Benoni Defense: Benoni Gambit Accepted
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Statistics from Lichess
4,562,497 games: White 45.6% / Draw 4.4% / Black 50.0%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 1,660,6091.7M | ||
| 990,551991K | ||
| 760,040760K | ||
| 670,950671K | ||
| 215,644216K | ||
| Benoni Defense: Benoni Gambit, Schlenker Defense | 82,05682K | |
| 66,36066K | ||
| Benoni Defense: Cormorant Gambit | 51,26851K |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Nov 5, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.14 The position is about equal
Best play: 2... e6 3. e4 Bxc5 4. Bd3 Nc6 5. Nf3 Nf6 6. O-O d6 7. a3
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
By rating
Rating changes little here: White scores 50% both under 1400 and at 2200 and up, and 50% in master games (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 2.3M | |
| 1400–1799 | 4M | |
| 1800–2199 | 2.3M | |
| 2200 and up | 203K | |
| Masters, over the board | 331 |
Master games
- Mamedyarov, S. – Chatalbashev, B.
- Kurajica, B. – Bologan, V.
- Ftacnik, L. – Hickl, J.
- Dizdarevic, E. – Malakhov, V.
- Kovalenko, I. – Zaragatski, I.
Rated blitz, rapid and classical Lichess games by rating band, and over-the-board games of players rated 2200+ from the Lichess masters database, updated Sep 26, 2026
Overview
Benoni Defense: Benoni Gambit Accepted (ECO A43, Flank Openings) is a gambit in the Benoni Defense: Old Benoni, reached after 1. d4 c5 2. dxc5 (2 moves).
In 4,562,497 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 45.6%, Black 50.0% and 4.4% were drawn. Black's most played move here is 2…e6, in 36% of those games.
It branches into 2 named variations; the most played are Benoni Defense: Benoni Gambit, Schlenker Defense and Benoni Defense: Cormorant Gambit.
Written from the Lichess opening list and explorer. Know this line well? Write about it.
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How to play against the Benoni Defense: Benoni Gambit Accepted
The most played answer, 2…e6, also scores best for Black: 54.7%, with Black winning 52.4% and White 43.0% of 1.7M games. Of the main answers, 2…Qa5+ scores lowest: 49.2%. Stockfish's first choice is also 2…e6.
Main answers: those played in at least 5% of these games. Score: Black's wins plus half the draws, in rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500. How to play against other popular openings
Popularity by year
The Benoni Defense: Benoni Gambit Accepted has stayed between 0.15% and 0.19% of Lichess games a year since 2016 (0.17% in 2025).
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.16% | 57,632 |
| 2017 | 0.15% | 85,253 |
| 2018 | 0.16% | 125,968 |
| 2019 | 0.17% | 213,168 |
| 2020 | 0.18% | 528,828 |
| 2021 | 0.19% | 729,764 |
| 2022 | 0.19% | 695,807 |
| 2023 | 0.18% | 664,858 |
| 2024 | 0.17% | 618,455 |
| 2025 | 0.17% | 588,982 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.17% | 182,908 |
Share of rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500 (blitz, rapid and classical) that reach this position, by year; 2026: January to April. Which openings are rising and falling
Variations (2)
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Benoni Defense: Benoni Gambit Accepted (A43)”. Lichess data as of 5 Nov 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/benoni-defense-benoni-gambit-accepted