Caissa Codex
E97

King's Indian Defense: Orthodox Variation, Bayonet Attack, Sokolov's Line

Chess diagram: King's Indian Defense: Orthodox Variation, Bayonet Attack, Sokolov's Line after 10. Re1

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Statistics from Lichess

34,172 games: White 51.4% / Draw 5.7% / Black 42.9%

The moves played next. Pick one to see it on the board.
Next moveGamesWhite / Draw / BlackW / D / B
18,44718K
10,94611K
2,9512,951
1,3641,364
161161
8181
5656
4343

Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 30, 2026

Engine evaluation

+0.67 White is slightly better

Best play: 10... a5 11. bxa5 Rxa5 12. a4 f5 13. Bd2 b6 14. Nb5 Ra8 15. a5

Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.

Overview

King's Indian Defense: Orthodox Variation, Bayonet Attack, Sokolov's Line (ECO E97, Indian Defenses) is a variation of the King's Indian Defense: Orthodox Variation, Bayonet Attack, reached after 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. Nf3 O-O 6. Be2 e5 7. O-O Nc6 8. d5 Ne7 9. b4 Nh5 10. Re1 (10 moves).

In 34,172 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 51.4%, Black 42.9% and 5.7% were drawn. Black's most played move here is 10…f5, in 54% of those games.

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How to play against the King's Indian Defense: Orthodox Variation, Bayonet Attack, Sokolov's Line

10…a5 scores best for Black: 47.1%, with Black winning 44.2% and White 49.9% of 2,951 games. The most played, 10…f5, scores 46.5% in 18K games, and 10…Nf4 scores lowest: 43.3%. Stockfish's first choice is also 10…a5.

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

Other lines from the same position

Instead of 9…Nh5 10. Re1, the position after King's Indian Defense: Orthodox Variation, Bayonet Attack also goes on to:

Cite this page

Caissa Codex. “King's Indian Defense: Orthodox Variation, Bayonet Attack, Sokolov's Line (E97)”. Lichess data as of 30 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/kings-indian-defense-orthodox-variation-bayonet-attack-sokolovs-line

https://chesscodex.org/openings/kings-indian-defense-orthodox-variation-bayonet-attack-sokolovs-line