About this opening
Semi-Slav Defense: Botvinnik Variation, Szabo Variation is an opening in the Encyclopedia of Chess Openings,
classified under code D44. ECO group D (D00–D99)
covers closed games and semi-closed games beginning 1.d4 d5, covering the Queen's Gambit, Slav, Grünfeld and related queen-pawn structures. This particular variation is reached
after 21 half-moves from the
starting position, with the move sequence 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 c6 5. Bg5 dxc4 6. e4 b5 7. e5 h6 8. Bh4 g5 9. Nxg5 hxg5 10. Bxg5 Nbd7 11. Qf3.
It belongs to the Semi-Slav Defense family.
Within that family this is a level-2 branch (the Botvinnik Variation → Szabo Variation line). The immediate parent line is Semi-Slav Defense: Botvinnik Variation, transitioned via 11.Qf3.
The opening sequence in prose form: 1.d4 Nf6, 2.c4 e6, 3.Nf3 d5, 4.Nc3 c6, 5.Bg5 dxc4, 6.e4 b5. From this position the encyclopaedia records no further canonical continuations — practical play branches into unnamed transpositions or returns to the parent line for alternative ideas.
Use the interactive board above to walk through the moves position-by-position. Click any move in the navigation to step backwards, or use the keyboard arrow keys. For statistical data — how often master-level players have reached this position, White's win-rate, draw frequency, Black's score — see the panel in the right column.
Caissly's coverage of D44 extends through every named sub-variation in this line and across all four locales (English, Spanish, Portuguese, Russian). Where editorial commentary exists for a specific variation it appears as the page body; otherwise the page presents the structural data, board, and statistics as shown here.