Benoni Defense: Pawn Storm Variation
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Statistics from Lichess
292,452 games: White 50.2% / Draw 4.7% / Black 45.1%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 274,004274K | ||
| 4,8714,871 | ||
| 4,1024,102 | ||
| 3,8623,862 | ||
| 2,3012,301 | ||
| 1,9351,935 | ||
| 902902 | ||
| 142142 |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 31, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.92 White is better
Best play: 7... Bh6 8. Nf3 O-O 9. Bd3 Bg4 10. O-O Nbd7 11. a4 Bg7 12. h3
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
By rating
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 410 | |
| 1400–1799 | 17K | |
| 1800–2199 | 177K | |
| 2200 and up | 101K | |
| Masters, over the board | 2,323 |
Master games
- Grischuk, A. – Dubov, D.
- Bareev, E. – Topalov, V.
- Jakovenko, D. – Gashimov, V.
- Keymer, V. – Rapport, R.
- Bareev, E. – Gelfand, B.
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 27, 2026
Overview
Benoni Defense: Pawn Storm Variation (ECO A66, 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. f4 (7 moves).
In 292,452 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 50.2%, Black 45.1% and 4.7% were drawn. Black's most played move here is 7…Bg7, in 94% of those games.
It branches into 3 named variations; the most played are Benoni Defense: Taimanov Variation and Benoni Defense: Four Pawns Attack. In all, 4 named lines continue from it.
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Popularity by year
The Benoni Defense: Pawn Storm Variation has lost ground since 2016: 0.011% of Lichess games in 2025, down from 0.014% (its peak: 0.016% in 2018).
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.014% | 4,915 |
| 2017 | 0.014% | 7,489 |
| 2018 | 0.016% | 12,238 |
| 2019 | 0.015% | 18,190 |
| 2020 | 0.014% | 40,628 |
| 2021 | 0.01% | 40,333 |
| 2022 | 0.01% | 37,674 |
| 2023 | 0.01% | 37,557 |
| 2024 | 0.01% | 37,380 |
| 2025 | 0.011% | 38,363 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.011% | 12,572 |
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 (3)
All 4 named lines that continue from here
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Benoni Defense: Pawn Storm Variation (A66)”. Lichess data as of 31 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/benoni-defense-pawn-storm-variation