Dutch Defense: Classical Variation 3…e6 4. Bg2
Also known as Classical Dutch
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Statistics from Lichess
398,802 games: White 51.4% / Draw 6.4% / Black 42.3%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| A91 | 141,795142K | |
| 86,16186K | ||
| Dutch Defense: Nimzo-Dutch Variation | 65,18065K | |
| 63,41563K | ||
| 15,66516K | ||
| 11,96412K | ||
| 5,8235,823 | ||
| 3,6183,618 |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 31, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.50 White is slightly better
Best play: 4... d5 5. Bf4 Be7 6. Nf3 Ne4 7. Nc3 c6 8. Qc2 O-O 9. Rd1
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 56% under 1400, 54% at 2200 and up and 58% in master games (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 6,056 | |
| 1400–1799 | 63K | |
| 1800–2199 | 245K | |
| 2200 and up | 106K | |
| Masters, over the board | 4,915 |
Master games
- Ding Liren – Carlsen, M.
- Caruana, F. – Carlsen, M.
- Anand, V. – Carlsen, M.
- Grischuk, A. – Carlsen, M.
- Aronian, L. – Carlsen, M.
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
Dutch Defense: Classical Variation (ECO A90, Flank Openings) is a variation of the Dutch Defense: Fianchetto Variation, reached after 1. d4 f5 2. c4 Nf6 3. g3 e6 4. Bg2 (4 moves).
In 398,802 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 51.4%, Black 42.3% and 6.4% were drawn. Black's most played move here is 4…Be7, in 36% of those games.
It branches into 3 named variations; the most played is Dutch Defense: Nimzo-Dutch Variation. In all, 20 named lines continue from it.
Written from the Lichess opening list and explorer. Know this line well? Write about it.
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How to answer 4. Bg2
4…d5 scores best for Black: 46.9%, with Black winning 43.3% and White 49.5% of 86K games. The most played, 4…Be7, scores 45.4% in 142K games, and 4…Bb4+ scores lowest: 44.9%. Stockfish's first choice is also 4…d5.
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
This line peaked in 2018 at 0.022% of Lichess games and has slipped since: 0.016% in 2025.
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.019% | 6,787 |
| 2017 | 0.021% | 11,358 |
| 2018 | 0.022% | 17,326 |
| 2019 | 0.019% | 24,121 |
| 2020 | 0.017% | 48,395 |
| 2021 | 0.013% | 51,800 |
| 2022 | 0.014% | 51,790 |
| 2023 | 0.014% | 52,793 |
| 2024 | 0.015% | 52,475 |
| 2025 | 0.016% | 55,581 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.017% | 18,943 |
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 20 named lines that continue from here
No line matches.
- A90 Classical Variation 5 moves
- A91 Classical Variation 4 moves
- A90 Dutch Defense: Nimzo-Dutch Variation 4 moves
- A92 Classical Variation 5 moves
- A91 Blackburne Attack 5 moves
- A90 Alekhine Variation 5 moves
- A92 Dutch Defense: Alekhine Variation 6 moves
- A96 Classical Variation 6 moves
- A92 Dutch Defense: Stonewall Variation 6 moves
- A96 Buenos Aires Variation 7 moves
- A96 Huisl Variation 7 moves
- A97 Ilyin-Zhenevsky Variation 7 moves
- A92 Stonewall Variation 7 moves
- A93 Botvinnik Variation 7 moves
- A98 Alatortsev-Lisitsyn Line 8 moves
- A99 Modern Main Line 8 moves
- A97 Winter Variation 8 moves
- A95 Stonewall Variation 7 moves
- A94 Dutch Defense: Stonewall Variation 8 moves
- A95 Chekhover Variation 9 moves
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Dutch Defense: Classical Variation (A90)”. Lichess data as of 31 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/dutch-defense-classical-variation-2