Caissa Codex
E03

Catalan Opening: Open Defense, Alekhine Variation

Chess diagram: Catalan Opening: Open Defense, Alekhine Variation after 7. Qc2

Type a move and press Enter: e4, Nf3, O-O, or from and to squares like g1f3 (e7e8q to promote). The board is also played with the mouse.

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Statistics from Lichess

547 games: White 42.2% / Draw 11.0% / Black 46.8%

The moves played next. Pick one to see it on the board.
Next moveGamesWhite / Draw / BlackW / D / B
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Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 31, 2026

Engine evaluation

+0.03 The position is about equal

Best play: 7... c5 8. Nf3 b5 9. dxc5 Bxc5 10. Ne5 Rb8 11. Nxd7 Nxd7 12. O-O

Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.

Overview

Catalan Opening: Open Defense, Alekhine Variation (ECO E03, Indian Defenses) is a variation of the Catalan Opening: Open Defense, reached after 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. g3 d5 4. Bg2 dxc4 5. Qa4+ Nbd7 6. Qxc4 a6 7. Qc2 (7 moves).

In 547 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 42.2%, Black 46.8% and 11.0% were drawn. Black's most played move here is 7…c5, in 70% of those games.

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Cite this page

Caissa Codex. “Catalan Opening: Open Defense, Alekhine Variation (E03)”. Lichess data as of 31 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/catalan-opening-open-defense-alekhine-variation

https://chesscodex.org/openings/catalan-opening-open-defense-alekhine-variation