Sicilian Defense: Smith-Morra Gambit Declined, Scandinavian Formation
1. e4 c5 2. d4 cxd4 3. c3 d5
The Sicilian Defense: Smith-Morra Gambit Declined, Scandinavian Formation is a chess opening classified as ECO B21, reached after 1. e4 c5 2. d4 cxd4 3. c3 d5. It is a line of the Sicilian Defense. White is to move.
In 12.6 million rated Lichess games (blitz and slower), this position was reached 2,190 times by this move order. White won 46%, 5% were drawn and Black won 49%. The most popular continuation is 4. exd5 (56% of games).
Engine evaluation: +0.17 (Stockfish, depth 65; best line 4. exd5 Qxd5 5. cxd4 e5 6. Nf3 exd4)
- ECO
- B21
- Moves
- 6 plies
- FEN
rnbqkbnr/pp2pppp/8/3p4/3pP3/2P5/PP3PPP/RNBQKBNR w KQkq - 0 4- PGN
1. e4 c5 2. d4 cxd4 3. c3 d5
Analyse with Stockfish · Board image (SVG) · Open on Lichess
Results by rating
| Average rating | Games | White / draw / Black |
|---|---|---|
| 0-1499 | 51 | |
| 1500-1999 | 1,114 | |
| 2000+ | 1,025 | |
| All | 2,190 |
Most played moves
| Move | Games | White / draw / Black |
|---|---|---|
| 4. exd5 | 1,237 (56%) | |
| 4. Qxd4 | 366 (17%) | |
| 4. e5 | 359 (16%) | |
| 4. cxd4 | 123 (6%) | |
| 4. Nf3 | 44 (2%) | |
| 4. Bd3 | 14 (1%) | |
| 4. Bb5+ | 13 (1%) | |
| 4. Bc4 | 11 (1%) |
Master games
673 over-the-board games are classified under this line (White 46%, draw 14%, Black 40%). The strongest:
- GM Levan Pantsulaia (2604) – GM Baadur Jobava (2672) 1/2-1/2 · Gaprindashvili Cup 2016 · 2016-04-27
- GM Alexander Donchenko (2659) – GM Rainer Buhmann (2580) 1/2-1/2 · Hobbits Invitational 2021 · 2021-02-25
- GM Evgeny Postny (2600) – GM Dmitrij Kollars (2586) 0-1 · Titled Tuesday 23rd June · 2020-06-23
- Pawel Kowalczyk (2332) – GM Pentala Harikrishna (2716) 1-0 · Titled Tue 15th Mar Early · 2022-03-15
- IM Ruben Domingo Nunez (2406) – GM Maksim Chigaev (2628) 0-1 · ch-ESP Rapid 2024 · 2024-08-17
Highest-rated Lichess games
- IM MassterofMayhem (2611) – Lifvix01 (2805) 0-1 · 2026-09-01 · 180 + 0s
- IM MassterofMayhem (2667) – Training_2023 (2625) 1/2-1/2 · 2026-09-05 · 180 + 0s
- IM Angelicanmade (2569) – FM FlySooHigh (2594) 0-1 · 2026-09-03 · 180 + 0s
Comes from
Sicilian Defense: Smith-Morra Gambit (2… cxd4 3. c3) 1. e4 c5 2. d4 cxd4 3. c3
More Sicilian Defense lines (all)
- Sicilian Defense (1. e4 c5) B20
- Sicilian Defense: Amazon Attack B20
- Sicilian Defense: Big Clamp Formation B20
- Sicilian Defense: Bowdler Attack B20
- Sicilian Defense: Brick Variation B20
- Sicilian Defense: Czerniak Attack B20
- Sicilian Defense: Czerniak Attack, Queen Fianchetto Variation B20
- Sicilian Defense: Euwe Attack, Prins Gambit B20
- Sicilian Defense: Gloria Variation B20
- Sicilian Defense: Grob Variation B20
- Sicilian Defense: Keres Variation B20
- Sicilian Defense: King David's Opening B20
Opening names and moves from the Lichess openings dataset; statistics from the Lichess open database, 2026-09 (CC0), sample of 12.6 million games, bots excluded; evaluations from Lichess cloud analysis (all CC0). Master games from The Week in Chess #920–#1664 by Mark Crowther, used with permission.