Skip to main content

French Defense · As Black · updated October 2026

Play the French like Andrey Esipenko

A French repertoire built from 61 of Andrey Esipenko's public Chess.com blitz games. At every position you play the move Andrey Esipenko chose most often. Where Andrey Esipenko has fewer than 3 games, the course takes the other top-50 players' most played move, then Stockfish's. Learn a line on the board, then each position comes back in a short daily review until it sticks.

Not affiliated with or endorsed by Andrey Esipenko or Chess.com.

  • Andrey Esipenko was #26 in Chess.com blitz in October 2026 (3,230) and scored 73% against opponents averaging 2,888 in these games.
  • You play Andrey Esipenko's own move in 21 of 40 positions.
  • The whole course is free, and it is updated monthly.

Free · first 5 lines need no account

Blitz rank

#26

Chess.com

Rating

3,230

Games

61

in this opening

Score

73%

in these games

Opponents

2,888

average rating

More about Andrey Esipenko

Use arrow keys to navigate the board. Press Enter to select a piece, then use arrow keys and Enter to move. Press Escape to cancel a move.
Line 1 after 14 moves

Lines to learn

  1. Line 1 · 11% at top level

    2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.e5 Nfd7 5.f4 c5 6.Nf3 Nc6 7.Be3 a6 8.a3 cxd4

  2. Line 2 · 10% at top level

    2.d4 d5 3.e5 c5 4.c3 Nc6 5.Nf3 Bd7 6.Be2 Nge7 7.O-O cxd4 8.cxd4 Nf5 9.Nc3 a6

  3. Line 3 · 7% at top level

    2.d4 d5 3.e5 c5 4.Nf3 Nc6 5.Bd3 cxd4 6.O-O Bc5

  4. Line 4 · 5% at top level

    2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Bg5 Bb4 5.e5 h6 6.Bd2 Bxc3

  5. Line 5 · 5% at top level

    2.Qe2 c5

  6. Line 6 · 5% at top level

    2.d4 d5 3.exd5 exd5 4.Nf3 Nc6

  7. Line 7 · 4% at top level

    2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.e5 Nfd7 5.f4 c5 6.Nf3 Nc6 7.Be3 a6 8.Qd2 b5 9.a3 Qa5

  8. Line 8 · 4% at top level

    2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.e5 Nfd7 5.f4 c5 6.Nf3 Nc6 7.Be3 a6 8.Qd2 b5 9.dxc5 Nxc5

  9. Line 9 · 4% at top level

    2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Bg5 Bb4 5.e5 h6 6.Bc1 Ne4 7.Qg4 Kf8

  10. Line 10 · 4% at top level

    2.d4 d5 3.Nd2 a6 4.Bd3 c5

  11. Line 11 · 4% at top level

    2.d4 d5 3.Nd2 a6 4.Ngf3 c5 5.c3 cxd4

  12. Line 12 · 4% at top level

    2.d4 d5 3.Nd2 a6 4.Ngf3 c5 5.dxc5 Bxc5 6.Bd3 Nc6 7.O-O Nge7

  13. Line 13 · 4% at top level

    2.d4 d5 3.Nd2 a6 4.Ngf3 c5 5.exd5 exd5 6.c3 Nc6 7.Bd3 cxd4 8.Nxd4 Nxd4 9.cxd4 Qe7+

Ordered by how often they come up in top-level games. Learned lines join your daily review.

Andrey Esipenko's main line in the French, move by move

The most common line at top level: 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.e5 Nfd7 5.f4 c5 6.Nf3 Nc6 7.Be3 a6 8.a3 cxd4.

  1. 2.d4 Reply · Andrey Esipenko's games A common reply here is 2.d4. At top level, this comes up about 89% of the time.
  2. 2…d5 Your move · Andrey Esipenko's games Andrey Esipenko played 2…d5 in 54 games, scoring 71%.
  3. 3.Nc3 Reply · Andrey Esipenko's games A common reply here is 3.Nc3. At top level, this comes up about 34% of the time.
  4. 3…Nf6 Your move · Andrey Esipenko's games Andrey Esipenko played 3…Nf6 in 11 games, scoring 64%.
  5. 4.e5 Reply · Andrey Esipenko's games A common reply here is 4.e5. At top level, this comes up about 22% of the time.
  6. 4…Nfd7 Your move · Andrey Esipenko's games Andrey Esipenko played 4…Nfd7 in 7 games, scoring 57%.
  7. 5.f4 Reply · Andrey Esipenko's games A common reply here is 5.f4.
  8. 5…c5 Your move · Andrey Esipenko's games Andrey Esipenko played 5…c5 in 7 games, scoring 57%.
  9. 6.Nf3 Reply · Andrey Esipenko's games A common reply here is 6.Nf3.
  10. 6…Nc6 Your move · Andrey Esipenko's games Andrey Esipenko played 6…Nc6 in 7 games, scoring 57%.
  11. 7.Be3 Reply · Andrey Esipenko's games A common reply here is 7.Be3.
  12. 7…a6 Your move · Andrey Esipenko's games Andrey Esipenko played 7…a6 in 4 games, scoring 75%.
  13. 8.a3 Reply · Andrey Esipenko's games A common reply here is 8.a3. At top level, this comes up about 11% of the time.
  14. 8…cxd4 Your move · Stockfish The games give no move to follow here, so this is Stockfish's choice.

Questions about this course

How does Andrey Esipenko play the French?
After 1.e4 e6, Andrey Esipenko's most common line is 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.e5 Nfd7 5.f4 c5 6.Nf3 Nc6 7.Be3 a6 8.a3 cxd4. At top level it comes up about 11% of the time.
Is this Andrey Esipenko's course?
No. ChessDrills builds it automatically from Andrey Esipenko's public Chess.com blitz games.
What is this French course based on?
61 of Andrey Esipenko's Chess.com blitz games in the French Defense as Black, against opponents with an average rating of 2,888. Andrey Esipenko scored 73% in them.
How many lines does the course have?
13 lines covering 40 positions, ordered by how often they come up in top-level games. The first 5 lines need no account; saving your progress with an email unlocks the rest, free.
Who is Andrey Esipenko?
GM Andrey Esipenko was ranked number 26 on the Chess.com blitz leaderboard with a rating of 3,230 when this course was built.