Caissa Codex
D41

Queen's Gambit Declined: Semi-Tarrasch Defense, San Sebastian Variation

Chess diagram: Queen's Gambit Declined: Semi-Tarrasch Defense, San Sebastian Variation after 9…Qa5

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Statistics from Lichess

46,080 games: White 49.6% / Draw 9.2% / Black 41.2%

The moves played next. Pick one to see it on the board.
Next moveGamesWhite / Draw / BlackW / D / B
10,61811K
8,7098,709
8,6868,686
6,0326,032
5,4185,418
4,5064,506
1,0401,040
459459

Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 25, 2026

Engine evaluation

+1.03 White is better

Best play: 10. Rb1 Bxd2+ 11. Qxd2 Qd8 12. Bb5+ Nd7 13. Qb4 a6 14. Bd3 b5

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, San Sebastian Variation (ECO D41, Closed & Semi-Closed Games) is a declined gambit in the Queen's Gambit Declined: Normal Defense, reached after 1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nxc3 6. bxc3 c5 7. Nf3 cxd4 8. cxd4 Bb4+ 9. Bd2 Qa5 (9 moves).

In 46,080 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 49.6%, Black 41.2% and 9.2% were drawn. White's most played move here is 10. Bd3, in 23% of those games.

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How to play against the Queen's Gambit Declined: Semi-Tarrasch Defense, San Sebastian Variation

10. Rb1 scores best for White: 68.6%, with White winning 63.9% and Black 26.7% of 4,506 games. The most played, 10. Bd3, scores 54.5% in 11K games, and 10. a3 scores lowest: 50.4%. Stockfish's first choice is also 10. Rb1.

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

Other lines from the same position

Instead of 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nxc3 6. bxc3 c5 7. Nf3 cxd4 8. cxd4 Bb4+ 9. Bd2 Qa5, the position after Queen's Gambit Declined: Normal Defense also goes on to:

Cite this page

Caissa Codex. “Queen's Gambit Declined: Semi-Tarrasch Defense, San Sebastian Variation (D41)”. Lichess data as of 25 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/queens-gambit-declined-semi-tarrasch-defense-san-sebastian-variation

https://chesscodex.org/openings/queens-gambit-declined-semi-tarrasch-defense-san-sebastian-variation