English Opening: Anglo-Indian Defense, Scandinavian Defense, Exchange Variation
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Statistics from Lichess
400,067 games: White 56.6% / Draw 5.3% / Black 38.1%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 146,298146K | ||
| English Opening: Anglo-Indian Defense, Anglo-Grünfeld Variation | 103,265103K | |
| 73,77574K | ||
| 60,55861K | ||
| 6,2756,275 | ||
| 3,4093,409 | ||
| 2,7612,761 | ||
| 1,7691,769 |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 27, 2026
Engine evaluation
+1.00 White is better
Best play: 4. d4 Bf5 5. Nbd2 Nf6 6. g3 Nc6 7. Bg2 g6 8. Qb3 Nxd4
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
By rating
Rating changes little here: Black scores 42% under 1400, 40% at 2200 and up (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 41K | |
| 1400–1799 | 150K | |
| 1800–2199 | 245K | |
| 2200 and up | 60K | |
| Masters, over the board | 135 |
Master games
- Huebner, R. – Savon, V. A.
- Vaibhav, S. – Stany, G.
- Thiede, L. – Tazbir, M.
- Alburt, L. O. – Gutman, L.
- Bukic, E. – Marovic, D.
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
English Opening: Anglo-Indian Defense, Scandinavian Defense, Exchange Variation (ECO A15, Flank Openings) is a variation of the English Opening: Anglo-Indian Defense, Scandinavian Defense, reached after 1. c4 Nf6 2. Nf3 d5 3. cxd5 Nxd5 (3 moves).
In 400,067 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 56.6%, Black 38.1% and 5.3% were drawn. White's most played move here is 4. e4, in 37% of those games.
Written from the Lichess opening list and explorer. Know this line well? Write about it.
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How to play against the English Opening: Anglo-Indian Defense, Scandinavian Defense, Exchange Variation
4. d4 scores best for White: 61.7%, with White winning 59.0% and Black 35.6% of 74K games. The most played, 4. e4, scores 60.5% in 146K games, and 4. Nc3 scores lowest: 57.0%. Stockfish's first choice is also 4. d4.
Main answers: those played in at least 5% of these games. Score: White'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
The English Opening: Anglo-Indian Defense, Scandinavian Defense, Exchange Variation peaked in 2018 at 0.02% of Lichess games and has slipped since: 0.015% in 2025.
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.017% | 6,250 |
| 2017 | 0.018% | 9,754 |
| 2018 | 0.02% | 15,573 |
| 2019 | 0.019% | 23,214 |
| 2020 | 0.016% | 46,981 |
| 2021 | 0.014% | 54,269 |
| 2022 | 0.015% | 54,734 |
| 2023 | 0.015% | 56,053 |
| 2024 | 0.015% | 54,119 |
| 2025 | 0.015% | 53,669 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.016% | 17,984 |
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
Transpositions
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “English Opening: Anglo-Indian Defense, Scandinavian Defense, Exchange Variation (A15)”. Lichess data as of 27 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/english-opening-anglo-indian-defense-scandinavian-defense-exchange-variation