Polish Opening: King's Indian Variation
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Statistics from Lichess
848,711 games: White 46.4% / Draw 5.5% / Black 48.1%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 234,287234K | ||
| 136,207136K | ||
| Polish Opening: Zukertort System | 102,402102K | |
| 79,63180K | ||
| Schiffler Attack | 72,33672K | |
| 68,46568K | ||
| 49,44149K | ||
| 44,14944K |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 20, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.05 The position is about equal
Best play: 3. e3 d6 4. Nf3 Bg7 5. c4 e5 6. d3 a5 7. b5 a4
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
By rating
Rating changes little here: Black scores 53% under 1400, 51% at 2200 and up (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 100K | |
| 1400–1799 | 474K | |
| 1800–2199 | 500K | |
| 2200 and up | 43K | |
| Masters, over the board | 98 |
Master games
- Ivanchuk, V. – Li Chao2
- Xiong, J. – Vachier Lagrave, M.
- Miles, A. J. – Polugaevsky, L.
- Grigoryan, K. – Moussard, J.
- Grigoryan, K. – Moussard, J.
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
Polish Opening: King's Indian Variation (ECO A00, Flank Openings) is a variation of the Polish Opening, reached after 1. b4 Nf6 2. Bb2 g6 (2 moves).
In 848,711 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 46.4%, Black 48.1% and 5.5% were drawn. White's most played move here is 3. e3, in 28% of those games.
It branches into 2 named variations; the most played are Polish Opening: King's Indian Variation, Schiffler Attack and Polish Opening: King's Indian Variation, Sokolsky Attack.
Written from the Lichess opening list and explorer. Know this line well? Write about it.
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How to play against the Polish Opening: King's Indian Variation
3. b5 scores best for White: 50.6%, with White winning 47.6% and Black 46.4% of 80K games. The most played, 3. e3, scores 49.6% in 234K games, and 3. e4 scores lowest: 45.7%. Stockfish's first choice is 3. e3.
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
Popularity by year
The Polish Opening: King's Indian Variation has stayed between 0.032% and 0.036% of Lichess games a year since 2016 (0.033% in 2025).
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.032% | 11,407 |
| 2017 | 0.034% | 18,955 |
| 2018 | 0.035% | 27,836 |
| 2019 | 0.036% | 44,531 |
| 2020 | 0.032% | 92,486 |
| 2021 | 0.032% | 123,869 |
| 2022 | 0.033% | 124,442 |
| 2023 | 0.032% | 120,524 |
| 2024 | 0.033% | 118,889 |
| 2025 | 0.033% | 114,707 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.034% | 36,967 |
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 (2)
Transpositions
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Polish Opening: King's Indian Variation (A00)”. Lichess data as of 20 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/polish-opening-kings-indian-variation