2.3K games from Lichess · Updated January 2026
At all ratings, the Nimzo-Indian Defense: Leningrad Variation, Benoni Defense has a 52.6% expected score for White (we're 90% confident it's between 50.9% and 54.3%), based on 2.3K Lichess games.
Deep-dive datasets for this opening
Improves with rating: 20% → 56%
Best in Bullet (54%), worst in Rapid (39%)
Click any cell to filter. Green = above 50%, Red = below 50%.
| 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
The Nimzo-Indian Defense: Leningrad Variation, Benoni Defense has a 50.2% (90% CI: 48.5%-51.9%) win rate for white, based on 2.3K rated games from Lichess.
The Nimzo-Indian Defense: Leningrad Variation, Benoni Defense performs best at 2000-2199 Elo with a 52.8% win rate for white (471 games). Win rate tends to decline at higher ratings as opponents know the theory better.
Bullet (53.8%) outperforms Rapid (39.2%) by 14.6%. Choose your time control wisely.
The Nimzo-Indian Defense: Leningrad Variation, Benoni Defense has a sharpness score of 95.3 (very decisive), meaning 95.3% of games end decisively. Average game length is 35 moves.
At 1400-1599 Elo, the Nimzo-Indian Defense: Leningrad Variation, Benoni Defense has a 46.8% (90% CI: 39.7%-53.9%) win rate for white, based on 130 Lichess games. Average game length is 29 moves with a 3.4% draw rate.
At 1600-1799 Elo, the Nimzo-Indian Defense: Leningrad Variation, Benoni Defense has a 48.0% (90% CI: 43.4%-52.7%) win rate for white, based on 310 Lichess games. Average game length is 32 moves with a 5.6% draw rate.
At 1800-1999 Elo, the Nimzo-Indian Defense: Leningrad Variation, Benoni Defense has a 47.2% (90% CI: 43.6%-50.8%) win rate for white, based on 517 Lichess games. Average game length is 35 moves with a 4.1% draw rate.
At 2000-2199 Elo, the Nimzo-Indian Defense: Leningrad Variation, Benoni Defense has a 52.8% (90% CI: 49.0%-56.6%) win rate for white, based on 471 Lichess games. Average game length is 36 moves with a 3.7% draw rate.
At 2200-2499 Elo, the Nimzo-Indian Defense: Leningrad Variation, Benoni Defense has a 51.6% (90% CI: 48.6%-54.7%) win rate for white, based on 743 Lichess games. Average game length is 38 moves with a 5.7% draw rate.
At 2500+ Elo, the Nimzo-Indian Defense: Leningrad Variation, Benoni Defense has a 56.1% (90% CI: 48.8%-63.2%) win rate for white, based on 126 Lichess games. Average game length is 41 moves with a 6.7% draw rate.
In Bullet games, the Nimzo-Indian Defense: Leningrad Variation, Benoni Defense has a 53.8% (90% CI: 49.9%-57.6%) win rate for white (453 Lichess games). Draw rate is 2.3%.
In Blitz games, the Nimzo-Indian Defense: Leningrad Variation, Benoni Defense has a 50.6% (90% CI: 48.6%-52.7%) win rate for white (1.7K Lichess games). Draw rate is 5.3%.
In Rapid games, the Nimzo-Indian Defense: Leningrad Variation, Benoni Defense has a 39.2% (90% CI: 33.7%-44.8%) win rate for white (209 Lichess games). Draw rate is 5.5%.
The Nimzo-Indian Defense: Leningrad Variation, Benoni Defense is statistically balanced with a 50.2% (90% CI: 48.5%-51.9%) win rate across all ratings. It performs best at 2000-2199 Elo. Your results depend on your rating, time control, and how well you know the typical plans.