King's Indian Defense · Chess.com blitz ·
How the top 10 Chess.com blitz players play against the King's Indian
333 blitz games where a top-10 Chess.com player had White and the opponent answered with the King's Indian, 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7. See what each player chooses next, what they play in the main line and how it scores: the setups a King's Indian player should expect from the very top. 9 of the top 10 have games against it.
King's Indian games
333
Classical (Nf3 or Be2)
59%
most played system
Top players' score
73%
vs ~3,100 avg opponents
Key findings
- 9 of the top 10 have games against the King's Indian as White. Hikaru Nakamura has no games in it. Ediz Gürel has fewer than 10 games in it.
- Most games go into the Classical Variation. 59% of 333 games are Classical lines. The chart below breaks the rest down by system.
- Aleksei Sarana scores best against the King's Indian. Aleksei Sarana scores 76% over 87 games, the highest among players with 50 or more games against the King's Indian.
- In the main line, 5.Be2 leads. It was played in 109 of the 261 games after 4.e4 d6 (42%), ahead of 5.Nf3 (67 games, 26%).
Which system each player chooses after 3…Bg7
Share of each player's games against the King's Indian. Tap or hover a segment for the count and the score.
- Classical (Nf3 or Be2)
- Makogonov (h3)
- Averbakh (Be2, Bg5)
- Sämisch (f3)
- Other systems (incl. Four Pawns f4, Fianchetto g3)
Faded rows: fewer than 20 games.
Table view
| Player | Classical (Nf3 or Be2) | Makogonov (h3) | Averbakh (Be2, Bg5) | Sämisch (f3) | Other systems (incl. Four Pawns f4, Fianchetto g3) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| All 10 players | 195 · 59% · 74% | 55 · 17% · 70% | 19 · 6% · 61% | 18 · 5% · 75% | 46 · 14% · 76% |
| Magnus Carlsen | 9 · 25% · 78% | 2 · 6% · 100% | 3 · 8% · 67% | 10 · 28% · 70% | 12 · 33% · 75% |
| Sina Movahed | 65 · 96% · 74% | – | – | – | 3 · 4% · 83% |
| Nihal Sarin | 10 · 48% · 75% | 6 · 29% · 50% | – | 2 · 10% · 100% | 3 · 14% · 67% |
| Jan-Krzysztof Duda | 8 · 47% · 63% | 5 · 29% · 40% | – | 1 · 6% · 100% | 3 · 18% · 50% |
| Aleksei Sarana | 54 · 62% · 77% | 8 · 9% · 100% | 14 · 16% · 61% | – | 11 · 13% · 73% |
| Wesley So | 24 · 62% · 58% | 4 · 10% · 63% | – | 4 · 10% · 63% | 7 · 18% · 71% |
| Denis Lazavik | 27 · 96% · 80% | – | – | – | 1 · 4% · 100% |
| Dmitry Andreikin | – | 30 · 86% · 70% | – | 1 · 3% · 100% | 4 · 11% · 100% |
| System | Games | Share | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| Classical (Nf3 or Be2) | 195 | 59% | 74% |
| Makogonov (h3) | 55 | 17% | 70% |
| Averbakh (Be2, Bg5) | 19 | 6% | 61% |
| Sämisch (f3) | 18 | 5% | 75% |
| Four Pawns (f4) | 8 | 2% | 88% |
| Fianchetto (g3) | 8 | 2% | 69% |
| Other systems | 30 | 9% | 75% |
Player by player
Each player's main weapon against the King's Indian and what they play in the 4.e4 d6 main line.
Magnus Carlsen
36 games vs the King's Indian · score 75%
Main choice: Sämisch (f3), 10 games (28%)
Next: Classical (Nf3 or Be2), 9 games (25%)
Meets the main line in 30 games and varies the fifth move: none more than 8 times
Sina Movahed
68 games vs the King's Indian · score 74%
Main choice: Classical (Nf3 or Be2), 65 games (96%)
Next: Fianchetto (g3), 2 games (3%)
Meets the main line in 52 games; most often 5.Nf3 (38 games)
Nihal Sarin
21 games vs the King's Indian · score 69%
Main choice: Classical (Nf3 or Be2), 10 games (48%)
Next: Makogonov (h3), 6 games (29%)
Meets the main line in 14 games and varies the fifth move: none more than 6 times
Jan-Krzysztof Duda
17 games vs the King's Indian · score 56%
Main choice: Classical (Nf3 or Be2), 8 games (47%)
Next: Makogonov (h3), 5 games (29%)
Meets the main line in 13 games and varies the fifth move: none more than 5 times
Aleksei Sarana
87 games vs the King's Indian · score 76%
Main choice: Classical (Nf3 or Be2), 54 games (62%)
Next: Averbakh (Be2, Bg5), 14 games (16%)
Meets the main line in 72 games; most often 5.Be2 (54 games)
Wesley So
39 games vs the King's Indian · score 62%
Main choice: Classical (Nf3 or Be2), 24 games (62%)
Next: Makogonov (h3), 4 games (10%)
Meets the main line in 30 games and varies the fifth move: none more than 9 times
Denis Lazavik
28 games vs the King's Indian · score 80%
Main choice: Classical (Nf3 or Be2), 27 games (96%)
Meets the main line in 25 games; most often 5.Be2 (23 games)
Dmitry Andreikin
35 games vs the King's Indian · score 74%
Main choice: Makogonov (h3), 30 games (86%)
Next: Sämisch (f3), 1 game (3%)
Meets the main line in 25 games; most often 5.h3 (Makogonov), 22 games
In the main line: move 5
261 games reached the main line (1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6). White's fifth move, player by player.
