The Zukertort Opening 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 ...

named after

Johannes Zukertort Johannes Hermann Zukertort (Polish: ''Jan Hermann Cukiertort''; 7 September 1842 – 20 June 1888) was a Polish chess master. He was one of the leading world players for most of the 1870s and 1880s, but lost to Wilhelm Steinitz in the World Ches ...

that begins with the move: :1. Nf3 Sometimes the name "Réti Opening" is used for the opening move 1.Nf3, although most sources define the Réti more narrowly as the sequence 1.Nf3 d5 2.c4. A

flank opening A flank opening is a chess opening played by White and typified by play on one or both flanks (the portion of the chess board outside the central d and e files). White often plays in hypermodern style, attacking the center from the flanks with ...

, it is the third most popular of the twenty legal opening moves White has, behind only

1.e4 The King's Pawn Game is any chess opening starting with the move: :1. b:Chess Opening Theory/1. e4, e4 It is the most popular opening move in chess, followed by the Queen's Pawn Game. Details about the move and the game plan White opens with t ...

and 1.d4. The move has been described by

Edmar Mednis Edmar John Mednis ( lv, Edmārs Džons Mednis; March 22, 1937 – February 13, 2002) was a Latvian-American chess player and writer of Latvian origin. He was awarded the title of Grandmaster by FIDE in 1980. Biography Mednis' family were ...

as a "perfect and flexible opening" and by others such as

Aron Nimzowitsch Aron Nimzowitsch ( lv, Ārons Nimcovičs, russian: Аро́н Иса́евич Нимцо́вич, ''Aron Isayevich Nimtsovich''; 7 November 1886 – 16 March 1935) was a Latvian-born Danish chess player and writer. In the late 1920s, Nimz ...

as "certainly the most solid move, whereas moves such as 1.e4 and 1.d4 are both 'committal' and 'compromising'." The game can

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 ...

into many other openings that usually start with 1.e4, 1.d4, or 1.c4. If Black is not careful, there is the risk of running unprepared into a highly theoretical opening, e.g. after 1.Nf3 c5 White can play 2.e4 leading to the mainline

Sicilian Defense The Sicilian Defence is a chess opening that begins with the following moves: :1. e4 c5 The Sicilian is the most popular and best-scoring response to White's first move 1.e4. Opening 1.d4 is a statistically more successful opening for White b ...

. Other common transpositions are to various lines of the

Queen's Gambit Declined The Queen's Gambit Declined (or QGD) is a chess opening in which Black declines a pawn offered by White in the Queen's Gambit: :1. d4 d5 :2. c4 e6 This is known as the ''Orthodox Line'' of the Queen's Gambit Declined. When the "Queen's Gambi ...

(after e.g. 1.Nf3 d5 2.d4 Nf6 3.c4) or the

Catalan Opening The Catalan Opening is a chess opening where White plays d4 and c4 and fianchettoes the white bishop on g2. A common opening sequence is 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.g3, although various other openings can transpose into the Catalan. The ''Encyclopaedia of ...

(after e.g. 1.Nf3 Nf6 2.g3 d5 3.Bg2 e6 4.0-0 Be7 5.c4). The main independent lines which usually start with 1.Nf3 are the

Réti Opening The Réti Opening is a hypermodern chess opening whose "traditional" or "classic method" begins with the moves: :1. Nf3 d5 :2. c4 White attacks Black's pawn from the , which may occasion 2...dxc4. White may couple this plan with a kingside ...

(1.Nf3 d5 2.c4) and the

King's Indian Attack The King's Indian Attack (or KIA), also known as the Barcza System (after Gedeon Barcza) is a chess opening for White, characterized by several moves. The center pawns are developed to e4 and d3, the knights are developed to d2 and f3, the king ...

(where White plays 1.Nf3, 2.g3, 3.Bg2, 4.e4, and 5.d3, though not always in that order). By playing 1.Nf3 White has prevented Black from playing 1...e5, and many players who want to play the

English Opening The English Opening is a chess opening that begins with the move: :1. c4 A flank opening, it is the fourth most popular and, according to various databases, one of the four most successful of White's twenty possible first moves. White begins th ...

but avoid the reversed Sicilian lines beginning with 1.c4 e5 opt to start the game with 1.Nf3 instead. In the ''

Encyclopedia 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 curren ...

'', Zukertort Openings are classified in the coding series A04–A09. 1...d5 is under A06–A09, 1...Nf6 is under A05, and any other Black move is under A04.

Continuations

The Black responses which are given one or more chapters in the ''

'' are given below, ranked in order of popularity.

1...Nf6

Like White's move, Black's move is non-committal as to opening. 2.d4 is identical to 1.d4 Nf6 2.Nf3 (see

Queen's Pawn Game Queen's Pawn Game broadly refers to any chess opening starting with the move 1.d4, which is the second most popular opening move after 1.e4 ( King's Pawn Game). Terminology The term "Queen's Pawn Game" is usually used to describe openings begi ...

). 2.c4 is a common start for the

or it may be brought back to the

2.g3 is a common start for the

1...d5

Black stakes a claim to the center. White has many transpositional options. 2.d4 is again the same as 1.d4 d5 2.Nf3 (see

). 2.g3 is the

. 2.c4 is the Reti Opening or

1...c5

Black invites White to play 2.e4, transitioning into the

, or 2.c4, the Symmetrical Defense of the

1...g6

White can play 2.c4 for the

, 2.e4 for the

, 2.g3 for the

, or 2.d4 for the

King's Indian Defense The King's Indian Defence is a common chess opening. It is defined by the following moves: :1. d4 Nf6 :2. c4 g6 Black intends to follow up with 3...Bg7 and 4...d6 (the Grünfeld Defence arises when Black plays 3...d5 instead, and is consid ...

1...e6

Like White's move, Black's move is non-committal as to opening. White can play 2.c4 for the

or 2.e4 for the

French Defense The French Defence is a chess opening characterised by the moves: :1. e4 e6 This is most commonly followed by 2.d4 d5, with Black intending ...c5 soon after, attacking White's and gaining on the . The French has a reputation for solidity ...

(if Black plays 2...d5) or the

(if Black plays 2...c5). Another non-committal move for White is 2.d4, which can lead to the

, the

Dutch Defense The Dutch Defence is a chess opening characterised by the moves: :1. d4 f5 Black's 1...f5 stakes a claim to the e4-square and envisions an attack in the middlegame on White's ; however, it also weakens Black's kingside to an extent (especia ...

, the

Indian Defense In the game of chess, Indian Defence or Indian Game is a broad term for a group of chess opening, openings characterised by the moves: :1. b:Chess Opening Theory/1. d4, d4 b:Chess Opening Theory/1. d4/1...Nf6, Nf6 They are all to varying degrees ...

s, the

, or the

London System The London System, also known as the Mason Variation, is an in chess where White opens with 1.d4 but does not play the Queen's Gambit, instead opting to rapidly develop the . This often results in a . The London System can be used against virt ...

, depending on Black's reply.

1...f5

After 1...f5, 2.d4 is the

. 2.e4 borrows ideas from the

Staunton Gambit The Staunton Gambit is a chess opening characterised by the moves: :1. d4 f5 (the Dutch Defence) :2. e4!? White sacrifices a pawn for quick development, hoping to launch an attack against Black's , which has been somewhat weakened by 1. ...