E09 · Indian · a plan for White

Catalan Opening: Closed, Sokolsky Variation

20/20
1.d4Nf62.c4e63.g3d54.Bg2Be75.Nf3O-O6.O-ONbd77.Qc2c68.Nbd2b69.b3a510.Bb2Ba6
Live databaseLichess 1600–2000 · blitz + rapid
Catalan Opening: Closed, Sokolsky Variation399 games · White to move
MoveWhite / draw / BlackPlayedGamesScore
42%16854%
32%12663%
9.5%3859%
8.8%3557%
3%1271%
1.5%633%
1.3%580%
0.8%333%
0.5%20%
0.5%20%
Famous games in this line6 master games
Checa, Nicolas D (2427) – Kamsky, G. (2665)20150–1Yuffa, D. (2597) – Franco Alonso, A. (2421)2023½–½Ostojic, Nikola (2435) – Marcetic, Nikola (2330)1997½–½Johannesson, Ingvar Thor (2255) – Votava, Jan (2506)20030–1Wang, Philip Xiao (2310) – Bhat, Vinay S (2404)20010–1Brunsteins, Daniel (2235) – Koch, Christian (2239)2005½–½
Heroes of this opening Kamsky, G. · Votava, Jan · Bhat, Vinay S
Family
Catalan Opening
Category
Indian
First move
1.d4
ECO
E09
Line
1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. g3 d5 4. Bg2 Be7 5. Nf3 O-O 6. O-O Nbd7 7. Qc2 c6 8. Nbd2 b6 9. b3 a5 10. Bb2 Ba6
FianchettoPositionalHypermodern
★ Read the guide: Catalan OpeningExplore all 32 Catalan Opening lines →
Keep exploring
Nearby lines in the family
Catalan Opening: Closed, Spassky GambitE08 3…Be7 4.Bg2 d5 5.Nf3 O-O 6.O-O …Catalan Opening: Closed, Zagoryansky VariationE08 1…e6 2.c4 Nf6 3.Nf3 d5 4.g3 …Catalan Opening: Closed Variation, Rabinovich VariationE09 1…d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.Qc2 …
From the archives

The 1929 Barcelona organizers literally commissioned an opening: Tartakower blended 1.d4 with a kingside fianchetto and named it for Catalonia. Seventy years later Kramnik and Carlsen made it a world-championship weapon — one long-range bishop, endless quiet pressure.

Study this opening
Videos on YouTube ↗Wikipedia: Catalan Opening ↗