Benoni Defense: King's Pawn Line 8…exd5 9. cxd5
Play any move on the board to explore from there, or step through the line with ‹ › and the arrow keys.
Statistics from Lichess
48,591 games: White 42.7% / Draw 4.7% / Black 52.7%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 22,26022K | ||
| 15,51416K | ||
| 5,3545,354 | ||
| 2,0792,079 | ||
| 773773 | ||
| 480480 | ||
| 356356 | ||
| 345345 |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 31, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.12 The position is about equal
Best play: 9... a6 10. a4 Re8 11. Be2 Qc7 12. Ra3 h5 13. Nh3 Bxh3 14. gxh3
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
Overview
Benoni Defense: King's Pawn Line (ECO A65, Flank Openings) is a variation of the Indian Defense: Normal Variation, reached after 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. f3 c5 4. d5 d6 5. e4 Bg7 6. Nc3 e6 7. Be3 O-O 8. Qd2 exd5 9. cxd5 (9 moves).
In 48,591 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 42.7%, Black 52.7% and 4.7% were drawn. Black's most played move here is 9…a6, in 46% of those games.
Written from the Lichess opening list and explorer. Know this line well? Write about it.
Write a description or report a mistake
How to answer 9. cxd5
9…Re8 scores best for Black: 56.3%, with Black winning 54.2% and White 41.5% of 16K games. The most played answer, 9…a6, scores lowest: 55.0% in 22K games. Stockfish's first choice is 9…a6.
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
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Benoni Defense: King's Pawn Line (A65)”. Lichess data as of 31 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/benoni-defense-kings-pawn-line-3