Caissa Codex
D06

Queen's Gambit Declined: Austrian Defense, Gusev Countergambit

Chess diagram: Queen's Gambit Declined: Austrian Defense, Gusev Countergambit after 3…Nf6

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

48,630 games: White 46.8% / Draw 7.8% / Black 45.4%

The moves played next. Pick one to see it on the board.
Next moveGamesWhite / Draw / BlackW / D / B
22,73323K
13,92514K
7,5697,569
2,7482,748
1,1111,111
147147
117117
110110

Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Nov 1, 2026

Engine evaluation

+0.64 White is slightly better

Best play: 4. e4 Nxe4 5. dxc5 Qa5+ 6. Bd2 Nxd2 7. Qxd2 Qxd2+ 8. Nxd2 g6

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

Overview

Queen's Gambit Declined: Austrian Defense, Gusev Countergambit (ECO D06, Closed & Semi-Closed Games) is a gambit in the Queen's Gambit Declined: Austrian Defense, reached after 1. d4 d5 2. c4 c5 3. cxd5 Nf6 (3 moves).

In 48,630 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 46.8%, Black 45.4% and 7.8% were drawn. White's most played move here is 4. dxc5, in 47% of those games.

It continues into one named variation, Queen's Gambit Declined: Austrian Defense, Haberditz Variation.

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How to play against the Queen's Gambit Declined: Austrian Defense, Gusev Countergambit

4. e4 scores best for White: 58.4%, with White winning 54.9% and Black 38.1% of 2,748 games. The most played answer, 4. dxc5, scores lowest: 49.5% in 23K games. Stockfish's first choice is also 4. e4.

Main answers: those played in at least 5% of these games. Score: White's wins plus half the draws, in rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500. How to play against other popular openings

Variations (1)

Other lines from the same position

Instead of 3. cxd5 Nf6, the position after Queen's Gambit Declined: Austrian Defense also goes on to:

Cite this page

Caissa Codex. “Queen's Gambit Declined: Austrian Defense, Gusev Countergambit (D06)”. Lichess data as of 1 Nov 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/queens-gambit-declined-austrian-defense-gusev-countergambit

https://chesscodex.org/openings/queens-gambit-declined-austrian-defense-gusev-countergambit