Queen's Gambit Declined: Modern Variation, Knight Defense 5. e3 c6
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Statistics from Lichess
473,691 games: White 48.2% / Draw 6.0% / Black 45.8%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Queen's Gambit Declined | 299,455299K | |
| 55,46255K | ||
| 40,96841K | ||
| 23,81724K | ||
| Queen's Gambit Declined: Capablanca Variation, Anti-Cambridge Springs Variation | 14,10414K | |
| 12,32512K | ||
| 7,6957,695 | ||
| 7,6237,623 |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 28, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.22 The position is about equal
Best play: 6. cxd5 exd5 7. Bd3 Be7 8. Nf3 O-O 9. h3 Ne4 10. Bf4 Ndf6
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
By rating
Rating changes little here: Black scores 48% under 1400, 47% at 2200 and up and 40% in master games (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 11K | |
| 1400–1799 | 118K | |
| 1800–2199 | 323K | |
| 2200 and up | 64K | |
| Masters, over the board | 976 |
Master games
- Jakovenko, D. – Lupulescu, C.
- Mamedyarov, S. – Grachev, B.
- Eljanov, P. – Lu Shanglei
- Morozevich, A. – Savchenko, B.
- Miroshnichenko, E. – Rozentalis, E.
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: Modern Variation, Knight Defense (ECO D51, Closed & Semi-Closed Games) is a declined gambit in the Queen's Gambit Declined: Modern Variation, Knight Defense, reached after 1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. Bg5 Nbd7 5. e3 c6 (5 moves).
In 473,691 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 48.2%, Black 45.8% and 6.0% were drawn. White's most played move here is 6. Nf3, in 63% of those games.
It branches into 3 named variations; the most played are Queen's Gambit Declined: Cambridge Springs Defense, Capablanca Variation and Queen's Gambit Declined: Capablanca Variation, Anti-Cambridge Springs Variation.
Written from the Lichess opening list and explorer. Know this line well? Write about it.
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How to answer 5…c6
6. c5 scores best for White: 55.1%, with White winning 52.4% and Black 42.2% of 24K games. The most played, 6. Nf3, scores 51.3% in 299K games, and 6. Bd3 scores lowest: 45.9%. Stockfish's first choice is 6. cxd5.
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
This line has lost ground since 2016: 0.017% of Lichess games in 2025, down from 0.021% (its peak: 0.026% in 2018).
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.021% | 7,593 |
| 2017 | 0.023% | 12,671 |
| 2018 | 0.026% | 20,121 |
| 2019 | 0.022% | 27,106 |
| 2020 | 0.02% | 59,229 |
| 2021 | 0.017% | 67,390 |
| 2022 | 0.017% | 65,425 |
| 2023 | 0.017% | 65,519 |
| 2024 | 0.018% | 62,774 |
| 2025 | 0.017% | 58,567 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.017% | 18,342 |
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
Variations (3)
Transpositions
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Queen's Gambit Declined: Modern Variation, Knight Defense (D51)”. Lichess data as of 28 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/queens-gambit-declined-modern-variation-knight-defense-3