The Alapin, 1.e4 c5 2.c3, prepares d4 and a full pawn centre. The most popular answer is 2...d5 3.exd5 Qxd5, bringing the black queen to the centre before White can play Nc3 with tempo. The resulting positions are open, and most mistakes are about the queen on d5 and the pieces around her.
The most frequent mistake in our data comes after 4.d4 Nc6 5.Nf3 Bg4 6.Be3 Bxf3. White should recapture, but 7.c4? attacks the queen first. After 7...Qe6 the bishop on f3 is still alive and White comes out of the sequence material down. In-between moves only work when the opponent has no good answer of his own.
The black queen also punishes careless development. After 4.Na3 Bf5 White plays 5.Bc4?, offering g2, and 5...Qxg2 6.Qf3 Qxf3 leaves Black a clean pawn up. In a line that starts with 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.c3 d5 4.exd5 Qxd5 5.d4 e6 6.Bb5 Nf6, retreating with 7.Bc4?? walks into 7...Qxc4.
Black has traps to avoid too. After 4.Nf3 Nf6 5.c4 the queen is attacked, and 5...Bg4?? ignores it: 6.cxd5 wins the queen for a bishop. In the main line 4.d4 Nf6 5.Nf3 Bg4 6.Nbd2 cxd4 7.Bc4, taking on f3 with 7...Bxf3?? leaves the queen on d5 to the bishop: 8.Bxd5.
Both sides should remember one thing in the Alapin: the queen in the centre is strong only as long as every attack on her is answered first. Most of the puzzles below start the moment a player forgot it. They are short, so they make good daily training for anyone who plays the Alapin or meets it with ...d5.
| Mistake | Side | Count | Avg loss |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7...c4 | Black | 31 | 3.3 pawns |
| 5...Bc4 | Black | 21 | 5.5 pawns |
| 7...Bc4 | Black | 14 | 4.9 pawns |
| 5.Bg4 | White | 14 | 7.3 pawns |
| 7.Bxf3 | White | 12 | 3.2 pawns |