Caissa Codex
D42

Queen's Gambit Declined: Semi-Tarrasch Defense, Main Line

Chess diagram: Queen's Gambit Declined: Semi-Tarrasch Defense, Main Line after 7. Bd3

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.

Play any move on the board to explore from there, or step through the line with ‹ › and the arrow keys.

Statistics from Lichess

16,958 games: White 52.1% / Draw 6.5% / Black 41.4%

The moves played next. Pick one to see it on the board.
Next moveGamesWhite / Draw / BlackW / D / B
9,2919,291
4,1534,153
1,3531,353
481481
258258
250250
209209
190190

Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 29, 2026

Engine evaluation

+0.14 The position is about equal

Best play: 7... Be7 8. O-O O-O 9. a3 cxd4 10. exd4 Bf6 11. Re1 Bd7 12. Nxd5

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

Overview

Queen's Gambit Declined: Semi-Tarrasch Defense, Main Line (ECO D42, Closed & Semi-Closed Games) is a declined gambit in the Queen's Gambit Declined: Semi-Tarrasch Defense, Pillsbury Variation, reached after 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 c5 5. cxd5 Nxd5 6. e3 Nc6 7. Bd3 (7 moves).

In 16,958 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 52.1%, Black 41.4% and 6.5% were drawn. Black's most played move here is 7…cxd4, in 55% of those games.

Written from the Lichess opening list and explorer. Know this line well? Write about it.

Write a description or report a mistake
What would you like to send?

Markdown supported (headings ###, bold, lists, links). Submissions are reviewed before publishing.

How to play against the Queen's Gambit Declined: Semi-Tarrasch Defense, Main Line

7…Be7 scores best for Black: 47.7%, with Black winning 43.5% and White 48.2% of 4,153 games. The most played, 7…cxd4, scores 43.8% in 9,291 games, and 7…Nxc3 scores lowest: 43.0%. Stockfish's first choice is also 7…Be7.

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

Cite this page

Caissa Codex. “Queen's Gambit Declined: Semi-Tarrasch Defense, Main Line (D42)”. Lichess data as of 29 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/queens-gambit-declined-semi-tarrasch-defense-main-line

https://chesscodex.org/openings/queens-gambit-declined-semi-tarrasch-defense-main-line