Old Indian Defense (1… d6 2. c4)
1. d4 d6 2. c4
The Old Indian Defense is a chess opening classified as ECO A41, reached after 1. d4 d6 2. c4. Black is to move. 1 named line continues from this position.
In 12.6 million rated Lichess games (blitz and slower), this position was reached 33,355 times by this move order. White won 49%, 5% were drawn and Black won 46%. The most popular continuation is 2… Nf6 (36% of games).
Engine evaluation: +0.21 (Stockfish, depth 54; best line 2… e5 3. e3 g6 4. Nc3 Nf6 5. Nf3)
- ECO
- A41
- Moves
- 3 plies
- FEN
rnbqkbnr/ppp1pppp/3p4/8/2PP4/8/PP2PPPP/RNBQKBNR b KQkq - 0 2- PGN
1. d4 d6 2. c4
Analyse with Stockfish · Board image (SVG) · Open on Lichess
Results by rating
| Average rating | Games | White / draw / Black |
|---|---|---|
| 0-1499 | 7,973 | |
| 1500-1999 | 18,584 | |
| 2000+ | 6,798 | |
| All | 33,355 |
Most played moves
| Move | Games | White / draw / Black |
|---|---|---|
| 2… Nf6 | 11,983 (36%) | |
| 2… e5 English Rat | 4,506 (14%) | |
| 2… g6 | 4,501 (13%) | |
| 2… c6 | 3,382 (10%) | |
| 2… e6 | 2,478 (7%) | |
| 2… Nd7 | 2,270 (7%) | |
| 2… Nc6 | 681 (2%) | |
| 2… c5 | 679 (2%) |
Master games
3,187 over-the-board games are classified under this line (White 43%, draw 17%, Black 40%). The strongest:
- Igel3.0.5 (3512) – StoofvleesII a18 (3532) 1/2-1/2 · TCEC 21 Premier 2021 · 2021-07-09
- StoofvleesII a18 (3532) – Igel3.0.5 (3512) 1-0 · TCEC 21 Premier 2021 · 2021-07-06
- GM Magnus Carlsen (2835) – GM Hikaru Nakamura (2787) 0-1 · Bullet Chess Winners 2023 · 2023-07-21
- GM Quang Liem Le (2726) – GM Vasyl Ivanchuk (2729) 1-0 · 8th Danzhou Super GM 2017 · 2017-07-16
- GM Andrew Tang (2538) – GM Magnus Carlsen (2862) 0-1 · Carlsen-Tang Bullet 2021 · 2021-02-22
Search all games of the Old Indian Defense and its sub-variations
Highest-rated Lichess games
- Dmiktor (2789) – kuhmft (2837) 0-1 · 2026-09-06 · 180 + 0s
- GM Elfugitivo (2770) – IM hyperreal (2663) 1/2-1/2 · 2026-09-03 · 180 + 0s
- NameTheGame (2706) – lestri (2653) 0-1 · 2026-09-03 · 180 + 0s
Comes from
Queen's Pawn Game (1. d4 d6) 1. d4 d6
Continuations
- Rat Defense: English Rat A41 · 1. d4 d6 2. c4 e5
More Old Indian Defense lines (all)
- Old Indian Defense (2. c4 d6) A53
- Old Indian Defense: Aged Gibbon Gambit A53
- Old Indian Defense: Czech Variation, with Nc3 A53
- Old Indian Defense: Czech Variation, with Nf3 A53
- Old Indian Defense: Janowski Variation A53
- Old Indian Defense: Janowski Variation, Fianchetto Variation A53
- Old Indian Defense: Janowski Variation, Grinberg Gambit A53
- Old Indian Defense: Janowski Variation, Main Line A53
- Old Indian Defense: Duz-Khotimirsky Variation A54
- Old Indian Defense: Tartakower-Indian A54
- Old Indian Defense: Two Knights Variation A54
- Old Indian Defense: Ukrainian Variation A54
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.