King's Indian Defense: Petrosian Variation, Keres Defense
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Statistics from Lichess
2,491 games: White 52.3% / Draw 6.5% / Black 41.2%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 1,3361,336 | ||
| 800800 | ||
| 348348 | ||
| 33 | ||
| 22 | ||
| 11 | ||
| 11 |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Nov 8, 2026
Engine evaluation
−0.11 The position is about equal
Best play: 11... g4 12. Nd2 Ndf6 13. Nf1 c6 14. Ne3 Qb6 15. Qb3 Qc5 16. Bh2
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
Overview
King's Indian Defense: Petrosian Variation, Keres Defense (ECO E93, Indian Defenses) is a variation of the King's Indian Defense: Petrosian Variation, Normal Defense, reached after 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. Nf3 O-O 6. Be2 e5 7. d5 Nbd7 8. Bg5 h6 9. Bh4 g5 10. Bg3 Nh5 11. h4 (11 moves).
In 2,491 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 52.3%, Black 41.2% and 6.5% were drawn. Black's most played move here is 11…Nxg3, in 54% of those games.
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How to answer 11. h4
11…Nf4 scores best for Black: 46.7%, with Black winning 44.5% and White 51.1% of 348 games. The most played answer, 11…Nxg3, scores lowest: 42.8% in 1,336 games. Stockfish's first choice is 11…g4.
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
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “King's Indian Defense: Petrosian Variation, Keres Defense (E93)”. Lichess data as of 8 Nov 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/kings-indian-defense-petrosian-variation-keres-defense