Petrov's Defense
Black answers an attack on the e-pawn by attacking White's e-pawn. Symmetry is only superficial: the timing of the central captures matters because queen pins can punish an automatic recapture.
Your plan as White
Answer the attack on e4 while considering Nxe5 and central development.
The opponent’s plan
Use ...Nf6 to counterattack e4. In capture lines, check the move order before taking back on e4.
Watch out: Automatic pawn grabbing can overlook a queen pin on the e-file.
Opening game…
Practice this line as White.
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Name, background and sources
Alexander Petrov gave the defense its familiar name, but it was known before his nineteenth-century career. Naming an opening does not imply a single inventor.
Read the opening background on Chess.com ↗Lichess opening names and reference lines (CC0)
ChessSum provides original explanatory notes. Related lines are labeled separately. Reference lines illustrate ideas; they are not a claim that every other legal move is wrong.
Watch how the center and piece development change. Each arrow previews the next move.