Caissa Codex
D36

Queen's Gambit Declined: Exchange Variation, Reshevsky Variation 7…Nbd7 8. Bd3

Chess diagram: Queen's Gambit Declined: Exchange Variation, Reshevsky Variation after 8. Bd3

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Statistics from Lichess

165,820 games: White 51.8% / Draw 7.4% / Black 40.8%

The moves played next. Pick one to see it on the board.
Next moveGamesWhite / Draw / BlackW / D / B
71,88772K
55,61956K
16,24016K
15,78216K
1,3461,346
1,1441,144
1,0691,069
525525

Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 27, 2026

Engine evaluation

+0.28 The position is about equal

Best play: 8... Nh5 9. Bxe7 Qxe7 10. O-O-O Nb6 11. Kb1 g6 12. h3 Be6 13. Nf3

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

Overview

Queen's Gambit Declined: Exchange Variation, Reshevsky Variation (ECO D36, Closed & Semi-Closed Games) is a declined gambit in the Queen's Gambit Declined: Exchange Variation, Reshevsky Variation, reached after 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 exd5 5. Bg5 c6 6. Qc2 Be7 7. e3 Nbd7 8. Bd3 (8 moves).

In 165,820 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 51.8%, Black 40.8% and 7.4% were drawn. Black's most played move here is 8…O-O, in 43% of those games.

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How to answer 8. Bd3

8…Nh5 scores best for Black: 51.3%, with Black winning 46.3% and White 43.8% of 16K games. The most played answer, 8…O-O, scores lowest: 43.6% in 72K games. Stockfish's first choice is also 8…Nh5.

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

Other lines from the same position

Instead of 6…Be7 7. e3 Nbd7 8. Bd3, the position after Queen's Gambit Declined: Exchange Variation, Reshevsky Variation also goes on to:

Cite this page

Caissa Codex. “Queen's Gambit Declined: Exchange Variation, Reshevsky Variation (D36)”. Lichess data as of 27 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/queens-gambit-declined-exchange-variation-reshevsky-variation-2

https://chesscodex.org/openings/queens-gambit-declined-exchange-variation-reshevsky-variation-2