Benoni Defense: King's Pawn Line, with Bg5 7…Bg7 8. Bg5
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Statistics from Lichess
23,250 games: White 48.1% / Draw 4.5% / Black 47.4%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 16,64317K | ||
| 3,9083,908 | ||
| 1,4981,498 | ||
| 669669 | ||
| 213213 | ||
| 145145 | ||
| 6262 | ||
| 2626 |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 30, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.25 The position is about equal
Best play: 8... a6 9. a4 O-O 10. Qd2 Qa5 11. Nge2 Nbd7 12. Ng3 Rb8 13. Be2
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, with Bg5 (ECO A65, Flank Openings) is a variation of the Benoni Defense: King's Pawn Line, reached after 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. d5 e6 4. Nc3 exd5 5. cxd5 d6 6. e4 g6 7. f3 Bg7 8. Bg5 (8 moves).
In 23,250 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 48.1%, Black 47.4% and 4.5% were drawn. Black's most played move here is 8…O-O, in 72% of those games.
Written from the Lichess opening list and explorer. Know this line well? Write about it.
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How to answer 8. Bg5
8…a6 scores best for Black: 52.0%, with Black winning 49.6% and White 45.7% of 1,498 games. The most played answer, 8…O-O, scores lowest: 49.5% in 17K games. Stockfish's first choice is also 8…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, with Bg5 (A65)”. Lichess data as of 30 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/benoni-defense-kings-pawn-line-with-bg5-2