Featured Game: Helen Milligan vs Jax Tham – Elephant Gambit (Commonwealth Chess Ch. 2024)

Game taken from Round 3 of the Commonwealth Chess Championship 2024 held at Malacca International Trade Centre, Malaysia (20th February).

The opening Jax Tham chose is called the Elephant Gambit.
Here are some interesting facts about it:

• The Elephant Gambit is also called the Queen’s Pawn Countergambit or Englund Counterattack¹.
• It is a rarely played chess opening that begins with the moves: 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 d5¹.
• The Elephant Gambit is generally considered unsound, with black typically unable to gain compensation for the sacrificed pawn¹.
• After 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 d5 3.exd5 e4 4.Qe2 Nf6, lines might continue: 5.d3 Qxd5 6.Nbd2 Be7 7.dxe4 Qe6 and White remains a pawn ahead¹.
• The origins of the name Elephant Gambit are unclear. According to some sources, the two pawns thrust in the center resemble the tusks of an elephant².
• Another theory suggests that it is because of the power given to Black’s bishops, known as Elephants in Russian, after 1…e5 2…d5².

While the Elephant Gambit can be fun and surprising to use, it’s generally not recommended for serious play due to its unsound nature