English Opening: Agincourt Defense, Tarrasch Defense
7.8K games from Lichess · Updated January 2026
Black expected score · All ratings · All speeds
46.7%
the worst score you would still get, 90% confident. At best 47.7%.
Measured over 7.8K games at this level and clock.
Black comes out behind here — there are better weapons in the list.
Outcomes for Black
Draw 5.2 · Score = win + ½ of the draws · 7.8K games
- Rank among the families Black can choose here
- not ranked — this is a variation, not a family
- Games in this context
- 7.8K
- Best context
- 48.9% at 1800-1999 Blitz
- Worst context
- 45.2% at 2200-2499 Bullet
- Average game length
- 39 moves
- Games that end decisively
- 94.8%
- Draws
- 5.2%
Best and worst are the strongest and weakest squares with at least 500 games behind them. The table further down shows every square, including thinner ones.
Extra Analysis
Deep-dive datasets for this opening
Where it holds · Black score by rating × clock
Green is clearly ahead for Black, grey is around even, red is behind. Tap a cell to measure there, and again to clear. It holds about the same all the way up, near 43.0%.
| Rating | UB | Bulle | Blitz | Rapid | Class |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0-999 | — | — | — | ||
| 1000-1199 | — | — | |||
| 1200-1399 | — | — | |||
| 1400-1599 | |||||
| 1600-1799 | |||||
| 1800-1999 | — | ||||
| 2000-2199 | — | ||||
| 2200-2499 | — | — | |||
| 2500+ | — | — |
Expected score matrix by rating bracket and time control
- 0-999 rating, Bullet: 62.0% expected score (11 games)
- 0-999 rating, Blitz: 23.9% expected score (10 games)
- 1000-1199 rating, Bullet: 46.8% expected score (29 games)
- 1000-1199 rating, Blitz: 39.7% expected score (37 games)
- 1000-1199 rating, Rapid: 76.3% expected score (8 games)
- 1200-1399 rating, Bullet: 40.1% expected score (59 games)
- 1200-1399 rating, Blitz: 48.3% expected score (84 games)
- 1200-1399 rating, Rapid: 42.6% expected score (32 games)
- 1400-1599 rating, UltraBullet: 70.0% expected score (1 games)
- 1400-1599 rating, Bullet: 51.6% expected score (94 games)
- 1400-1599 rating, Blitz: 48.3% expected score (227 games)
- 1400-1599 rating, Rapid: 45.3% expected score (72 games)
- 1400-1599 rating, Classical: 21.5% expected score (2 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, UltraBullet: 30.0% expected score (1 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, Bullet: 45.8% expected score (117 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, Blitz: 47.8% expected score (415 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, Rapid: 55.5% expected score (80 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, Classical: 42.4% expected score (5 games)
- 1800-1999 rating, Bullet: 43.7% expected score (282 games)
- 1800-1999 rating, Blitz: 48.9% expected score (814 games)
- 1800-1999 rating, Rapid: 57.9% expected score (183 games)
- 1800-1999 rating, Classical: 69.1% expected score (9 games)
- 2000-2199 rating, Bullet: 48.6% expected score (535 games)
- 2000-2199 rating, Blitz: 47.3% expected score (1,365 games)
- 2000-2199 rating, Rapid: 48.6% expected score (247 games)
- 2000-2199 rating, Classical: 46.8% expected score (14 games)
- 2200-2499 rating, Bullet: 45.2% expected score (879 games)
- 2200-2499 rating, Blitz: 46.5% expected score (1,406 games)
- 2200-2499 rating, Rapid: 47.6% expected score (144 games)
- 2500+ rating, Bullet: 38.1% expected score (481 games)
- 2500+ rating, Blitz: 43.1% expected score (115 games)
- 2500+ rating, Rapid: 42.6% expected score (12 games)
Related Openings
Methodology
Across every rating and clock, the English Opening: Agincourt Defense, Tarrasch Defense scores 46.7% for Black — we are 90% confident the real figure is between 45.8% and 47.7% — from 7.8K Lichess games. Win rate, draw rate and loss rate come from games played December 2023 to November 2025.
How the figures are made
- Whose games these are
- 7.8K+ rated games played on Lichess (2023-12 to 2025-11). The games are Lichess’s and free for anyone to use. What is ours is the reading of them. Last rebuilt January 2026.
- Which games we count
- Rated games only — nothing casual.
