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 A chess opening or simply an opening is the initial stage of a chess game. It usually consists of established theory; the other phases are the middlegame and the endgame. Many opening sequences have standard names such as the "Sicilian Defens ...

characterised by the following moves: :1. e4 e5 :2. Nf3 Nf6 Though this response has a long history, it was first popularised by Alexander Petrov, a

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

chess Chess is a board game for two players, called White and Black, each controlling an army of chess pieces in their color, with the objective to checkmate the opponent's king. It is sometimes called international chess or Western chess to disti ...

player in the mid-19th century. In recognition of the early investigations by the Russian masters Petrov and

Carl Jaenisch Carl Ferdinand von Jaenisch (russian: Карл Андреевич Яниш, ''Karl Andreyevich Yanish''; April 11, 1813 – March 7, 1872) was a Finnish and Russian chess player and theorist. In the 1840s, he was among the top players in the ...

, 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 . Often a trade occurs and Black, after gaining a

tempo In musical terminology, tempo (Italian, 'time'; plural ''tempos'', or ''tempi'' from the Italian plural) is the speed or pace of a given piece. In classical music, tempo is typically indicated with an instruction at the start of a piece (often ...

, has a well-placed

knight A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood finds origins in the Gr ...

. Pillsbury's game in 1895 against

Emanuel Lasker Emanuel Lasker (; December 24, 1868 – January 11, 1941) was a German chess player, mathematician, and philosopher who was World Chess Champion for 27 years, from 1894 to 1921, the longest reign of any officially recognised World Chess Champ ...

testifies to this. The Black counterattack in the centre also avoids the

Ruy Lopez The Ruy Lopez (; ), also called the Spanish Opening or Spanish Game, is a chess opening characterised by the moves: :1. e4 e5 :2. Nf3 Nc6 :3. Bb5 The Ruy Lopez is named after 16th-century Spanish priest Ruy López de Segura. It is one o ...

Giuoco Piano The Giuoco Piano (Italian: "Quiet Game"; ), also called the Italian Opening, is a chess opening beginning with the moves: :1. e4 e5 :2. Nf3 Nc6 :3. Bc4 Bc5 "White aims to develop quickly – but so does Black. White can construct a pawn cen ...

(and other lines of the

Italian Game The Italian Game is a family of chess openings beginning with the moves: :1. e4 e5 :2. Nf3 Nc6 :3. Bc4 This opening is defined by the of the white bishop to c4 (the so-called ""), where it attacks Black's vulnerable f7-square. It is part ...

), and the

Scotch Game The Scotch Game, or Scotch Opening, is a chess opening that begins with the moves: :1. e4 e5 :2. Nf3 Nc6 :3. d4 Ercole del Rio, in his 1750 treatise ''Sopra il giuoco degli Scacchi, Osservazioni pratiche d’anonimo Autore Modenese'' ("On t ...

. The Petrov has been adopted by many of the world's leading players, including world champions

Vasily Smyslov Vasily Vasilyevich Smyslov ( rus, Васи́лий Васи́льевич Смысло́в, Vasíliy Vasíl'yevich Smyslóv; 24 March 1921 – 27 March 2010) was a Soviet and Russian chess grandmaster, who was World Chess Champion from 1957 to ...

Tigran Petrosian Tigran Vartanovich Petrosian (, ; 17 June 1929 – 13 August 1984) was a Soviet-Armenian chess grandmaster, and World Chess Champion from 1963 to 1969. He was nicknamed "Iron Tigran" due to his almost-impenetrable defensive playing style, ...

Anatoly Karpov Anatoly Yevgenyevich Karpov ( rus, links=no, Анато́лий Евге́ньевич Ка́рпов, p=ɐnɐˈtolʲɪj jɪvˈɡʲenʲjɪvʲɪtɕ ˈkarpəf; born May 23, 1951) is a Russian and former Soviet chess grandmaster, former World Ches ...

, and

Vladimir Kramnik Vladimir Borisovich Kramnik (russian: Влади́мир Бори́сович Кра́мник; born 25 June 1975) is a Russian chess grandmaster. He was the Classical World Chess Champion from 2000 to 2006, and the undisputed World Chess Cha ...

. The ''

Encyclopaedia of Chess Openings The ''Encyclopaedia of Chess Openings'' () is a reference work describing the state of opening theory in chess, originally published in five volumes from 1974 to 1979 by the Serbian company Šahovski Informator (Chess Informant). It is current ...

'' codes for Petrov's Defence are C43 (for 3.d4) and C42 (for all other lines).

