Alekhine Defense: Two Pawns Attack

The Two Pawns Attack is 1.e4 Nf6 2.e5 Nd5 3.c4, an ambitious try against the Alekhine Defense. The full line is 3...Nb6 4.c5, which this site calls the Lasker Variation; the line is also known as the Lasker Attack or the Chase Variation.

The idea

White's pawns on c5 and e5 secure a space advantage, but the d5-square is weakened. 4.c5 looks positionally suspect for that reason; White's intention is to grab space and mobility so that the strategic weaknesses matter little. White may get attacking chances, though possibly at the cost of a pawn. Unlike in the Four Pawns Attack, White's centre is not very fluid, and the game takes on a more strategic character.

Main lines

After 3...Nb6 4.c5 Black must play 4...Nd5. White usually challenges the knight with moves such as Bc4 and Nc3, and Black defends it with ...c6 or ...e6, sometimes both. Black then typically attacks White's pawns on e5 and c5 with ...d6 and ...b6. One such line is the Mikenas Variation, 5.Bc4 e6 6.Nc3 d6.

Statistics presented by the author John Cox show the variation scoring poorly for White, with all of Black's main defences scoring at least 50%.

The numbers

On Lichess Black wins 49.2% of the 5.2 million games and White 46.1%. The rating split is sharp: under 1400 White leads 54.9% to 41.8%, while between 1800 and 2199 Black wins 49.9% against 45.3%. From 2200 up the results are level, 46.7% against 46.5%. In 1,685 master games over the board White won 33.5%, Black 31.5%, and 35.0% were drawn.