transposing to one of the above lines.
• 3...d6 transposes to Philidor's Defence.

Other 3rd moves for White

3.Bc4

3.Bc4 is an occasionally seen alternative for White, often with the intention of playing 3...Nxe4 4.Nc3, the Boden–Kieseritzky Gambit. Black's main alternatives to 3...Nxe4 are 3...Nc6, transposing to the Two Knights Defence, and the aggressive 3...d5.

Boden–Kieseritzky Gambit: 3.Bc4 Nxe4 4.Nc3

	a	b	c	d	e	f	g	h
8									8
7									7
6									6
5									5
4									4
3									3
2									2
1									1
	a	b	c	d	e	f	g	h

Boden–Kieseritzky Gambit: 3.Bc4 Nxe4 4.Nc3

The gambit is not considered wholly sound, since Black has several viable options. Black can accept the gambit with 4...Nxc3 5.dxc3 f6, but must play carefully after 6.0-0 (for example 6...Bc5?? 7.Nxe5! is disastrous; 6...d6 and 6...Nc6 are good).

Another more aggressive try is 6.Nh4, where White goes for a quick assault on Black's king, but Black can maintain a small advantage if he plays cautiously via 6...g6 7.f4 Qe7 8.f5 Qg7 9.Qg4 Kd8. Another possibility is returning the gambit pawn with 4...Nxc3 5.dxc3 c6 6.Nxe5 d5, which equalises.

A third possibility is transposing to the Italian Four Knights Game with 4...Nc6, and if 5.Nxe4, 5...d5. If 5.Bxf7+?, then 5...Kxf7 6.Nxe4 d5 gives Black the bishop pair and control of the centre. If 5.0-0, Black plays 5...Nxc3 6.dxc3 and now Black can play 6...Qe7!, after which Bobby Fischer wrote that "White has no compensation for the Pawn",^[18] or 6...f6 transposing to the main line of the Boden–Kieseritzky. Black also has lines beginning 6...Be7 and 6...h6.

Other lines

• 3.Bc4 Nxe4 4.d3 is an alternative to the Boden–Kieseritzky Gambit for White. Possible lines include 4...Nf6 5.Nxe5 d5 6.Bb3 Bd6 7.d4 0-0 8.0-0 c5, and 4...Nc5 5.Nxe5 d5 6.Bb3 Nxb3 (or 6...Bd6).
• 3.Bc4 Nxe4 4.Nxe5 typically leads to positions similar to the main line Petrov but with White down a tempo after 4...d5 5.Be2 (or other retreats).

Three Knights Game: 3.Nc3

This leads to the Three Knights Game of Petrov's Defence. It is often played by White in order to avoid lines unique to the Petrov, as 3...Nc6, which transposes to the Four Knights Game, is Black's most common and best regarded response. It can also be reached via 2.Nc3 Nf6 (the Vienna Game) 3.Nf3. The main alternative is 3...Bb4, and after 4.Nxe5 0-0 5.Be2 Re8 6.Nd3 Bxc3 7.dxc3 Nxe4 8.Nf4 d6 9.0-0 White has a slight advantage due to the bishop pair.^[19]

Closed Variation: 3.d3

White declines to exchange any pieces and instead defends the pawn on e4. Black usually responds with 3...Nc6. White often intends either 4.Be2 or to fianchetto with 4.g3 and 5.Bg2. These lines are also sometimes reached by transposition, and are also the main lines of two rare third moves for White after 2.Nf3 Nc6, 3.g3 (the Konstantinopolsky Opening^[20]) and 3.Be2 (the Tayler Opening^[21]), which both most often continue 3...Nf6 4.d3.

The symmetrical 3...d6 and aggressive 3...d5, typically continuing with either 4.exd5 Qxd5 5.Nc3 Bb4 6.Bd2 Bxc3 7.Bxc3 Nc6 or with 4.Nbd2, which transposes to the 2.d3 line of Alekhine's Defence, are notable alternatives for Black.

See also

• List of chess openings
• List of chess openings named after people

References

1. "Lasker vs. Pillsbury, 1895". Chessgames.com.
2. *"ECO Code by Chess Informant". www.chessinformant.rs. Chess Informant. Retrieved 29 January 2015.
3. Janjgava (2001), p. 107
4. Burgess, Graham (2010), The Mammoth Book of Chess, Running Press
5. "Alonso Zapata vs. Viswanathan Anand". ChessGames.com. Retrieved 13 June 2011.
6. Janjgava (2001), pp. 131–33
7. Yusupov (1999), pp. 42–59
8. de Firmian (1999)
9. Janjgava, p. 109
10. "Magnus Carlsen vs. Fabiano Caruana, 2018". Chessgames.com.
11. Janjgava (2001), pp. 108–09
12. Yusupov (1999), pp. 12, 22–24
13. "Lowens vs. Stafford, 1950". Chessgames.com.
14. Forintos & Haág (1983), p. 110
15. Avetik Grigoryan, Stafford Gambit – The Refutation, Chessmood, 6 April, 2021
16. "Position Search after 19.Nd2". Chessgames.com.
17. de Firmian (1999), p. 136
18. Bobby Fischer, My 60 Memorable Games, Faber and Faber, 1972, pp. 280–81. ISBN 0-571-09987-4.
19. Janjgava, pp. 10–16
20. Hooper & Whyld (1996), p. 206
21. Hooper & Whyld (1996), p. 182

Bibliography

• de Firmian, Nick (1999). Modern Chess Openings (14th ed.). Random House. ISBN 0-8129-3084-3.
• Forintos, Győző; Haág, Ervin (1983). Petroff's Defence. Batsford. ISBN 0-7134-3202-0.
• Hooper, David; Whyld, Kenneth (1996) [First pub. 1992]. The Oxford Companion to Chess (2nd ed.). Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-280049-3.
• Janjgava, Lasha (2001). The Petroff. Gambit Publications. ISBN 1-901983-46-3.
• Yusupov, Artur (1999). The Petroff Defence. Edition Olms. ISBN 3-283-00400-5.

Further reading

• Kotronias, Vassilios; Tzermiadianos, Andreas (2005). Beating The Petroff. Batsford. ISBN 978-0-7134-8919-4.
• Raetsky, Alexander; Chetverik, Maxim (2005). Petroff Defence. Everyman Chess. ISBN 1-85744-378-0.
• Sakaev, Konstantin (2011). The Petroff: An Expert Repertoire for Black. Chess Stars. ISBN 978 954 8782 84-5.

External links

• "Petrov Defense (C42)". Chessgames.com. Retrieved 2007-04-26.
• Petrov's Defence Video and explanation
• Petrov's defence (C42) – 365Chess.com ECO Games
• Gary Lane on the Cochrane Gambit
• Cochrane Gambit theory