- Both players within 200 rating points of each other. A mismatch tells you about the gap, not about the opening.
- At least 2 moves played.
- A game is filed under White’s rating.
- Why every number comes with a range
- A number off a few hundred games is a guess. The same number off millions is a fact. The range is what tells them apart, and it is what the lists rank on — so an opening cannot reach the top on a lucky run of forty games. The more games behind a figure, the narrower its range.
- How much we need before we say anything
- An opening page needs 100 games. A gambit needs 50 games at a rating before we will say whether it pays there. The chaos and trap lists need 500 games overall and 250 games at one rating or clock.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the English Opening: Agincourt Defense, Tarrasch Defense win rate?
Playing the English Opening: Agincourt Defense, Tarrasch Defense, Black wins 44.1%, draws 5.2% and loses 50.7%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 46.7%. It rests on 7.8K rated games from Lichess.
At what rating does the English Opening: Agincourt Defense, Tarrasch Defense perform best?
The English Opening: Agincourt Defense, Tarrasch Defense performs best for Black at 1800-1999, with an Expected Score of 49.2% (1.3K games) and the highest Floor of any rating with enough games to read.
Is the English Opening: Agincourt Defense, Tarrasch Defense better in blitz or rapid?
For Black, the English Opening: Agincourt Defense, Tarrasch Defense scores higher in Rapid: an Expected Score of 47.2% in Blitz (4.5K games) against 51.0% in Rapid (778 games).
How sharp is the English Opening: Agincourt Defense, Tarrasch Defense?
The English Opening: Agincourt Defense, Tarrasch Defense has a sharpness score of 94.8 (decisive), meaning 94.8% of games end decisively. Average game length is 39 moves.
What is the English Opening: Agincourt Defense, Tarrasch Defense win rate at 1200-1399?
At 1200-1399, Black wins 42.8%, draws 3.1% and loses 54.1%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 44.4%. It rests on 175 Lichess games, which average 33 moves.
What is the English Opening: Agincourt Defense, Tarrasch Defense win rate at 1400-1599?
At 1400-1599, Black wins 47.2%, draws 2.4% and loses 50.4%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 48.4%. It rests on 396 Lichess games, which average 34 moves.
What is the English Opening: Agincourt Defense, Tarrasch Defense win rate at 1600-1799?
At 1600-1799, Black wins 46.4%, draws 3.6% and loses 50.0%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 48.2%. It rests on 618 Lichess games, which average 36 moves.
What is the English Opening: Agincourt Defense, Tarrasch Defense win rate at 1800-1999?
At 1800-1999, Black wins 46.9%, draws 4.5% and loses 48.6%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 49.2%. It rests on 1.3K Lichess games, which average 38 moves.
What is the English Opening: Agincourt Defense, Tarrasch Defense win rate at 2000-2199?
At 2000-2199, Black wins 45.2%, draws 5.0% and loses 49.8%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 47.7%. It rests on 2.2K Lichess games, which average 39 moves.
What is the English Opening: Agincourt Defense, Tarrasch Defense win rate at 2200-2499?
At 2200-2499, Black wins 42.8%, draws 6.5% and loses 50.7%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 46.1%. It rests on 2.4K Lichess games, which average 41 moves.
What is the English Opening: Agincourt Defense, Tarrasch Defense win rate at 2500+?
At 2500+, Black wins 35.8%, draws 6.5% and loses 57.7%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 39.1%. It rests on 608 Lichess games, which average 43 moves.
What is the English Opening: Agincourt Defense, Tarrasch Defense win rate in Bullet?
In Bullet, Black wins 42.8%, draws 3.5% and loses 53.7%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 44.6%. It rests on 2.5K Lichess games.
What is the English Opening: Agincourt Defense, Tarrasch Defense win rate in Blitz?
In Blitz, Black wins 44.2%, draws 5.9% and loses 49.9%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 47.2%. It rests on 4.5K Lichess games.
What is the English Opening: Agincourt Defense, Tarrasch Defense win rate in Rapid?
In Rapid, Black wins 47.5%, draws 6.9% and loses 45.6%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 51.0%. It rests on 778 Lichess games.
Is the English Opening: Agincourt Defense, Tarrasch Defense a good opening?
The English Opening: Agincourt Defense, Tarrasch Defense is hard work for Black — it favours White. Across all ratings, Black wins 44.1% of its games and loses 50.7%. It performs best at 1800-1999. Your results depend on your rating, time control, and how well you know the typical plans.