King's Indian Defense: Fianchetto Variation, Delayed Fianchetto
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Statistics from Lichess
643,030 games: White 50.0% / Draw 6.1% / Black 43.9%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 532,775533K | ||
| 32,18232K | ||
| 20,75421K | ||
| 18,50019K | ||
| 14,44814K | ||
| 6,3186,318 | ||
| 4,7494,749 | ||
| 2,6262,626 |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 30, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.38 White is slightly better
Best play: 5... O-O 6. Bg2 c5 7. O-O Nc6 8. d5 Na5 9. Nd2 e6 10. Rb1
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 53% both under 1400 and at 2200 and up, and 56% in master games (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 26K | |
| 1400–1799 | 147K | |
| 1800–2199 | 413K | |
| 2200 and up | 128K | |
| Masters, over the board | 1,457 |
Master games
- Mamedyarov, S. – Carlsen, M.
- Mamedyarov, S. – Carlsen, M.
- Mamedyarov, S. – Aronian, L.
- Aronian, L. – Ponomariov, R.
- Mamedyarov, S. – Morozevich, A.
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
King's Indian Defense: Fianchetto Variation, Delayed Fianchetto (ECO E62, Indian Defenses) is a variation of the King's Indian Defense, reached after 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. Nf3 d6 5. g3 (5 moves).
In 643,030 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 50.0%, Black 43.9% and 6.1% were drawn. Black's most played move here is 5…O-O, in 83% of those games.
It branches into 4 named variations; the most played are King's Indian Defense: Fianchetto Variation, Simagin Variation and King's Indian Defense: Fianchetto Variation, Larsen Defense.
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: Fianchetto Variation, Delayed Fianchetto
The most played answer, 5…O-O, also scores best for Black: 47.4%, with Black winning 44.3% and White 49.4% of 533K games. Of the main answers, 5…Nbd7 scores lowest: 44.9%. Stockfish's first choice is also 5…O-O.
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 King's Indian Defense: Fianchetto Variation, Delayed Fianchetto has gained ground since 2016: 0.024% of Lichess games in 2025, up from 0.02% (its peak: 0.029% in 2018).
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.02% | 7,007 |
| 2017 | 0.025% | 13,536 |
| 2018 | 0.029% | 22,979 |
| 2019 | 0.029% | 35,976 |
| 2020 | 0.027% | 80,260 |
| 2021 | 0.024% | 93,863 |
| 2022 | 0.025% | 93,243 |
| 2023 | 0.024% | 91,012 |
| 2024 | 0.024% | 84,350 |
| 2025 | 0.024% | 82,928 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.025% | 27,758 |
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
Variations (4)
- E61 Fianchetto Variation, Benjamin Defense 5…O-O 6. Bg2 c6 7. O-O Qb6
- E62 Fianchetto Variation, Larsen Defense 5…O-O 6. Bg2 c6 7. O-O Bf5
- E68 Fianchetto Variation, Long Variation 5…O-O 6. Bg2 Nbd7 7. O-O e5 8. e4 Re8 9. h3 exd4 10. Nxd4 Nc5 11. Re1 a5
- E62 Fianchetto Variation, Simagin Variation 5…O-O 6. Bg2 Nc6 7. O-O Bg4
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “King's Indian Defense: Fianchetto Variation, Delayed Fianchetto (E62)”. Lichess data as of 30 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/kings-indian-defense-fianchetto-variation-delayed-fianchetto