Starting from 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.Nf3 0-0 6.Be2 e5 7.0-0 Nc6, players enter the King's Indian Defense: Orthodox Variation, Aronin-Taimanov Defense — ECO E97. With 1,003,722 games on record, the patterns below come from the largest practical sample available.
History and Notable Players
It arises from the King's Indian Defense: Orthodox Variation. On the White side, Lubomir Ftacnik (83 games), Vladimir Epishin (72 games), Ivan Farago (69 games) top the database. Notable Black exponents: Wolfgang Uhlmann (81 games), Mark L Hebden (71 games), Friso Nijboer (67 games).
Performance Across Rating Levels
The picture changes a lot as you climb the rating ladder. The 1200 bracket has 4,320 games (0.00% of all games at that level); White wins 49.4%, Black 46.8%, 3.8% are drawn. By 1800, popularity is 0.02% and White's score is 50.1% to Black's 45.4%. At 2500, 0.25% of games go into this opening; draws sit at 8.3% — the line is well-mapped at this level.
Time Control Patterns
Time control matters here: blitz players reach for this opening more than others. In bullet, it appears in 0.01% of games (397,754); White wins 51.4%. Blitz shows 0.03% adoption across 910,496 games, White scoring 51.4%. In rapid, the share rises to 0.01% — 91,662 games, White 50.7%.
Move Diversity and Theory Depth
Move choice is far from uniform in the King's Indian Defense: Orthodox Variation, Aronin-Taimanov Defense. At 1200 Elo, the top reply is d5, played 77.2% of the time. There are 3 other moves seeing meaningful share, and 95.3% of games stick to established theory. Entropy: 1.19. By 2500, d5 dominates at 87.1% of replies; only 3 viable alternatives remain and 99.8% of moves are theory. Entropy drops to 0.70.
Historical Trends
Long-term, the trajectory of this opening is informative. Adoption peaked in 2018 at 0.03% (62,650 games). By 2025 it sits at 0.02% — a 7% shift overall, leaving the line flat.
Main Lines and Variations
After 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.Nf3 0-0 6.Be2 e5 7.0-0 Nc6, the established follow-ups are:
Each branch leads to a different middlegame character — the resulting pawn structure decides what kind of game you get.
Common Mistakes
- Drifting away from main theory — At 400 Elo, theory adherence sits at 90.6% — versus 97.4% at 2000. The most popular deviation is dxe5 (played 19.2% of the time at 400, much less so up top). It looks fine but quietly hands the better-prepared side an edge.
- Neglecting development — Extra pawn moves in the opening are tempting, especially when you "know the moves". Developing a piece each turn is the simple correction.
- Letting White own the centre — Hypermodern openings concede central space on purpose, but only if you strike back in time. Delay the counter-blow and you end up squeezed.
Practice on Chessiverse
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