Queen's Indian Defense: Petrosian Variation
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Statistics from Lichess
271,399 games: White 49.6% / Draw 7.1% / Black 43.3%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 215,847216K | ||
| 28,33528K | ||
| 8,4198,419 | ||
| 7,7857,785 | ||
| 4,5834,583 | ||
| 3,8503,850 | ||
| 737737 | ||
| 516516 |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 31, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.12 The position is about equal
Best play: 4... Bb7 5. Bf4 c5 6. Nc3 cxd4 7. Qxd4 Nc6 8. Qd3 Nh5 9. Bg5
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
By rating
Rating changes little here: White scores 54% under 1400, 53% at 2200 and up and 55% in master games (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 3,567 | |
| 1400–1799 | 27K | |
| 1800–2199 | 128K | |
| 2200 and up | 125K | |
| Masters, over the board | 11K |
Master games
- Kasparov, G. – Kramnik, V.
- Tomashevsky, E. – Carlsen, M.
- Mamedyarov, S. – Karjakin, S.
- Anand, V. – Karjakin, S.
- Nakamura, H. – Karjakin, 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
Queen's Indian Defense: Petrosian Variation (ECO E12, Indian Defenses) is a variation of the Queen's Indian Defense, reached after 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. a3 (4 moves).
In 271,399 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 49.6%, Black 43.3% and 7.1% were drawn. Black's most played move here is 4…Bb7, in 80% of those games.
It branches into 2 named variations; the most played are Queen's Indian Defense: Kasparov-Petrosian Variation and Queen's Indian Defense: Petrosian Variation, Farago Defense. In all, 12 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 Queen's Indian Defense: Petrosian Variation
4…Ba6 scores best for Black: 50.1%, with Black winning 46.5% and White 46.3% of 28K games. The most played answer, 4…Bb7, scores lowest: 46.7% in 216K games. Stockfish's first choice is 4…Bb7.
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 Queen's Indian Defense: Petrosian Variation has lost ground since 2016: 0.011% of Lichess games in 2025, down from 0.014%.
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.014% | 4,883 |
| 2017 | 0.014% | 7,802 |
| 2018 | 0.015% | 11,713 |
| 2019 | 0.013% | 15,666 |
| 2020 | 0.011% | 32,998 |
| 2021 | 0.009% | 35,018 |
| 2022 | 0.0092% | 34,553 |
| 2023 | 0.0098% | 36,720 |
| 2024 | 0.0098% | 35,132 |
| 2025 | 0.011% | 38,863 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.012% | 12,741 |
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)
All 12 named lines that continue from here
- E12 Queen's Indian Defense: Kasparov-Petrosian Variation 5 moves
- E12 Farago Defense 5 moves
- E12 Andersson Variation 5 moves
- E12 Hedgehog Variation 5 moves
- E12 Main Line 5 moves
- E12 Marco Defense 5 moves
- E12 Queen's Indian Defense: Kasparov-Petrosian Variation, Classical Variation 6 moves
- E12 Queen's Indian Defense: Kasparov-Petrosian Variation, Modern Variation 6 moves
- E12 Queen's Indian Defense: Kasparov-Petrosian Variation, Kasparov Attack 7 moves
- E12 Queen's Indian Defense: Kasparov-Petrosian Variation, Petrosian Attack 7 moves
- E12 Queen's Indian Defense: Kasparov-Petrosian Variation, Rashkovsky Attack 7 moves
- E12 Queen's Indian Defense: Kasparov-Petrosian Variation, Romanishin Attack 7 moves
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Queen's Indian Defense: Petrosian Variation (E12)”. Lichess data as of 31 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/queens-indian-defense-petrosian-variation