Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Max Lange Attack, Krause Variation
33K games from Lichess · Updated January 2026
White expected score · All ratings · All speeds
59.7%
the worst score you would still get, 90% confident. At best 60.2%.
Measured over 33K games at this level and clock.
A strong choice for White at this level and clock.
Outcomes for White
Draw 2.4 · Score = win + ½ of the draws · 33K games
- Rank among the families White can choose here
- not ranked — this is a variation, not a family
- Games in this context
- 33K
- Best context
- 63.6% at 1200-1399 Rapid
- Worst context
- 57.6% at 2000-2199 Bullet
- Average game length
- 28 moves
- Games that end decisively
- 97.6%
- Draws
- 2.4%
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 · White score by rating × clock
Green is clearly ahead for White, grey is around even, red is behind. Tap a cell to measure there, and again to clear. It gets better as the rating rises: 60.5% at 0-999, 64.8% at 2500+.
| 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: 59.8% expected score (230 games)
- 0-999 rating, Blitz: 59.6% expected score (123 games)
- 0-999 rating, Rapid: 62.0% expected score (78 games)
- 1000-1199 rating, Bullet: 59.4% expected score (941 games)
- 1000-1199 rating, Blitz: 57.7% expected score (797 games)
- 1000-1199 rating, Rapid: 55.8% expected score (232 games)
- 1000-1199 rating, Classical: 27.0% expected score (5 games)
- 1200-1399 rating, Bullet: 57.9% expected score (1,902 games)
- 1200-1399 rating, Blitz: 59.3% expected score (2,657 games)
- 1200-1399 rating, Rapid: 63.6% expected score (638 games)
- 1200-1399 rating, Classical: 54.0% expected score (11 games)
- 1400-1599 rating, UltraBullet: 78.6% expected score (2 games)
- 1400-1599 rating, Bullet: 60.1% expected score (2,230 games)
- 1400-1599 rating, Blitz: 58.0% expected score (4,969 games)
- 1400-1599 rating, Rapid: 61.6% expected score (1,646 games)
- 1400-1599 rating, Classical: 56.2% expected score (47 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, UltraBullet: 70.0% expected score (1 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, Bullet: 57.7% expected score (2,068 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, Blitz: 59.4% expected score (5,244 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, Rapid: 61.0% expected score (2,185 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, Classical: 60.7% expected score (102 games)
- 1800-1999 rating, Bullet: 60.0% expected score (1,450 games)
- 1800-1999 rating, Blitz: 61.5% expected score (2,758 games)
- 1800-1999 rating, Rapid: 63.5% expected score (1,245 games)
- 1800-1999 rating, Classical: 59.5% expected score (46 games)
- 2000-2199 rating, Bullet: 57.6% expected score (553 games)
- 2000-2199 rating, Blitz: 62.5% expected score (513 games)
- 2000-2199 rating, Rapid: 67.0% expected score (249 games)
- 2000-2199 rating, Classical: 90.0% expected score (6 games)
- 2200-2499 rating, Bullet: 68.4% expected score (189 games)
- 2200-2499 rating, Blitz: 58.2% expected score (66 games)
- 2200-2499 rating, Rapid: 52.5% expected score (19 games)
- 2500+ rating, Bullet: 61.8% expected score (24 games)
- 2500+ rating, Blitz: 67.7% expected score (7 games)
Related Openings
Methodology
Across every rating and clock, the Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Max Lange Attack, Krause Variation scores 59.7% for White — we are 90% confident the real figure is between 59.3% and 60.2% — from 33K 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
- 33K+ 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 Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Max Lange Attack, Krause Variation win rate?
Playing the Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Max Lange Attack, Krause Variation, White wins 58.5%, draws 2.4% and loses 39.1%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 59.7%. It rests on 33K rated games from Lichess.
At what rating does the Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Max Lange Attack, Krause Variation perform best?
The Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Max Lange Attack, Krause Variation performs best for White at 1800-1999, with an Expected Score of 61.6% (5.5K games) and the highest Floor of any rating with enough games to read.
Is the Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Max Lange Attack, Krause Variation better in blitz or rapid?
For White, the Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Max Lange Attack, Krause Variation scores higher in Rapid: an Expected Score of 59.3% in Blitz (17K games) against 62.0% in Rapid (6.3K games).
How sharp is the Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Max Lange Attack, Krause Variation?
The Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Max Lange Attack, Krause Variation has a sharpness score of 97.6 (very decisive), meaning 97.6% of games end decisively. Average game length is 28 moves.
What is the Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Max Lange Attack, Krause Variation win rate at 0-999?
At 0-999, White wins 59.1%, draws 2.2% and loses 38.7%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 60.2%. It rests on 431 Lichess games, which average 22 moves.
What is the Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Max Lange Attack, Krause Variation win rate at 1000-1199?
At 1000-1199, White wins 57.3%, draws 1.8% and loses 40.9%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 58.2%. It rests on 2.0K Lichess games, which average 24 moves.
What is the Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Max Lange Attack, Krause Variation win rate at 1200-1399?
At 1200-1399, White wins 58.3%, draws 2.0% and loses 39.7%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 59.3%. It rests on 5.2K Lichess games, which average 26 moves.
What is the Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Max Lange Attack, Krause Variation win rate at 1400-1599?
At 1400-1599, White wins 58.0%, draws 2.3% and loses 39.7%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 59.2%. It rests on 8.9K Lichess games, which average 28 moves.
What is the Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Max Lange Attack, Krause Variation win rate at 1600-1799?
At 1600-1799, White wins 58.2%, draws 2.5% and loses 39.4%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 59.4%. It rests on 9.6K Lichess games, which average 29 moves.
What is the Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Max Lange Attack, Krause Variation win rate at 1800-1999?
At 1800-1999, White wins 60.1%, draws 2.9% and loses 37.0%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 61.6%. It rests on 5.5K Lichess games, which average 31 moves.
What is the Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Max Lange Attack, Krause Variation win rate at 2000-2199?
At 2000-2199, White wins 60.2%, draws 2.5% and loses 37.3%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 61.5%. It rests on 1.3K Lichess games, which average 32 moves.
What is the Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Max Lange Attack, Krause Variation win rate at 2200-2499?
At 2200-2499, White wins 63.0%, draws 3.8% and loses 33.2%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 64.9%. It rests on 274 Lichess games, which average 31 moves.
What is the Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Max Lange Attack, Krause Variation win rate in Bullet?
In Bullet, White wins 58.4%, draws 1.4% and loses 40.2%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 59.1%. It rests on 9.6K Lichess games.
What is the Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Max Lange Attack, Krause Variation win rate in Blitz?
In Blitz, White wins 58.0%, draws 2.6% and loses 39.4%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 59.3%. It rests on 17K Lichess games.
What is the Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Max Lange Attack, Krause Variation win rate in Rapid?
In Rapid, White wins 60.4%, draws 3.2% and loses 36.5%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 62.0%. It rests on 6.3K Lichess games.
What is the Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Max Lange Attack, Krause Variation win rate in Classical?
In Classical, White wins 57.0%, draws 4.8% and loses 38.2%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 59.4%. It rests on 217 Lichess games.
Is the Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Max Lange Attack, Krause Variation a good opening?
The Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Max Lange Attack, Krause Variation is good for White. Across all ratings, White wins 58.5% of its games and loses 39.1%. It performs best at 1800-1999. Your results depend on your rating, time control, and how well you know the typical plans.