English Opening: The Whale
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Statistics from Lichess
2,628,911 games: White 48.1% / Draw 4.9% / Black 47.0%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 849,974850K | ||
| 686,567687K | ||
| 453,101453K | ||
| 267,716268K | ||
| 103,102103K | ||
| Caro-Kann Defense: Accelerated Panov Attack, Open Variation | 93,39993K | |
| 55,38255K | ||
| 22,40622K |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Nov 7, 2026
Engine evaluation
−0.29 The position is about equal
Best play: 2... Bc5 3. d3 d6 4. Nf3 Ne7 5. d4 exd4 6. Nxd4 Nbc6 7. Be3
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 48% under 1400, 47% at 2200 and up (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 3.2M | |
| 1400–1799 | 3.2M | |
| 1800–2199 | 1.1M | |
| 2200 and up | 40K | |
| Masters, over the board | 44 |
Master games
- Antipov, M. – Ovetchkin, R.
- Grabarczyk, M. – Jaracz, P.
- Day, L. A. – Van der Wiel, J.
- Segalla, J. G. M. – Gysi, A.
- Langner, L. – Smejkal, J.
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 26, 2026
Overview
English Opening: The Whale (ECO C20, Open Games) is a variation of the King's Pawn Game, reached after 1. e4 e5 2. c4 (2 moves).
In 2,628,911 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 48.1%, Black 47.0% and 4.9% were drawn. Black's most played move here is 2…Nf6, in 32% of those games.
It continues into one named variation, King's Pawn Game: Bavarian Gambit.
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: The Whale
2…Bc5 scores best for Black: 51.1%, with Black winning 48.8% and White 46.6% of 453K games. The most played, 2…Nf6, scores 49.4% in 850K games, and 2…d6 scores lowest: 47.7%. Stockfish's first choice is also 2…Bc5.
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
The English Opening: The Whale has lost ground since 2016: 0.089% of Lichess games in 2025, down from 0.16%.
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.16% | 56,032 |
| 2017 | 0.13% | 71,454 |
| 2018 | 0.1% | 78,760 |
| 2019 | 0.1% | 130,754 |
| 2020 | 0.11% | 312,306 |
| 2021 | 0.11% | 420,859 |
| 2022 | 0.11% | 394,304 |
| 2023 | 0.099% | 371,927 |
| 2024 | 0.097% | 347,045 |
| 2025 | 0.089% | 308,718 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.082% | 89,552 |
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 (1)
Transpositions
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “English Opening: The Whale (C20)”. Lichess data as of 7 Nov 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/english-opening-the-whale