Queen's Gambit Declined: Baltic Defense, Pseudo-Slav
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Statistics from Lichess
1,275,364 games: White 50.2% / Draw 5.5% / Black 44.3%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 326,374326K | ||
| 253,865254K | ||
| 234,583235K | ||
| 141,505142K | ||
| 135,240135K | ||
| 63,86364K | ||
| 41,81842K | ||
| 25,60126K |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 26, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.53 White is slightly better
Best play: 5. Qb3 Qc7 6. Bf4 dxc4 7. e4 cxb3 8. Bxc7 Bg6 9. axb3 Nf6
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
By rating
The stronger the players, the worse this line does for Black: Black scores 50% under 1400, 45% at 2200 and up and 40% in master games (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 192K | |
| 1400–1799 | 823K | |
| 1800–2199 | 706K | |
| 2200 and up | 70K | |
| Masters, over the board | 614 |
Master games
- Kramnik, V. – Gelfand, B.
- Kramnik, V. – Short, N. D.
- Van Wely, L. – Morozevich, A.
- Kramnik, V. – Shirov, A.
- Kramnik, V. – Hertneck, G.
Rated blitz, rapid and classical Lichess games by rating band, and over-the-board games of players rated 2200+ from the Lichess masters database, updated Sep 27, 2026
Overview
Queen's Gambit Declined: Baltic Defense, Pseudo-Slav (ECO D02, Closed & Semi-Closed Games) is a declined gambit in the Queen's Pawn Game: Zukertort Variation, reached after 1. d4 d5 2. Nf3 Bf5 3. c4 e6 4. Nc3 c6 (4 moves).
In 1,275,364 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 50.2%, Black 44.3% and 5.5% were drawn. White's most played move here is 5. Bf4, in 26% of those games.
Written from the Lichess opening list and explorer. Know this line well? Write about it.
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How to play against the Queen's Gambit Declined: Baltic Defense, Pseudo-Slav
5. Qb3 scores best for White: 60.2%, with White winning 57.4% and Black 37.0% of 142K games. The most played, 5. Bf4, scores 53.1% in 326K games, and 5. e3 scores lowest: 51.2%. Stockfish's first choice is also 5. Qb3.
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
Popularity by year
The Queen's Gambit Declined: Baltic Defense, Pseudo-Slav has stayed between 0.042% and 0.05% of Lichess games a year since 2016 (0.049% in 2025).
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.042% | 14,894 |
| 2017 | 0.045% | 24,914 |
| 2018 | 0.047% | 37,191 |
| 2019 | 0.05% | 61,986 |
| 2020 | 0.05% | 145,079 |
| 2021 | 0.05% | 194,645 |
| 2022 | 0.05% | 189,620 |
| 2023 | 0.05% | 188,003 |
| 2024 | 0.049% | 174,400 |
| 2025 | 0.049% | 169,426 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.049% | 54,039 |
Share of rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500 (blitz, rapid and classical) that reach this position, by year; 2026: January to April. Which openings are rising and falling
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Queen's Gambit Declined: Baltic Defense, Pseudo-Slav (D02)”. Lichess data as of 26 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/queens-gambit-declined-baltic-defense-pseudo-slav