Pseudo Queen's Indian Defense
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Statistics from Lichess
884,935 games: White 48.5% / Draw 6.2% / Black 45.3%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 202,070202K | ||
| 196,458196K | ||
| 160,069160K | ||
| 133,123133K | ||
| 89,30189K | ||
| 38,14138K | ||
| 25,56626K | ||
| 18,35318K |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 19, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.25 The position is about equal
Best play: 3. g3 e6 4. Bg2 Bb7 5. c4 Be7 6. Nc3 O-O 7. O-O Ne4
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 48% both under 1400 and at 2200 and up, and 50% in master games (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 74K | |
| 1400–1799 | 241K | |
| 1800–2199 | 526K | |
| 2200 and up | 205K | |
| Masters, over the board | 3,063 |
Master games
- Aronian, L. – Carlsen, M.
- Caruana, F. – Nakamura, H.
- Aronian, L. – Rapport, R.
- Aronian, L. – Vachier Lagrave, M.
- Xiong, J. – Mamedyarov, S.
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
Pseudo Queen's Indian Defense (ECO A47, Flank Openings) is a variation of the Indian Defense: Knights Variation, reached after 1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 b6 (2 moves).
In 884,935 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 48.5%, Black 45.3% and 6.2% were drawn. White's most played move here is 3. c4, in 23% of those games.
It branches into 3 named variations; the most played are Marienbad System and Indian Defense: Schnepper Gambit. In all, 4 named lines continue from it.
Written from the Lichess opening list and explorer. Know this line well? Write about it.
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How to play against the Pseudo Queen's Indian Defense
3. g3 scores best for White: 53.2%, with White winning 49.5% and Black 43.1% of 160K games. The most played, 3. c4, scores 51.4% in 202K games, and 3. e3 scores lowest: 49.8%. Stockfish's first choice is also 3. g3.
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 Pseudo Queen's Indian Defense peaked in 2018 at 0.045% of Lichess games and has slipped since: 0.034% in 2025.
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.034% | 12,301 |
| 2017 | 0.04% | 21,827 |
| 2018 | 0.045% | 35,704 |
| 2019 | 0.04% | 50,155 |
| 2020 | 0.038% | 111,880 |
| 2021 | 0.031% | 122,382 |
| 2022 | 0.032% | 121,636 |
| 2023 | 0.033% | 124,054 |
| 2024 | 0.033% | 116,653 |
| 2025 | 0.034% | 117,588 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.034% | 36,772 |
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 (3)
All 4 named lines that continue from here
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Pseudo Queen's Indian Defense (A47)”. Lichess data as of 19 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/pseudo-queens-indian-defense