Sicilian Defense: Najdorf Variation 6. Bg5 e6
Also known as Najdorf Sicilian
Play any move on the board to explore from there, or step through the line with ‹ › and the arrow keys.
Statistics from Lichess
2,972,671 games: White 47.7% / Draw 4.5% / Black 47.8%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| B96 | 1,620,3951.6M | |
| 316,687317K | ||
| 249,500250K | ||
| 210,657211K | ||
| 175,011175K | ||
| 127,001127K | ||
| 73,59774K | ||
| 58,98859K |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Nov 7, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.11 The position is about equal
Best play: 7. f4 Qb6 8. Qd2 Qxb2 9. Rb1 Qa3 10. f5 Be7 11. fxe6 Bxe6
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
By rating
The stronger the players, the worse this line does for Black: Black scores 53% under 1400, 48% at 2200 and up and 47% in master games (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 75K | |
| 1400–1799 | 795K | |
| 1800–2199 | 1.8M | |
| 2200 and up | 655K | |
| Masters, over the board | 20K |
Master games
- Carlsen, M. – Vachier Lagrave, M.
- Carlsen, M. – Vachier Lagrave, M.
- Carlsen, M. – Giri, A.
- Caruana, F. – Vachier Lagrave, M.
- Caruana, F. – Vachier Lagrave, 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 26, 2026
Overview
Sicilian Defense: Najdorf Variation (ECO B95, Semi-Open Games) is a variation of the Sicilian Defense: Najdorf Variation, reached after 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 a6 6. Bg5 e6 (6 moves).
In 2,972,671 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 47.7%, Black 47.8% and 4.5% were drawn. White's most played move here is 7. f4, in 55% of those games.
It continues into one named variation. In all, 11 named lines continue from it.
Written from the Lichess opening list and explorer. Know this line well? Write about it.
Write a description or report a mistake
How to answer 6…e6
The most played answer, 7. f4, also scores best for White: 52.3%, with White winning 50.1% and Black 45.4% of 1.6M games. Of the main answers, 7. Bd3 scores lowest: 43.8%. Stockfish's first choice is also 7. f4.
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
This line has lost ground since 2016: 0.085% of Lichess games in 2025, down from 0.13% (its peak: 0.16% in 2018).
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.13% | 46,133 |
| 2017 | 0.15% | 85,106 |
| 2018 | 0.16% | 126,273 |
| 2019 | 0.15% | 183,029 |
| 2020 | 0.15% | 432,142 |
| 2021 | 0.13% | 522,383 |
| 2022 | 0.12% | 433,774 |
| 2023 | 0.1% | 381,813 |
| 2024 | 0.093% | 334,952 |
| 2025 | 0.085% | 295,411 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.083% | 90,749 |
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 (1)
All 11 named lines that continue from here
- B96 Najdorf Variation 7 moves
- B98 Najdorf Variation 7 moves
- B96 Neo-Classical Defense 7 moves
- B97 Poisoned Pawn Variation 7 moves
- B96 Polugaevsky Variation 7 moves
- B98 Browne Variation 9 moves
- B98 Goteborg Variation 9 moves
- B97 Sicilian Defense: Najdorf Variation, Poisoned Pawn Accepted 9 moves
- B96 Simagin Line 10 moves
- B98 Traditional Line 8 moves
- B99 Sicilian Defense: Najdorf Variation, Main Line 9 moves
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Sicilian Defense: Najdorf Variation (B95)”. Lichess data as of 7 Nov 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/sicilian-defense-najdorf-variation-3