Sicilian Defense: Scheveningen Variation, Delayed Keres Attack
16K games from Lichess · Updated January 2026
White expected score · All ratings · All speeds
55.0%
the worst score you would still get, 90% confident. At best 55.7%.
Measured over 16K games at this level and clock.
A strong choice for White at this level and clock.
Outcomes for White
Draw 7.1 · Score = win + ½ of the draws · 16K games
- Rank among the families White can choose here
- not ranked — this is a variation, not a family
- Games in this context
- 16K
- Best context
- 57.4% at 2500+ Blitz
- Worst context
- 52.1% at 1800-1999 Blitz
- Average game length
- 35 moves
- Games that end decisively
- 92.9%
- Draws
- 7.1%
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.
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: 50.0% at 0-999, 56.4% 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
- 0-999 rating, Bullet: 30.0% expected score (1 games)
- 0-999 rating, Blitz: 70.0% expected score (1 games)
- 1000-1199 rating, Bullet: 55.9% expected score (7 games)
- 1000-1199 rating, Blitz: 50.0% expected score (2 games)
- 1200-1399 rating, Bullet: 56.7% expected score (21 games)
- 1200-1399 rating, Blitz: 45.2% expected score (19 games)
- 1200-1399 rating, Rapid: 78.6% expected score (2 games)
- 1400-1599 rating, Bullet: 51.5% expected score (64 games)
- 1400-1599 rating, Blitz: 57.7% expected score (103 games)
- 1400-1599 rating, Rapid: 58.6% expected score (16 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, Bullet: 62.4% expected score (185 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, Blitz: 54.2% expected score (494 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, Rapid: 50.7% expected score (71 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, Classical: 50.0% expected score (7 games)
- 1800-1999 rating, Bullet: 47.9% expected score (437 games)
- 1800-1999 rating, Blitz: 52.1% expected score (1,666 games)
- 1800-1999 rating, Rapid: 61.3% expected score (239 games)
- 1800-1999 rating, Classical: 58.2% expected score (23 games)
- 2000-2199 rating, Bullet: 52.3% expected score (1,062 games)
- 2000-2199 rating, Blitz: 54.8% expected score (3,348 games)
- 2000-2199 rating, Rapid: 53.4% expected score (463 games)
- 2000-2199 rating, Classical: 62.3% expected score (23 games)
- 2200-2499 rating, Bullet: 55.4% expected score (1,766 games)
- 2200-2499 rating, Blitz: 57.0% expected score (3,336 games)
- 2200-2499 rating, Rapid: 61.8% expected score (283 games)
- 2200-2499 rating, Classical: 65.4% expected score (5 games)
- 2500+ rating, Bullet: 54.2% expected score (1,895 games)
- 2500+ rating, Blitz: 57.4% expected score (828 games)
- 2500+ rating, Rapid: 57.6% expected score (25 games)
Related Openings
Methodology
Across every rating and clock, the Sicilian Defense: Scheveningen Variation, Delayed Keres Attack scores 55.0% for White — we are 90% confident the real figure is between 54.4% and 55.7% — from 16K 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
- 16K+ 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: Scheveningen Variation, Delayed Keres Attack win rate?
Playing the Sicilian Defense: Scheveningen Variation, Delayed Keres Attack, White wins 51.4%, draws 7.1% and loses 41.5%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 55.0%. It rests on 16K rated games from Lichess.
At what rating does the Sicilian Defense: Scheveningen Variation, Delayed Keres Attack perform best?
The Sicilian Defense: Scheveningen Variation, Delayed Keres Attack performs best for White at 2200-2499, with an Expected Score of 56.7% (5.4K games) and the highest Floor of any rating with enough games to read.
Is the Sicilian Defense: Scheveningen Variation, Delayed Keres Attack better in blitz or rapid?
For White, the Sicilian Defense: Scheveningen Variation, Delayed Keres Attack scores higher in Rapid: an Expected Score of 55.3% in Blitz (9.8K games) against 57.4% in Rapid (1.1K games).
How sharp is the Sicilian Defense: Scheveningen Variation, Delayed Keres Attack?
The Sicilian Defense: Scheveningen Variation, Delayed Keres Attack has a sharpness score of 92.9 (decisive), meaning 92.9% of games end decisively. Average game length is 35 moves.
What is the Sicilian Defense: Scheveningen Variation, Delayed Keres Attack win rate at 1400-1599?
At 1400-1599, White wins 55.0%, draws 1.4% and loses 43.6%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 55.7%. It rests on 183 Lichess games, which average 29 moves.
What is the Sicilian Defense: Scheveningen Variation, Delayed Keres Attack win rate at 1600-1799?
At 1600-1799, White wins 54.3%, draws 3.1% and loses 42.6%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 55.9%. It rests on 757 Lichess games, which average 30 moves.
What is the Sicilian Defense: Scheveningen Variation, Delayed Keres Attack win rate at 1800-1999?
At 1800-1999, White wins 50.6%, draws 3.3% and loses 46.1%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 52.3%. It rests on 2.4K Lichess games, which average 32 moves.
What is the Sicilian Defense: Scheveningen Variation, Delayed Keres Attack win rate at 2000-2199?
At 2000-2199, White wins 52.1%, draws 4.0% and loses 43.9%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 54.1%. It rests on 4.9K Lichess games, which average 34 moves.
What is the Sicilian Defense: Scheveningen Variation, Delayed Keres Attack win rate at 2200-2499?
At 2200-2499, White wins 54.2%, draws 5.1% and loses 40.8%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 56.7%. It rests on 5.4K Lichess games, which average 36 moves.
What is the Sicilian Defense: Scheveningen Variation, Delayed Keres Attack win rate at 2500+?
At 2500+, White wins 44.4%, draws 21.6% and loses 34.0%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 55.2%. It rests on 2.7K Lichess games, which average 40 moves.
What is the Sicilian Defense: Scheveningen Variation, Delayed Keres Attack win rate in Bullet?
In Bullet, White wins 49.1%, draws 9.7% and loses 41.2%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 54.0%. It rests on 5.4K Lichess games.
What is the Sicilian Defense: Scheveningen Variation, Delayed Keres Attack win rate in Blitz?
In Blitz, White wins 52.3%, draws 5.9% and loses 41.8%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 55.3%. It rests on 9.8K Lichess games.
What is the Sicilian Defense: Scheveningen Variation, Delayed Keres Attack win rate in Rapid?
In Rapid, White wins 54.7%, draws 5.4% and loses 39.9%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 57.4%. It rests on 1.1K Lichess games.
Is the Sicilian Defense: Scheveningen Variation, Delayed Keres Attack a good opening?
The Sicilian Defense: Scheveningen Variation, Delayed Keres Attack is good for White. Across all ratings, White wins 51.4% of its games and loses 41.5%. It performs best at 2200-2499. Your results depend on your rating, time control, and how well you know the typical plans.