White's third move

White's two main choices for move three are 3.Nxe5, the Classical Variation and 3.d4, the Steinitz Variation. 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.Nc3 may

transpose In linear algebra, the transpose of a matrix is an operator which flips a matrix over its diagonal; that is, it switches the row and column indices of the matrix by producing another matrix, often denoted by (among other notations). The tr ...

to the

Four Knights Game The Four Knights Game is a chess opening that begins with the moves: :1. e4 e5 :2. Nf3 Nc6 :3. Nc3 Nf6 This is the most common sequence, but the knights may in any order to reach the same position. The opening is fairly popular with begin ...

or the

Three Knights Game The Three Knights Game is a chess opening which most commonly begins with the moves: :1. e4 e5 :2. Nf3 Nc6 :3. Nc3 In the Three Knights Game, Black chooses to break symmetry in order to avoid the main lines of what is often considered the ...

. 3.Bc4 may lead to the

Boden–Kieseritzky Gambit 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 Th ...

or transpose to the

Two Knights Defence The Two Knights Defense is a chess opening that begins with the moves: :1. e4 e5 :2. Nf3 Nc6 :3. Bc4 Nf6 First recorded by Giulio Cesare Polerio (c. 1550 – c. 1610) in the late 16th century, this line of the Italian Game was extensiv ...

. Occasionally seen is the 3.d3.

Classical Variation: 3.Nxe5

After 3.Nxe5, the Classical Variation, Black should not continue to copy White's moves and try to restore the balance immediately with 3...Nxe4. After 4.Qe2 Black cannot play 4...Nf6 because 5.Nc6+ wins the

queen Queen or QUEEN may refer to: Monarchy * Queen regnant, a female monarch of a Kingdom ** List of queens regnant * Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king * Queen dowager, the widow of a king * Queen mother, a queen dowager who is the mother ...

, and after 4...d5?! 5.d3 Qe7 6.dxe4 Qxe5 7.exd5 Black loses a

pawn Pawn most often refers to: * Pawn (chess), the weakest and most numerous piece in the game * Pawnbroker or pawnshop, a business that provides loans by taking personal property as collateral Pawn may also refer to: Places * Pawn, Oregon, an his ...

. Relatively best for Black is 4...Qe7 5.Qxe4 d6 6.d4 dxe5 7.dxe5 Nc6, and after for example 8.Nc3 (8.Bb5 is also good) 8...Qxe5 9.Qxe5+ Nxe5 10.Nb5 (or 10.Bf4) White has a clear advantage. If Black plays 3...Qe7?! then 4.d4 d6 5.Nf3 Qxe4+ 6.Be2 is better for White. Consequently, by far the most popular move for Black is 3...d6. Most often, White follows the main line 4.Nf3 Nxe4 5.d4 (5.Bd3 is also playable, known as the Millennium Attack) d5 6.Bd3, where he will try to drive Black's advanced knight from e4 with moves like c4 and Re1. If White achieves this, then he is up two tempi (Nf6–e4–f6, plus the tempo White starts the game with). In practice White is usually able to achieve this, but at some structural cost such as having to play c4, which balances out. White can also force simplification with Lasker's 5.Qe2 Qe7 6.d3. This is generally only good enough for a

draw Draw, drawing, draws, or drawn may refer to: Common uses * Draw (terrain), a terrain feature formed by two parallel ridges or spurs with low ground in between them * Drawing (manufacturing), a process where metal, glass, or plastic or anything ...

, which Black should be satisfied with. Another possibility, explored by

Keres In Greek mythology, the Keres (; Ancient Greek: Κῆρες), singular Ker (; Κήρ), were female death-spirits. They were the goddesses who personified violent death and who were drawn to bloody deaths on battlefields. Although they were pre ...

, is 5.c4, known as the Kauffmann Attack. A completely different approach is to meet 4...Nxe4 with 5.Nc3 Nxc3 6.dxc3 with rapid and

castling Castling is a move in chess. It consists of moving the king two squares toward a rook on the same and then moving the rook to the square that the king passed over. Castling is permitted only if neither the king nor the rook has previously moved ...

. For instance, White can plan a quick Be3, Qd2, and 0-0-0, and play for a attack, trusting that his doubled c-pawns will help protect his king, and that his 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 A pin is a device used for fastening objects or material together. Pin or PIN may also refer to: Computers and technology * Personal identification number (PIN), to access a secured system ** PIN pad, a PIN entry device * PIN, a former Dutch de ...

(if 6...Qe7 7.Nd5, forcing 7...Qd7 because of the threat to the c7-pawn; then 8.d3 wins the piece).

