Becker Defense

The Becker Defense, 3...h6, gets ready to support the f4-pawn with ...g5 while defusing White's usual lever against that pawn. After the immediate 3...g5, 4. h4 forces ...g4 and leads to the Kieseritzky Gambit. With the h-pawn already on h6, Black can answer h4 by keeping the h6-g5-f4 chain intact and developing with ...Bg7. The quiet pawn move costs a tempo, and in return Black gets a firm kingside structure.

The main line is 4. d4 g5, after which White chooses among 5. Nc3, 5. g3, 5. h4 and 5. Bc4. In practice 4. Bc4 is the most frequent reply, and after 4...d6 it usually transposes to the Fischer Defense. Transpositions into the Classical Variation, the Hanstein Gambit and the Philidor Gambit are common. The principal independent branch is 4. d4 g5 5. Nc3 Bg7 6. g3 fxg3 7. hxg3 d6. In most comparable lines ...fxg3 would let White regain time by recapturing with Bxg5, but here the h6-pawn guards g5. White can also try 4. b3 with a queenside fianchetto. The engine rates the position as roughly balanced, and online results are close to even.