English Opening: Anglo-Lithuanian Variation
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Statistics from Lichess
1,000,987 games: White 51.9% / Draw 4.7% / Black 43.4%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 544,597545K | ||
| 150,378150K | ||
| 131,354131K | ||
| 58,33158K | ||
| 57,33757K | ||
| 16,72717K | ||
| 13,82714K | ||
| 13,21013K |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Nov 2, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.46 White is slightly better
Best play: 2. d4 d5 3. Nf3 e6 4. Nc3 Nf6 5. e3 Be7 6. a3 O-O
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 46% both under 1400 and at 2200 and up, and 42% in master games (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 653K | |
| 1400–1799 | 766K | |
| 1800–2199 | 522K | |
| 2200 and up | 102K | |
| Masters, over the board | 484 |
Master games
- Kasparov, G. – Short, N. D.
- Romanov, E. – Fedoseev, V.
- Smirin, I. – Vallejo Pons, F.
- Matlakov, M. – Indjic, A.
- Gelfand, B. – Miladinovic, I.
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-Lithuanian Variation (ECO A10, Flank Openings) is a variation of the English Opening, reached after 1. c4 Nc6 (1 move).
In 1,000,987 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 51.9%, Black 43.4% and 4.7% were drawn. White's most played move here is 2. Nc3, in 54% 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-Lithuanian Variation
2. g3 scores best for White: 55.5%, with White winning 53.1% and Black 42.1% of 150K games. The most played, 2. Nc3, scores 54.5% in 545K games, and 2. e3 scores lowest: 52.8%. Stockfish's first choice is 2. 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-Lithuanian Variation has stayed between 0.036% and 0.041% of Lichess games a year since 2016 (0.041% in 2025).
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.039% | 13,898 |
| 2017 | 0.038% | 21,006 |
| 2018 | 0.039% | 30,812 |
| 2019 | 0.041% | 51,383 |
| 2020 | 0.04% | 117,016 |
| 2021 | 0.038% | 146,771 |
| 2022 | 0.036% | 135,941 |
| 2023 | 0.036% | 136,894 |
| 2024 | 0.04% | 143,510 |
| 2025 | 0.041% | 141,229 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.042% | 45,630 |
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
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “English Opening: Anglo-Lithuanian Variation (A10)”. Lichess data as of 2 Nov 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/english-opening-anglo-lithuanian-variation