Indian Defense: Wade-Tartakower Defense
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Statistics from Lichess
4,649,694 games: White 49.4% / Draw 5.7% / Black 44.9%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 1,283,9891.3M | ||
| 877,412877K | ||
| 612,304612K | ||
| 609,233609K | ||
| 504,210504K | ||
| 346,650347K | ||
| 135,498135K | ||
| 93,40293K |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Nov 1, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.56 White is slightly better
Best play: 3. c4 g6 4. Nc3 Bg7 5. e4 O-O 6. h3 e5 7. d5 Nh5
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
By rating
The stronger the players, the worse this line does for Black: Black scores 50% under 1400, 46% at 2200 and up and 46% in master games (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 935K | |
| 1400–1799 | 1.9M | |
| 1800–2199 | 2.8M | |
| 2200 and up | 755K | |
| Masters, over the board | 8,599 |
Master games
- Kramnik, V. – Caruana, F.
- Ding Liren – Caruana, F.
- Mamedyarov, S. – Caruana, F.
- So, W. – Caruana, F.
- Aronian, L. – Caruana, F.
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
Indian Defense: Wade-Tartakower Defense (ECO A46, Flank Openings) is a variation of the Indian Defense: Knights Variation, reached after 1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 d6 (2 moves).
In 4,649,694 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 49.4%, Black 44.9% and 5.7% were drawn. White's most played move here is 3. c4, in 28% 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 Indian Defense: Wade-Tartakower Defense
3. g3 scores best for White: 53.7%, with White winning 50.5% and Black 43.2% of 612K games. The most played, 3. c4, scores 53.0% in 1.3M games, and 3. e3 scores lowest: 48.7%. Stockfish's first choice is 3. c4.
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 Indian Defense: Wade-Tartakower Defense has gained ground since 2016: 0.19% of Lichess games in 2025, up from 0.15%.
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.15% | 51,858 |
| 2017 | 0.17% | 95,128 |
| 2018 | 0.19% | 146,737 |
| 2019 | 0.17% | 217,292 |
| 2020 | 0.18% | 518,372 |
| 2021 | 0.16% | 627,673 |
| 2022 | 0.18% | 665,763 |
| 2023 | 0.18% | 679,972 |
| 2024 | 0.19% | 669,518 |
| 2025 | 0.19% | 675,606 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.2% | 221,758 |
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. “Indian Defense: Wade-Tartakower Defense (A46)”. Lichess data as of 1 Nov 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/indian-defense-wade-tartakower-defense