Sicilian Defense: Richter-Rauzer Variation, Neo-Modern Variation, Nyezhmetdinov Attack
2.4K games from Lichess · Updated January 2026
White expected score · All ratings · All speeds
53.0%
the worst score you would still get, 90% confident. At best 54.7%.
Measured over 2.4K games at this level and clock.
A strong choice for White at this level and clock.
Outcomes for White
Draw 27.1 · Score = win + ½ of the draws · 2.4K games
- Rank among the families White can choose here
- not ranked — this is a variation, not a family
- Games in this context
- 2.4K
- Best context
- 54.8% at 2500+ Blitz
- Worst context
- 53.8% at 2200-2499 Blitz
- Average game length
- 47 moves
- Games that end decisively
- 72.9%
- Draws
- 27.1%
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 falls away as the rating rises: 70.0% at 1200-1399, 50.4% 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
- 1200-1399 rating, Classical: 70.0% expected score (1 games)
- 1400-1599 rating, Bullet: 38.9% expected score (3 games)
- 1400-1599 rating, Blitz: 40.9% expected score (4 games)
- 1400-1599 rating, Rapid: 30.0% expected score (1 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, Bullet: 68.2% expected score (4 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, Blitz: 38.3% expected score (7 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, Rapid: 50.0% expected score (2 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, Classical: 50.0% expected score (3 games)
- 1800-1999 rating, Bullet: 50.0% expected score (5 games)
- 1800-1999 rating, Blitz: 50.0% expected score (12 games)
- 1800-1999 rating, Rapid: 50.0% expected score (2 games)
- 1800-1999 rating, Classical: 68.2% expected score (4 games)
- 2000-2199 rating, Bullet: 38.9% expected score (3 games)
- 2000-2199 rating, Blitz: 56.7% expected score (89 games)
- 2000-2199 rating, Rapid: 53.1% expected score (15 games)
- 2000-2199 rating, Classical: 50.0% expected score (3 games)
- 2200-2499 rating, Bullet: 41.5% expected score (57 games)
- 2200-2499 rating, Blitz: 53.8% expected score (789 games)
- 2200-2499 rating, Rapid: 67.8% expected score (52 games)
- 2200-2499 rating, Classical: 34.7% expected score (5 games)
- 2500+ rating, Bullet: 50.4% expected score (481 games)
- 2500+ rating, Blitz: 54.8% expected score (735 games)
- 2500+ rating, Rapid: 46.6% expected score (100 games)
- 2500+ rating, Classical: 50.0% expected score (3 games)
Related Openings
Methodology
Across every rating and clock, the Sicilian Defense: Richter-Rauzer Variation, Neo-Modern Variation, Nyezhmetdinov Attack scores 53.0% for White — we are 90% confident the real figure is between 51.4% and 54.7% — from 2.4K 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
- 2.4K+ 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 Sicilian Defense: Richter-Rauzer Variation, Neo-Modern Variation, Nyezhmetdinov Attack win rate?
Playing the Sicilian Defense: Richter-Rauzer Variation, Neo-Modern Variation, Nyezhmetdinov Attack, White wins 39.4%, draws 27.1% and loses 33.4%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 53.0%. It rests on 2.4K rated games from Lichess.
At what rating does the Sicilian Defense: Richter-Rauzer Variation, Neo-Modern Variation, Nyezhmetdinov Attack perform best?
The Sicilian Defense: Richter-Rauzer Variation, Neo-Modern Variation, Nyezhmetdinov Attack performs best for White at 2200-2499, with an Expected Score of 53.6% (903 games) and the highest Floor of any rating with enough games to read.
Is the Sicilian Defense: Richter-Rauzer Variation, Neo-Modern Variation, Nyezhmetdinov Attack better in blitz or rapid?
For White, the Sicilian Defense: Richter-Rauzer Variation, Neo-Modern Variation, Nyezhmetdinov Attack scores about the same in both: an Expected Score of 54.2% in Blitz (1.6K games) against 53.5% in Rapid (172 games).
How sharp is the Sicilian Defense: Richter-Rauzer Variation, Neo-Modern Variation, Nyezhmetdinov Attack?
The Sicilian Defense: Richter-Rauzer Variation, Neo-Modern Variation, Nyezhmetdinov Attack has a sharpness score of 72.9 (drawish), meaning 72.9% of games end decisively. Average game length is 47 moves.
What is the Sicilian Defense: Richter-Rauzer Variation, Neo-Modern Variation, Nyezhmetdinov Attack win rate at 2000-2199?
At 2000-2199, White wins 50.7%, draws 9.4% and loses 39.9%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 55.4%. It rests on 110 Lichess games, which average 37 moves.
What is the Sicilian Defense: Richter-Rauzer Variation, Neo-Modern Variation, Nyezhmetdinov Attack win rate at 2200-2499?
At 2200-2499, White wins 50.2%, draws 6.8% and loses 43.0%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 53.6%. It rests on 903 Lichess games, which average 39 moves.
What is the Sicilian Defense: Richter-Rauzer Variation, Neo-Modern Variation, Nyezhmetdinov Attack win rate at 2500+?
At 2500+, White wins 30.9%, draws 43.3% and loses 25.9%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 52.5%. It rests on 1.3K Lichess games, which average 53 moves.
What is the Sicilian Defense: Richter-Rauzer Variation, Neo-Modern Variation, Nyezhmetdinov Attack win rate in Bullet?
In Bullet, White wins 23.9%, draws 50.9% and loses 25.2%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 49.4%. It rests on 553 Lichess games.
What is the Sicilian Defense: Richter-Rauzer Variation, Neo-Modern Variation, Nyezhmetdinov Attack win rate in Blitz?
In Blitz, White wins 45.2%, draws 18.0% and loses 36.8%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 54.2%. It rests on 1.6K Lichess games.
What is the Sicilian Defense: Richter-Rauzer Variation, Neo-Modern Variation, Nyezhmetdinov Attack win rate in Rapid?
In Rapid, White wins 34.9%, draws 37.2% and loses 28.0%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 53.5%. It rests on 172 Lichess games.
Is the Sicilian Defense: Richter-Rauzer Variation, Neo-Modern Variation, Nyezhmetdinov Attack a good opening?
The Sicilian Defense: Richter-Rauzer Variation, Neo-Modern Variation, Nyezhmetdinov Attack is about level. Across all ratings, White wins 39.4% of its games and loses 33.4%. It performs best at 2200-2499. Your results depend on your rating, time control, and how well you know the typical plans.