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Caro-Kann Defense · As Black · updated October 2026

Play the Caro-Kann like Nihal Sarin

A Caro-Kann repertoire built from 68 of Nihal Sarin's public Chess.com blitz games. At every position you play the move Nihal Sarin chose most often. Where Nihal Sarin has fewer than 3 games, the course takes the other top-50 players' most played move, then Stockfish's. Learn a line on the board, then each position comes back in a short daily review until it sticks.

Not affiliated with or endorsed by Nihal Sarin or Chess.com.

  • Nihal Sarin was #3 in Chess.com blitz in October 2026 (3,365) and scored 65% against opponents averaging 3,136 in these games.
  • You play Nihal Sarin's own move in 24 of 40 positions.
  • The whole course is free, and it is updated monthly.

Free · first 5 lines need no account

Blitz rank

#3

Chess.com

Rating

3,365

Games

68

in this opening

Score

65%

in these games

Opponents

3,136

average rating

More about Nihal Sarin

Use arrow keys to navigate the board. Press Enter to select a piece, then use arrow keys and Enter to move. Press Escape to cancel a move.
Line 1 after 12 moves

Lines to learn

  1. Line 1 · 8% at top level

    2.d4 d5 3.e5 Bf5 4.Nf3 e6 5.Be2 Nd7 6.O-O Bg6 7.c3 a6

  2. Line 2 · 6% at top level

    2.Nc3 d5

  3. Line 3 · 6% at top level

    2.d4 d5 3.e5 Bf5 4.Nf3 e6 5.Be2 Nd7 6.O-O Bg6 7.a4 Nh6 8.a5 Be7 9.c3 O-O 10.b4 b6

  4. Line 4 · 6% at top level

    2.d4 d5 3.e5 Bf5 4.Nf3 e6 5.Be2 Nd7 6.O-O Bg6 7.a4 Nh6 8.a5 Be7 9.c4 dxc4

  5. Line 5 · 6% at top level

    2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 dxe4 4.Nxe4 Nf6 5.Nxf6+ exf6 6.c3 Bd6 7.Bd3 O-O 8.Ne2 Re8

  6. Line 6 · 5% at top level

    2.Nf3 d5 3.d3 Qc7 4.Nc3 dxe4

  7. Line 7 · 5% at top level

    2.Nf3 d5 3.d3 Qc7 4.exd5 cxd5 5.c4 Nf6 6.Nc3 e6

  8. Line 8 · 5% at top level

    2.d4 d5 3.e5 Bf5 4.Bd3 Bxd3 5.Qxd3 e6

  9. Line 9 · 5% at top level

    2.d4 d5 3.e5 Bf5 4.h4 a6

  10. Line 10 · 4% at top level

    2.Nf3 d5 3.Nc3 Bg4 4.h3 Bxf3 5.Qxf3 e6 6.g3 Nd7 7.Bg2 Ngf6 8.O-O Ne5

  11. Line 11 · 4% at top level

    2.d4 d5 3.exd5 cxd5 4.Nf3 Nc6 5.c3 Bg4 6.h3 Bxf3 7.Qxf3 e6 8.Bd3 Bd6

  12. Line 12 · 4% at top level

    2.d4 d5 3.e5 Bf5 4.Nf3 e6 5.Be2 Nd7 6.O-O Bg6 7.Be3 Nh6

Ordered by how often they come up in top-level games. Learned lines join your daily review.

Nihal Sarin's main line in the Caro-Kann, move by move

The most common line at top level: 2.d4 d5 3.e5 Bf5 4.Nf3 e6 5.Be2 Nd7 6.O-O Bg6 7.c3 a6.

  1. 2.d4 Reply · Nihal Sarin's games A common reply here is 2.d4. At top level, this comes up about 71% of the time.
  2. 2…d5 Your move · Nihal Sarin's games Nihal Sarin played 2…d5 in 45 games, scoring 64%.
  3. 3.e5 Reply · Nihal Sarin's games A common reply here is 3.e5. At top level, this comes up about 49% of the time.
  4. 3…Bf5 Your move · Nihal Sarin's games Nihal Sarin played 3…Bf5 in 29 games, scoring 66%.
  5. 4.Nf3 Reply · Nihal Sarin's games A common reply here is 4.Nf3. At top level, this comes up about 30% of the time.
  6. 4…e6 Your move · Nihal Sarin's games Nihal Sarin played 4…e6 in 18 games, scoring 56%.
  7. 5.Be2 Reply · Nihal Sarin's games A common reply here is 5.Be2.
  8. 5…Nd7 Your move · Nihal Sarin's games Nihal Sarin played 5…Nd7 in 8 games, scoring 69%.
  9. 6.O-O Reply · Nihal Sarin's games A common reply here is 6.O-O. At top level, this comes up about 26% of the time.
  10. 6…Bg6 Your move · Nihal Sarin's games Nihal Sarin played 6…Bg6 in 7 games, scoring 64%.
  11. 7.c3 Reply · Nihal Sarin's games A common reply here is 7.c3. At top level, this comes up about 8% of the time.
  12. 7…a6 Your move · Stockfish The games give no move to follow here, so this is Stockfish's choice.

Questions about this course

How does Nihal Sarin play the Caro-Kann?
After 1.e4 c6, Nihal Sarin's most common line is 2.d4 d5 3.e5 Bf5 4.Nf3 e6 5.Be2 Nd7 6.O-O Bg6 7.c3 a6. At top level it comes up about 8% of the time.
Is this Nihal Sarin's course?
No. ChessDrills builds it automatically from Nihal Sarin's public Chess.com blitz games.
What is this Caro-Kann course based on?
68 of Nihal Sarin's Chess.com blitz games in the Caro-Kann Defense as Black, against opponents with an average rating of 3,136. Nihal Sarin scored 65% in them.
How many lines does the course have?
12 lines covering 40 positions, ordered by how often they come up in top-level games. The first 5 lines need no account; saving your progress with an email unlocks the rest, free.
Who is Nihal Sarin?
GM Nihal Sarin was ranked number 3 on the Chess.com blitz leaderboard with a rating of 3,365 when this course was built.