King's Indian Defense: Orthodox Variation, Gligoric-Taimanov System
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Statistics from Lichess
221,055 games: White 51.7% / Draw 6.1% / Black 42.2%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 88,53289K | ||
| 60,46360K | ||
| 38,57439K | ||
| 9,6779,677 | ||
| 5,5185,518 | ||
| 3,9533,953 | ||
| 3,1343,134 | ||
| 3,0603,060 |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 31, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.27 The position is about equal
Best play: 7... exd4 8. Nxd4 Re8 9. Qc2 c6 10. Rd1 Qe7 11. Bf3 Bg4 12. O-O
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
By rating
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 1,229 | |
| 1400–1799 | 13K | |
| 1800–2199 | 97K | |
| 2200 and up | 114K | |
| Masters, over the board | 6,283 |
Master games
- Aronian, L. – Nakamura, H.
- Carlsen, M. – Firouzja, A.
- Carlsen, M. – Grischuk, A.
- So, W. – Caruana, F.
- Gelfand, B. – Carlsen, M.
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: Orthodox Variation, Gligoric-Taimanov System (ECO E92, Indian Defenses) is a variation of the King's Indian Defense: Orthodox Variation, reached after 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. Nf3 O-O 6. Be2 e5 7. Be3 (7 moves).
In 221,055 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 51.7%, Black 42.2% and 6.1% were drawn. Black's most played move here is 7…Nc6, in 40% 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 King's Indian Defense: Orthodox Variation, Gligoric-Taimanov System
7…exd4 scores best for Black: 48.5%, with Black winning 44.7% and White 47.6% of 39K games. The most played answer, 7…Nc6, scores lowest: 42.0% in 89K games. Stockfish's first choice is also 7…exd4.
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: Orthodox Variation, Gligoric-Taimanov System peaked in 2018 at 0.011% of Lichess games and has slipped since: 0.0076% in 2025.
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.0082% | 2,925 |
| 2017 | 0.0095% | 5,216 |
| 2018 | 0.011% | 8,401 |
| 2019 | 0.0097% | 12,073 |
| 2020 | 0.0093% | 27,179 |
| 2021 | 0.0092% | 36,161 |
| 2022 | 0.0084% | 31,716 |
| 2023 | 0.0083% | 31,193 |
| 2024 | 0.0078% | 28,134 |
| 2025 | 0.0076% | 26,394 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.0076% | 8,362 |
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
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “King's Indian Defense: Orthodox Variation, Gligoric-Taimanov System (E92)”. Lichess data as of 31 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/kings-indian-defense-orthodox-variation-gligoric-taimanov-system