Tree path 6 levels Queen's Pawn Game › Indian Defense › Normal Variation › Benoni Defense › Modern Variation › Benoni Defense: King's Pawn Line
- Chess Codex
- Queen's Pawn Game A40
- Indian Defense A45
- Normal Variation A50
- Benoni Defense A56
- Modern Variation A60
- Benoni Defense: King's Pawn Line A65 you are here
Benoni Defense: King's Pawn Line
Overview
Benoni Defense: King's Pawn Line is a variation within the Flank Openings family, indexed as ECO A65.
The Flank Openings group covers flank openings — systems that delay the central pawn break and instead develop pieces and pawns on the wings.
It is reached after 11 plies of play, with the move sequence 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. d5 e6 4. Nc3 exd5 5. cxd5 d6 6. e4.
It is a variation of Benoni Defense: Modern Variation, which itself descends from the root opening Queen's Pawn Game.
It branches into 3 notable variations — Benoni Defense: Classical Variation, Benoni Defense: King's Pawn Line, Benoni Defense: Pawn Storm Variation.
In total, the branch covers 15 sub-variations across all depths.
Step through the moves on the interactive board below, review the live Lichess statistics, or play this position against Stockfish at one of six difficulty levels.
- ECO code
- A65
- Group
- Flank Openings (A)
- Plies
- 11
- Direct variations
- 3
- Total in subtree
- 15
This overview is generated automatically from the opening's metadata. Know this line well? Write a description — submissions are reviewed before publishing.
Statistics from Lichess
1,919,040 games · White 49.2% / Draw 4.5% / Black 46.3%
| Moves | Games | W / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| g6 | 1,169,668 | |
| Be7 | 386,954 | |
| a6 | 150,529 | |
| Nbd7 | 85,765 | |
| Bg4 | 49,728 | |
| Qa5 | 27,468 | |
| Qe7 | 15,924 | |
| Bd7 | 10,023 |
Source: Lichess Opening Explorer · cached 2026-09-26 02:23:44
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Variations (3)
Show all 15 sub-variations (full subtree)
- A72 Benoni Defense: Classical Variation 16-ply
- A65 Benoni Defense: King's Pawn Line 14-ply
- A66 Benoni Defense: Pawn Storm Variation 13-ply
- A73 Main Line 17-ply
- A68 Benoni Defense: Four Pawns Attack 16-ply
- A65 with Be3 15-ply
- A65 with Bg5 15-ply
- A65 with Nge2 15-ply
- A66 Benoni Defense: Mikenas Variation 15-ply
- A67 Benoni Defense: Taimanov Variation 15-ply
- A76 Benoni Defense: Classical Variation, Czerniak Defense 18-ply
- A74 Benoni Defense: Classical Variation, Full Line 19-ply
- A69 Main Line 18-ply
- A77 Tal Line 19-ply
- A79 Benoni Defense: Classical Variation, Czerniak Defense 21-ply