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8
a8 black rook
b8 black knight
c8 black bishop
d8 black queen
e8 black king
f8 black bishop
g8 black knight
h8 black rook
a7 black pawn
b7 black pawn
c7 black pawn
f7 black pawn
g7 black pawn
h7 black pawn
d5 black pawn
d4 white pawn
a2 white pawn
b2 white pawn
c2 white pawn
f2 white pawn
g2 white pawn
h2 white pawn
a1 white rook
b1 white knight
c1 white bishop
d1 white queen
e1 white king
f1 white bishop
g1 white knight
h1 white rook
8
77
66
55
44
33
22
11
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French Defense, Exchange Variation

In chess, an exchange variation is a type of opening in which there is an early, voluntary exchange of pawns or pieces. Such variations are often quieter than other lines because the early release of tension minimizes the possibility of surprise tactics or sharp, forcing lines, particularly where it results in a symmetrical pawn structure.

Intents and implications

White may choose an exchange variation as a relatively risk-free way to try to exploit White's first-move advantage. Players such as Mikhail Botvinnik and Yasser Seirawan used the Exchange Variation of the Slav Defense this way.

White may also play an exchange variation in an effort to draw the game. This approach is not without risks. International Master John L. Watson has written that in the Exchange Variation of the French Defense, "Black can always make the struggle an unbalanced one if he chooses".[1] Moreover, playing so blatantly for a draw may place a psychological burden on White: "White has already ceded the advantage of the first move, and he knows it, whereas Black is challenged to find ways to seize the initiative."[2]

Not all exchange variations are quiet; the Exchange Variation of the Grunfeld Defense is regarded as one of White's sharpest and most aggressive options, since it allows White to build up a massive pawn center, which Black will try to undermine. The Exchange Variation of the Queen's Gambit Declined often involves attacks by one or both sides on the enemy king.

Exchange variations involving the exchange of pawns often lead to symmetrical central pawn structures, as in the Slav Defense and the French Defense, among others. The resulting pawn structures may also be asymmetrical, as in the Caro-Kann Defense and Queen's Gambit Declined. In the Ruy Lopez, Exchange Variation pieces (White's bishop and Black's knight) rather than pawns are traded. In the Exchange Variation of the Grunfeld Defense, both a pair of pawns and a pair of knights are traded.

The diagram at right shows a position in the Exchange Variation of the French Defense, after the moves:

1. e4 e6
2. d4 d5
3. exd5 exd5

The position is completely symmetrical and White's advantage is limited to his right to move. The Exchange French is usually regarded as a passive alternative selected by a White player eager for a draw, but Paul Morphy and more recently Garry Kasparov have used it as a winning try.

Openings with exchange variations

References

  1. ↑ John L. Watson, Play the French, Pergamon Press, 1986, p. 28. ISBN 0-08-026929-X.
  2. ↑ Watson 1986, p. 29.
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