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Capture the defender Puzzles from the Sicilian Defence

Real puzzles from rated games · median rating 1545 · solved 9,241,110 times

Opening: Sicilian Defence

These capture the defender puzzles were set in games that began as the Sicilian Defence: 2,464 puzzles, median rating 1545, solved 9,241,110 times. The twelve below are among the most-solved of them; try each on the board, then read the numbers further down to see how the solutions are built.

All capture the defender puzzles Print a worksheet About the Sicilian Defence

By the numbers

capture the defender puzzles from Sicilian Defence games: the numbers

There are 2,464 capture the defender puzzles from Sicilian Defence games, solved 9,241,110 times in total. The median rating is 1545.

How hard are they?

Foundation
295 · 12%
Developing
1,115 · 45.3%
Challenging
700 · 28.4%
Advanced
354 · 14.4%

Often combined with

Middlegame tactics · 1,957Opening tactics · 500Intermezzo (in-between move) · 319Discovered attack · 295Fork · 236Pin · 153Attraction · 136Kingside attack · 117

Which openings produce them?

Sicilian Defence · 2,464

Counts computed from the full puzzle set.

How the solutions work · counted by a rules engine

What a typical capture the defender solution looks like

Sample: 2,000 capture the defender puzzles from Sicilian Defence games (81.2% of all 2,464).

66% need 2 solver moves, 29.4% need 3 solver moves, 3.4% need 4 solver moves, 1.2% need 5 or more solver moves. Median rating: 1426 for the shortest solutions, 2395 for the longest.

29% open with a knight move. The first move captures in 90.4% and gives check in 3.8%; 0% end in checkmate, 21.4% involve a sacrifice, 56.8% have White to move.

90.4%first move captures
3.8%first move gives check
0%end in checkmate
21.4%involve a sacrifice

How many moves does the solver need?

2 solver moves
66% · median rating 1426
3 solver moves
29.4% · median rating 1756
4 solver moves
3.4% · median rating 2012
5+ solver moves
1.2% · median rating 2395

Which piece plays the key move?

Key move by a knight
29%
Key move by a bishop
28.6%
Key move by a queen
24%
Key move by a rook
13.8%
Key move by a pawn
4.4%

What does the solver win?

Most valuable capture: knight
46.4%
Most valuable capture: queen
31.3%
Most valuable capture: bishop
11%
Most valuable capture: rook
9.4%
Most valuable capture: pawn
1.8%

Material balance along the whole line, counting every capture by both sides (pawn 1, minor piece 3, rook 5, queen 9):

No material gained (mating or positional)
4%
Up to 2 pawns’ worth
18.5%
3–4 points (about a minor piece)
66%
5–8 points (a rook or more)
10%
9 or more points (a queen’s worth)
1.5%

How much is left on the board?

28 or more pieces on the board
30.4%
21–27 pieces
68.2%
13–20 pieces
1.4%
12 pieces or fewer
0%

How it is counted: every puzzle in the sample is replayed move by move with a chess rules engine. A sacrifice means a piece that is captured on the very next ply and was worth more than what it captured itself (pawn 1, minor piece 3, rook 5, queen 9). Sample of 2,000 puzzles. Percentages are shares of the sample.

Where it happens

Where the key move lands

Where the solver’s first move ends, drawn from their own side (rank 1 is their back rank). Busiest squares: c6 (16.6%), f6 (14.1%), d5 (13.4%), e5 (6.9%), d7 (6%).

2.58
11.164.21.77
1.916.61.93.114.11.96
1.113.46.91.81.31.55
1.11.12.52.54
13
2
1
abcdefgh

Counted from the same 2,000-puzzle sample. Squares under 1% are left blank.

Study positions

The most-solved capture the defender puzzles, from each difficulty level. Play each one on the board, then open the answer for the full line.

♜♜♚
♛♝♟♟
♟♟
♝
♗♕
♙♙♙♙♙♙
♖♖♔
White to move · rating 938 · solved 196 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qd7

Solution: Qxd7 → Bxd7 → Rxe7

♜♜♚
♟♟♛♝♟♟♟
♟
♟♞
♙♙
♘
♗♙♙♙♙
♖♕♖♔
White to move · rating 1111 · solved 22 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Bd7

Solution: Nxe5 → Qxe5 → Qxd7

♜♝♛♚
♟♟♝♟
♞♟
♟
♗
♘♙♜♙
♙♙♘♙♙
♖♕♖♔
Black to move · rating 1162 · solved 411 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Be4

Solution: Qxd1 → Rfxd1 → Rxe2

♜♜♚
♟♟♝♟♟♝♟
♟♟
♛
♙♗♘
♙♙
♙♕♗♙♙
♖♖♔
Black to move · rating 1296 · solved 1,028 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Nxe4

Solution: Qxd2 → Nxd2 → Bxd4+

♜♝♜♚
♟♟♝♟♟
♟♟
♘
♞♙
♙♗♙
♙♙♙♙♗
♔♖♖
Black to move · rating 1318 · solved 1,602 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Nxc5

Solution: Nxe3 → fxe3 → Bxc5

♜♛♜♚
♟♟♟♝
♟♞♟♟
♙♗
♕♝
♙♘♘
♙♙♙♙
♖♖♔
White to move · rating 1364 · solved 1,409 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: h6

Solution: Bxf6 → Qxf6 → Qxg4

♜♚
♟♛♝♟♟
♟♟♞♟
♟♝
♙♗
♘♕
♙♙♙♗♙♙
♔♖
White to move · rating 1386 · solved 4,676 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Bxh5

Solution: Bxf6 → Bxf6 → Bxh5

♜♜
♟♕♛♚♟
♞♝♞♟
♟♟
♙
♙♘♘
♙♙♙♙
♖♖♔
White to move · rating 1603 · solved 109 times · 3 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qd7

Solution: Qxc6 → Qxc6 → Nxe5+ → Kg8 → Nxc6

♜♛♜♚
♟♟♟♟♟
♝♕♝
♘
♙
♘
♙♙♙♙♙♙
♔♖♖
Black to move · rating 1610 · solved 342 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Nxe5

Solution: Qxd6 → Rxd6 → Bxe5

♜♛♜♚
♝♟♟♟
♞♝
♟♗♙
♙♙
♙
♙♗♘♕♙♙
♔♖♖
Black to move · rating 1781 · solved 376 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: cxd3

Solution: Rxb5 → axb5 → Qxd3+

♜♜♚
♟♟♝♟♟♟
♞♟
♗♝♙
♘♖♘
♙♙♙♙♙
♖♔
White to move · rating 2104 · solved 147 times · 3 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Rfd8

Solution: Rcd1 → Be8 → Rxd8 → Nxd8 → Bxe8

♜♜♚
♟♟♝♘♟♟♟
♟♗
♛
♞
♙♙♗♙♙
♖♕♖♔
Black to move · rating 2240 · solved 146 times · 3 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Ne7+

Solution: Kh8 → Bf3 → Nxd1 → Bxe4 → Rxc1

Positions and move sequences come from real rated games (CC0 data). Engine evaluations, where shown, are stored evaluations of the position (CC0).

Same opening, other tactics

More puzzles from the Sicilian Defence

Middlegame tacticsCheckmateMate in 1Opening tacticsKingside attackForkDiscovered attackPinMate in 2SacrificeHanging pieceAttacks on f2 / f7AttractionDefensive move

Same theme, other levels

Capture the defender puzzles by difficulty

Foundation levelAdvanced levelChallenging levelDeveloping level