Caissa Codex
A93

Dutch Defense: Stonewall Variation, Botvinnik Variation

Chess diagram: Dutch Defense: Stonewall Variation, Botvinnik Variation after 7. b3

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Statistics from Lichess

11,947 games: White 51.6% / Draw 8.6% / Black 39.8%

The moves played next. Pick one to see it on the board.
Next moveGamesWhite / Draw / BlackW / D / B
8,7788,778
1,1141,114
397397
382382
351351
299299
252252
130130

Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Nov 10, 2026

Engine evaluation

+0.41 White is slightly better

Best play: 7... Ne4 8. Qc2 b6 9. Ne5 Bb7 10. cxd5 exd5 11. f3 Nd6 12. Rd1

Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.

Overview

Dutch Defense: Stonewall Variation, Botvinnik Variation (ECO A93, Flank Openings) is a variation of the Dutch Defense: Stonewall Variation, reached after 1. d4 f5 2. c4 Nf6 3. g3 e6 4. Bg2 Be7 5. Nf3 O-O 6. O-O d5 7. b3 (7 moves).

In 11,947 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 51.6%, Black 39.8% and 8.6% were drawn. Black's most played move here is 7…c6, in 73% of those games.

It continues into one named variation, Dutch Defense: Stonewall Variation.

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How to play against the Dutch Defense: Stonewall Variation, Botvinnik Variation

7…Ne4 scores best for Black: 47.2%, with Black winning 42.8% and White 48.4% of 1,114 games. The most played answer, 7…c6, scores lowest: 43.9% in 8,778 games. Stockfish's first choice is also 7…Ne4.

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

Variations (1)

Other lines from the same position

Instead of 7. b3, the position after Dutch Defense: Stonewall Variation also goes on to:

Cite this page

Caissa Codex. “Dutch Defense: Stonewall Variation, Botvinnik Variation (A93)”. Lichess data as of 10 Nov 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/dutch-defense-stonewall-variation-botvinnik-variation

https://chesscodex.org/openings/dutch-defense-stonewall-variation-botvinnik-variation