- 5.Be2
- 5.Nf3
- Makogonov (5.h3)
- Sämisch (5.f3)
- 5.Bd3
- 5.Nge2
- Other fifth moves
Faded rows: fewer than 20 main line games.
Table view
| Player | 5.Be2 | 5.Nf3 | Makogonov (5.h3) | Sämisch (5.f3) | 5.Bd3 | 5.Nge2 | Other fifth moves |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| All 10 players | 109 · 42% · 72% | 67 · 26% · 71% | 44 · 17% · 70% | 13 · 5% · 81% | 9 · 3% · 72% | 9 · 3% · 78% | 10 · 4% · 85% |
| Magnus Carlsen | 5 · 17% · 40% | 6 · 20% · 100% | 1 · 3% · 100% | 8 · 27% · 88% | – | 1 · 3% · 0% | 9 · 30% · 83% |
| Sina Movahed | 13 · 25% · 85% | 38 · 73% · 70% | – | – | – | – | 1 · 2% · 100% |
| Nihal Sarin | 3 · 21% · 100% | 2 · 14% · 75% | 6 · 43% · 50% | 2 · 14% · 100% | – | 1 · 7% · 100% | – |
| Jan-Krzysztof Duda | 2 · 15% · 50% | 4 · 31% · 75% | 5 · 38% · 40% | 1 · 8% · 100% | – | 1 · 8% · 50% | – |
| Aleksei Sarana | 54 · 75% · 69% | 6 · 8% · 83% | 6 · 8% · 100% | – | 5 · 7% · 80% | 1 · 1% · 100% | – |
| Wesley So | 9 · 30% · 56% | 9 · 30% · 44% | 4 · 13% · 63% | 2 · 7% · 25% | 2 · 7% · 25% | 4 · 13% · 88% | – |
| Denis Lazavik | 23 · 92% · 83% | 2 · 8% · 75% | – | – | – | – | – |
| Dmitry Andreikin | – | – | 22 · 88% · 75% | – | 2 · 8% · 100% | 1 · 4% · 100% | – |
Move explorer
Starts after 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7. Pick all 10 players or one of them, then click a move to go deeper. Rarer moves are grouped as other moves.
- 1.d4
- Nf6
- 2.c4
- g6
- 3.Nc3
- Bg7
King's Indian Defense
333 games · top players scored 73%
Other moves: 2 games
Questions people ask
- What do top players play against the King's Indian?
- In Chess.com blitz, the top 10 players go into the Classical Variation in 59% of 333 games. Here the Classical Variation means 4.e4 with Nf3 or Be2. The rest: the Makogonov Variation 17%, the Averbakh Variation 6%, the Sämisch Variation 5%, the Four Pawns Attack 2%, the Fianchetto Variation 2%, other systems 9%.
- What is the second most common system against the King's Indian?
- The next most played system is the Makogonov Variation, in 17% of games. Here that means 4.e4 with h3. Next: the Averbakh Variation at 6%, the Sämisch Variation at 5%, the Four Pawns Attack at 2%, the Fianchetto Variation at 2%.
- What does Magnus Carlsen play against the King's Indian?
- In 36 blitz games as White against 3…Bg7, Magnus Carlsen's most common fourth move was 4.e4 (35 games). Magnus Carlsen's main choice was the Sämisch Variation, 10 games (28%); then the Classical Variation, 9 games (25%).
- What do top players play in the main line?
- In the 261 games that reached the main line (1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6), the most common fifth move is 5.Be2 (109 games, 42%), followed by 5.Nf3 (67 games, 26%).
- Does a high score mean the opening is good?
- Not by itself. Scores also reflect the rating gap between the top players and their opponents. Compare lines by how often the top players choose them, and use the scores as context.
- Where do these numbers come from?
- From up to 1,000 Chess.com blitz games as White of each of the top 10 players on the leaderboard. 333 of them start 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7. A win counts as 1 and a draw as ½, from the top player's side. The games were last refreshed on 22 Oct 2026.
How we counted
We took the Chess.com blitz games as White of each of the top 10 players on the leaderboard, up to 1,000 each, and kept the ones that started 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7. Each game counts under the first rule below that fits it:
- Averbakh (Be2, Bg5): 4.e4 with Be2 and Bg5.
- Sämisch (f3): 4.e4 with f3.
- Four Pawns (f4): 4.e4 with f4.
- Makogonov (h3): 4.e4 with h3.
- Classical (Nf3 or Be2): 4.e4 with Nf3 or Be2.
- Fianchetto (g3): 4.g3, or 4.Nf3 and 5.g3 (without 4.e4).
- Other systems: everything else, such as 5.Bd3 and 5.Nge2 (the Kramer Variation) after 4.e4, and rarer fourth moves.
A win counts as 1 and a draw as ½, from the top player's side. Scores also reflect the rating gap: opponents average about 3,100.
Systems are told apart by the setup, so each move order counts together: 4.e4 d6 5.f3 and 4.f3 d6 5.e4 are both the Sämisch. Only games with 3.Nc3 count, so Fianchetto games reached with 3.Nf3 and 4.g3 are not included. A row or a card built on fewer than 20 games is faded. Players with fewer than 10 games in the opening have no card or row; their games count in the totals.
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