King's Indian Defense: Averbakh Variation, Benoni Defense
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Statistics from Lichess
95,878 games: White 49.4% / Draw 6.8% / Black 43.8%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Advance Variation | 84,89085K | |
| Exchange Variation | 6,7886,788 | |
| 3,1973,197 | ||
| 659659 | ||
| 164164 | ||
| 6161 | ||
| 4949 | ||
| 2323 |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 13, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.24 The position is about equal
Best play: 7. d5 e6 8. Qc1 exd5 9. exd5 b5 10. cxb5 a6 11. Nf3 axb5
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
Overview
King's Indian Defense: Averbakh Variation, Benoni Defense (ECO E74, Indian Defenses) is a variation of the King's Indian Defense: Averbakh Variation, reached after 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. Be2 O-O 6. Bg5 c5 (6 moves).
In 95,878 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 49.4%, Black 43.8% and 6.8% were drawn. White's most played move here is 7. d5, in 89% of those games.
It branches into 2 named variations; the most played are King's Indian Defense: Averbakh Variation, Benoni Defense, Advance Variation and King's Indian Defense: Averbakh Variation, Benoni Defense, Exchange Variation. In all, 3 named lines continue from it.
Written from the Lichess opening list and explorer. Know this line well? Write about it.
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How to play against the King's Indian Defense: Averbakh Variation, Benoni Defense
The most played answer, 7. d5 (Advance Variation), also scores best for White: 53.1%, with White winning 49.8% and Black 43.5% of 85K games. Of the main answers, 7. dxc5 scores lowest: 51.9%. Stockfish's first choice is also 7. d5.
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
Variations (2)
All 3 named lines that continue from here
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “King's Indian Defense: Averbakh Variation, Benoni Defense (E74)”. Lichess data as of 13 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/kings-indian-defense-averbakh-variation-benoni-defense