White prepares to fianchetto the king's bishop on the long diagonal with 3. Bg2, putting more pressure on the d5-square and discouraging black from moving a pawn to d5. If black is determined to put a pawn d5, they can play 2...c6, leading to the Reversed Alapin, that is, the main line of the Alapin Variation with colours reversed: 1. c4 e5 2. g3 c6 3. Nf3 e4 4. Nd4.

Instead of playing 2...c6 black might also immediately play 2...d5, which a good move that (after 3. cxd5 Qxd5) forces white to protect its rook by blocking with 4. Nf3. Unfortunately, a tempting mistake is to play 4...e4? which loses a pawn if 5. Nc3 Qe6 6. Qa4+ Bd7 7. Qxe4. Black can keep material parity with 5...Qc6, but must take care to defend against the pin of 7. Bb5 if white opens the diagonal with 6. e3. If black instead greedily takes with 6...exf3??, white trades the two minor pieces for black's queen.

For explanation of theory tables, see theory table and for notation, see algebraic notation.

1.c4 e5 2.g3

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