Viswanathan Anand Viswanathan "Vishy" Anand (born 11 December 1969) is an Indian chess grandmaster and a former five-time World Chess Champion. He became the first grandmaster from India in 1988, and is one of the few players to have surpassed an Elo rating of ...

resigned after only six moves after falling for this against

Alonso Zapata Alonso Zapata Ramirez (born August 22, 1958) is a Colombian chess grandmaster. He is an eight-time Colombian Chess Champion. Chess career Zapata has won the Colombian Chess Championship in 1980, 1981, 1995 (joint), 1996, 2000, 2002, 2004, an ...

at Biel in 1988. The Cochrane Gambit, 4.Nxf7, is labelled "speculative but entertaining" by

Nick de Firmian Nicholas Ernest de Firmian (born July 26, 1957) is an American chess player who received the FIDE title of Grandmaster (GM) in 1985. He is a three-time U.S. chess champion, winning in 1987 (with Joel Benjamin), 1995, and 1998. He also tied for ...

in '' Modern Chess Openings–14''. He evaluates the position in

Veselin Topalov Veselin Aleksandrov Topalov (pronounced ; bg, Весели́н Александров Топа́лов; born 15 March 1975) is a Bulgarian chess International Grandmaster, grandmaster and former FIDE World Chess Championship, World Chess Champ ...

–

, 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. The Paulsen Variation, 4.Nc4, is labelled "ineffective" by de Firmian in ''MCO'', but is occasionally seen at grandmaster level. US master Andrew Karklins has experimented with 4.Nd3!?, now called the Karklins–Martinovsky Variation. This was played in the

World Chess Championship 2018 The World Chess Championship 2018 was a match between the reigning world champion since 2013, Magnus Carlsen, and the challenger Fabiano Caruana to determine the World Chess Champion. The 12-game match, organised by FIDE and its commercial pa ...

between

Magnus Carlsen Sven Magnus Øen Carlsen (born 30 November 1990) is a Norwegian chess grandmaster who is the reigning five-time World Chess Champion. He is also a three-time World Rapid Chess Champion and five-time World Blitz Chess Champion. Carlsen has h ...

and

Fabiano Caruana Fabiano Luigi Caruana (born July 30, 1992) is an American chess grandmaster. A chess prodigy, Caruana became a grandmaster at the age of 14 years, 11 months, and 20 days—the youngest grandmaster in the history of both Italy and the United Sta ...

. The Stafford Gambit, 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.Nxe5 Nc6, is considered dubious, but it sets a few traps. 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.

Steinitz Variation: 3.d4

3.d4 was favoured by

Wilhelm Steinitz William Steinitz (born Wilhelm Steinitz; May 14, 1836 – August 12, 1900) was an Austrian and, later, American chess player. From 1886 to 1894, he was the first official World Chess Champion. He was also a highly influential writer and che ...

, and is sometimes called the Steinitz Variation, although it was known earlier. Black can capture either pawn; also possible is 3...d6, transposing into the

Philidor Defence The Philidor Defence (or Philidor's Defence) is a chess opening characterised by the moves: :1. e4 e5 :2. Nf3 d6 The opening is named after the famous 18th-century player François-André Danican Philidor, who advocated it as an alternative ...

. After 3...exd4 4.e5 (4.Bc4 transposes into the Urusov Gambit) 4...Ne4 (4...Qe7?! 5.Be2 is better for White) 5.Qxd4 d5 6.exd6 Nxd6 7.Nc3 Nc6 8.Qf4 the game is approximately . After the other capture, 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.

Three Knights Game: 3.Nc3

3.Nc3 is the Three Knights Game of Petrov's Defence. It can also be reached via 2.Nc3 Nf6 3.Nf3 (the

Vienna Game The Vienna Game is an opening in chess that begins with the moves: :1. e4 e5 :2. Nc3 White's second move is less common than 2.Nf3, and is also more recent. The original idea behind the Vienna Game was to play a delayed King's Gambit with f ...

). Commonly, after 3...Nc6, the opening transposes to the

. With the reply 3...Bb4 (or some others), it remains the Three Knights Game proper.

Italian Variation: 3.Bc4

3.Bc4 is the Italian Variation of Petrov's Defence. With 3...Nc6, it transposes to the

Boden–Kieseritzky Gambit

Another possibility is 3.Bc4 Nxe4 4.Nc3, the Boden–Kieseritzky Gambit. It 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 and control of the . If 5.0-0, Black plays 5...Nxc3 6.dxc3 and now Black can play 6...Qe7!, after which

Bobby Fischer Robert James Fischer (March 9, 1943January 17, 2008) was an American chess grandmaster and the eleventh World Chess Champion. A chess prodigy, he won his first of a record eight US Championships at the age of 14. In 1964, he won with an 11� ...

wrote that "White has no compensation for the Pawn",

, ''

My 60 Memorable Games ''My 60 Memorable Games'' is a chess book by Bobby Fischer, first published in 1969. It is a collection of his games dating from the 1957 New Jersey Open to the 1967 Sousse Interzonal. Unlike many players' anthologies, which are often titled ''My ...

'', Faber and Faber, 1972, pp. 280–81. . or 6...f6 transposing to the main line of the Boden–Kieseritzky. Black also has lines beginning 6...Be7 and 6...h6.

References

External links

*
Petrov's Defence Video and explanationPetrov's defence (C42) – 365Chess.com ECO GamesGary Lane on the Cochrane Gambit
{{Authority control Chess openings