Source Lichess
Black wins at least 3.0 more of every 100 games than it loses
how far wins run ahead of losses, 90% confident
At All Ratings, Sicilian Defense: McDonnell Attack, Tal Gambit keeps Black's wins running +3.0% ahead of its losses at worst, 90% confident, from 104K Lichess games. This gambit is playable but marginal. Win rate, draw rate and loss rate come from games played December 2023 to November 2025.
| Rating | Edge at worst | Black Win | Draw | Black Loss | Games |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0-999 | −5.4% | 53.2% | 1.7% | 45.2% | 148 |
| 1000-1199 | −8.6% | 48.4% | 1.4% | 50.2% | 595 |
| 1200-1399 | −6.7% | 47.3% | 2.1% | 50.6% | 2.4K |
| 1400-1599 | −2.3% | 48.6% | 2.4% | 49.1% | 8.3K |
| 1600-1799 | −0.1% | 48.9% | 3.1% | 47.9% | 22K |
| 1800-1999 | +3.0% | 50.1% | 3.8% | 46.1% | 34K |
| 2000-2199 | +5.6% | 51.0% | 4.6% | 44.4% | 25K |
| 2200-2499 | +3.4% | 49.2% | 6.6% | 44.2% | 11K |
| 2500+ | +3.2% | 48.8% | 11.0% | 40.2% | 930 |
At some ratings. Black comes out ahead at 1800+; at the other ratings we can see, the games do not show it paying. Where it pays changes with the clock, so set yours above and look again.
Black wins 49.8% of Sicilian Defense: McDonnell Attack, Tal Gambit games, draws 4.0% and loses 46.2%. That rests on 104K games from Lichess.
2000-2199. There Black wins at least 5.6 more of every 100 games than it loses (90% confident), its highest Edge at worst.
Rapid. For Black, the Edge at worst — how far wins run ahead of losses, 90% confident — is +3.2% in Blitz (65K games) and +8.1% in Rapid (13K games).
Yes. The first rating where the games do not show Black coming out ahead is 0-999 in Bullet, 0-999 in Blitz and 1200-1399 in Rapid. In Classical, Black comes out ahead at every rating we can see.
The Sicilian Defense: McDonnell Attack, Tal Gambit is extremely sharp: 4.0% of its games are drawn, so 96.0% end with a winner.
At 1800+, where Black comes out ahead. At the other ratings we can see, the games do not show it paying. Where it pays changes with the clock, so set yours above and look again.
As White, take the material, then develop fast, castle early, and trade pieces. Give the material back when doing so kills the attack. At 1800+, Black still comes out ahead in these games; at the other ratings we can see, the games do not show the gambit paying.
This rests on 104K games from Lichess. Every figure carries the range it is in, 90% confident, and the table above shows how many games sit behind each rating and each clock — the fewer there are, the wider that range.