Van't Kruijs Opening
The Van't Kruijs Opening (1.e3) is a modest first move that releases the king's bishop and supports a later d4. Read the guide
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Statistics from Lichess
28,952,916 games: White 46.5% / Draw 4.4% / Black 49.2%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 10,319,20110.3M | ||
| 6,504,5696.5M | ||
| 3,403,6253.4M | ||
| 2,436,1732.4M | ||
| 1,516,6871.5M | ||
| 1,246,9141.2M | ||
| 1,203,6001.2M | ||
| 845,909846K |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Nov 10, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.10 The position is about equal
Best play: 1... Nf6 2. d4 d5 3. Nf3 e6 4. Bd3 Be7 5. O-O O-O 6. b3
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 49% both under 1400 and at 2200 and up, and 48% in master games (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 36.4M | |
| 1400–1799 | 33.1M | |
| 1800–2199 | 12.9M | |
| 2200 and up | 977K | |
| Masters, over the board | 918 |
Master games
- Carlsen, M. – Ding Liren
- Carlsen, M. – Giri, A.
- Carlsen, M. – Karjakin, S.
- Vachier Lagrave, M. – Caruana, F.
- Mamedyarov, S. – Giri, A.
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
Description
The Van't Kruijs Opening (1.e3) is a modest first move that releases the king's bishop and supports a later d4. It is an irregular opening, classified under A00, but according to ChessBase it ranks sixth in popularity among White's twenty possible first moves.
Origins
The opening is named after the Dutch player Maarten van 't Kruijs (1813–1885), who won the sixth Dutch championship in 1878. There are several 19th-century examples, but it is not popular in the modern era and is not a common choice for grandmasters. Its ability to transpose into many other openings has attracted players such as Aron Nimzowitsch, Bent Larsen and Pavel Blatny, and Benjamin and Schiller (1987) called it a "chameleon".
The idea
1.e3 makes only a small claim in the centre and blocks the queen's bishop, so it is somewhat passive compared with 1.e4. Its value lies in transposition: play may reach the English Opening (c4), a Queen's Pawn Game (d4), the French Defense with a delayed d4, the Bird Opening (f4), Larsen's Opening (b3) or the Stonewall Attack.
Main lines
- 1...Nf6, the most common reply, usually met by 2.Nf3, transposing to a Réti Opening. White can follow with d4, possibly reaching a Queen's Gambit Declined, or set up a Hedgehog-like system with b3, c4, Nbd2 and Be2.
- 1...d5 and 1...c5 can be met in the same way.
- 1...e5, another common reply. 2.c4 gives a reversed Sicilian, while 2.d4 exd4 3.exd4 d5 transposes to the French Defense Exchange Variation.
- 1...g6 is recommended by Benjamin and Schiller, who consider e3 set-ups weak against a fianchetto. 1...b6, 1...c6 and 1...e6 are also fully playable.
Strengths and weaknesses
Strengths
- Very flexible, with many transpositions.
Weaknesses
- Passive: White takes only a modest stake in the centre.
- The pawn on e3 obstructs the queen's bishop.
Who should play it
1.e3 suits players who like to reach familiar structures by unusual move orders, for example reversed Sicilian positions, rather than fighting for an opening advantage.
The numbers
On Lichess Black wins more often at every level: 48.9% against 46.7% for White under 1400, 49.8% against 46.2% at 1400–1799, 48.8% against 46.6% at 1800–2199 and 47.3% against 46.1% from 2200 up. There are fewer than a thousand master games, too few to draw firm conclusions.
Suggest an improvement or report a mistake
How to play against the Van't Kruijs Opening
1…Nf6 scores best for Black: 54.4%, with Black winning 52.1% and White 43.3% of 1.5M games. The most played answer, 1…e5, scores lowest: 50.3% in 10.3M games. Stockfish's first choice is also 1…Nf6.
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 Van't Kruijs Opening has lost ground since 2016: 1.1% of Lichess games in 2025, down from 1.4%.
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 1.4% | 484,260 |
| 2017 | 1.2% | 633,640 |
| 2018 | 1.1% | 839,825 |
| 2019 | 1.1% | 1,357,170 |
| 2020 | 1.1% | 3,111,885 |
| 2021 | 1.1% | 4,471,709 |
| 2022 | 1.2% | 4,350,491 |
| 2023 | 1.1% | 4,205,578 |
| 2024 | 1.1% | 3,968,558 |
| 2025 | 1.1% | 3,880,895 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 1.1% | 1,162,602 |
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 (5)
- A00 Amsterdam Attack 1…e5 2. c4 d6 3. Nc3 Nc6 4. b3 Nf6
- A00 Bouncing Bishop Variation 1…e5 2. Bc4 b5 3. Bb3
- A00 Keoni-Hiva Gambit, Akahi Variation 1…e5 2. Nc3 Nf6 3. f4 exf4 4. Nf3
- A00 Keoni-Hiva Gambit, Alua Variation 1…e5 2. Nc3 Nc6 3. f4 exf4 4. Nf3
- A00 Keoni-Hiva Gambit, Ekolu Variation 1…e5 2. Nc3 d5 3. f4 exf4 4. Nf3
Sources
- History and theory: adapted from the Wikipedia article Van 't Kruijs Opening, version of 26 October 2026, under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Results: Lichess opening explorer, figures collected from September to November 2026.
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Van't Kruijs Opening (A00)”. Lichess data as of 10 Nov 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/vant-kruijs-opening