Benoni Defense: Zilbermints-Benoni Gambit (1… c5 2. b4)
1. d4 c5 2. b4
The Benoni Defense: Zilbermints-Benoni Gambit is a chess opening classified as ECO A43, reached after 1. d4 c5 2. b4. It is a line of the Benoni Defense. Black is to move.
In 12.6 million rated Lichess games (blitz and slower), this position was reached 5 times by this move order. White won 60%, 0% were drawn and Black won 40%. The most popular continuation is 2… cxd4 (60% of games).
Engine evaluation: −0.55 (Stockfish, depth 44; best line 2… cxd4 3. Qxd4 Nf6 4. Nf3 e6 5. a3)
- ECO
- A43
- Moves
- 3 plies
- FEN
rnbqkbnr/pp1ppppp/8/2p5/1P1P4/8/P1P1PPPP/RNBQKBNR b KQkq - 0 2- PGN
1. d4 c5 2. b4
Analyse with Stockfish · Board image (SVG) · Open on Lichess
Results by rating
| Average rating | Games | White / draw / Black |
|---|---|---|
| 0-1499 | 3 | |
| 1500-1999 | 1 | |
| 2000+ | 1 | |
| All | 5 |
Most played moves
| Move | Games | White / draw / Black |
|---|---|---|
| 2… cxd4 | 3 (60%) | |
| 2… cxb4 | 1 (20%) | |
| 2… e6 | 1 (20%) |
Master games
1 over-the-board game is classified under this line (White 0%, draw 0%, Black 100%). The strongest:
- IM Shamil Arslanov (2410) – GM Alvar Alonso Rosell (2536) 0-1 · Titled Tue 1st Jul Early · 2025-07-01
Search all games of the Benoni Defense: Zilbermints-Benoni Gambit and its sub-variations
Highest-rated Lichess games
- aizapps (2132) – ken_sallings (2119) 0-1 · 2026-09-02 · 180 + 0s
- Phylotropic (1810) – that_guys_cool1 (1822) 1-0 · 2026-09-06 · 180 + 0s
- hemrys (1425) – MavredakisG (1388) 0-1 · 2026-09-01 · 300 + 3s
Comes from
More Benoni Defense lines (all)
- Benoni Defense: Franco-Sicilian Hybrid A40
- Benoni Defense: Benoni Gambit Accepted A43
- Benoni Defense: Benoni Gambit, Schlenker Defense A43
- Benoni Defense: Benoni-Indian Defense A43
- Benoni Defense: Benoni-Indian Defense, Kingside Move Order A43
- Benoni Defense: Benoni-Staunton Gambit A43
- Benoni Defense: Cormorant Gambit A43
- Benoni Defense: French Benoni A43
- Benoni Defense: Hawk Variation A43
- Benoni Defense: Old Benoni (1… c5 2. d5) A43
- Benoni Defense: Old Benoni (2. d5 d6) A43
- Benoni Defense: Old Benoni, Mujannah Formation A43
Opening names and moves from the Lichess openings dataset; statistics from the Lichess open database, 2026-09 (CC0), sample of 12.6 million games, bots excluded; evaluations from Lichess cloud analysis (all CC0). Master games from The Week in Chess #920–#1664 by Mark Crowther, used with permission.