Skip to main contentPrepare for a game against Nihal Sarin → Get my insights
Nihal Sarin's openings
Chess.com· GM· Rank 3· 🇨🇱·
Nihal Sarin's most played openings in 300 recent Chess.com blitz games: Queen's Pawn Game as White (27 games, 70% score); Sicilian Defense as Black (19 games, 63% score).
You vs Nihal Sarin: which openings to play
nihalsarinChess.com
Key findings
As White
Where Nihal Sarin scores below ratings
Where Nihal Sarin scores best
As Black
Where Nihal Sarin scores below ratings
Where Nihal Sarin scores best
Games
300
Blitz
Score
66%
win = 1, draw = ½
As White
150
65% score
As Black
150
66% score
Rating
3365
Blitz
As White
Score counts a win as 1 and a draw as ½.
OpeningGamesScoreW / D / LAvg oppPerf
27
70%
17/4/6
3255
3417
12
46%
5/1/6
3233
3199
11
91%
10/0/1
3191
3518
8
44%
3/1/4
3237
3187
6
75%
4/1/1
3203
3403
6
83%
5/0/1
3185
3451
5
60%
3/0/2
3160
3240
5
100%
5/0/0
3229
3629
As Black
Score counts a win as 1 and a draw as ½.
OpeningGamesScoreW / D / LAvg oppPerf
19
63%
11/2/6
3190
3295
15
73%
9/4/2
3218
3404
14
71%
9/2/3
3183
3354
10
65%
5/3/2
3253
3373
9
33%
3/0/6
3288
3154
9
67%
6/0/3
3159
3292
6
33%
2/0/4
3172
3038
6
83%
5/0/1
3260
3526
How these numbers work
- Score: a win counts 1 and a draw ½, divided by the games played in that opening.
- Expected score (“ratings predict”): what the Elo formula predicts from both players' ratings in those games. A score more than 5 percentage points above it is green, more than 5 below is red, anything in between is on par.
- Performance (Perf): the average opponent rating + 800 × (score − 50%), a simple linear estimate; the average opponent is shown beside it.
- Sample size: key findings use openings with 5 or more games. How much to trust this score: fewer than 10 games is a small sample and only a hint, 10 to 29 is a medium sample, 30 or more is a solid sample.
- Games: finished Chess.com games, up to 150 as White and 150 as Black, grouped by opening and time control.
Data: Chess.com public API. Nihal Sarin on Chess.com
Playing Nihal Sarin soon?
See where you have the edge before you play. Free, no signup.
Curious about your own openings?
Get the same report for your own games on Chess.com or Lichess.