Czech Defense

The Czech Defense arises after 1. b4 e5 2. Bb2 d6. Black meets the bishop's attack on e5 by supporting the pawn with the d-pawn, rather than taking material with 2...Bxb4 3. Bxe5. The cost is that d6 closes the f8-bishop's diagonal. The unprotected b4-pawn is then no longer attacked, so White can continue developing without spending a tempo on a3 or b5. In return, Black keeps a sturdy e5-d6 center and avoids the more open play that follows the pawn grab.

White's most common reply is 3. e3, which frees the f1-bishop and builds a setup behind the long-diagonal bishop. The engine's preferred moves are 3. c4, 3. a3 and 3. e3. Of these, 3. c4 claims central and queenside space and adds control over d5. The advance 3. b5 is also popular, because it takes the c6-square away from Black's queen's knight in advance. The position is assessed as roughly level. In online play the results are split almost evenly between the two sides, and draws are rare.