Prepare against Viswanathan Anand
GM · India · World #14 classical · FIDE ID 5000017
Our database contains 4,485 games by Viswanathan Anand, covering Apr 2003 to Aug 2026. Below you'll find Viswanathan Anand's most-played openings with White and Black, career performance record, notable wins and top events — everything you need to scout Viswanathan Anand before a game. You can open the same data in the free interactive preparation workstation, which builds a move-by-move opening tree from every game.
Ratings
| Time control | Current | Peak | Peak date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Classical | 2,739 | 2,817 | Sep 2011 |
| Rapid | 2,721 | 2,822 | Jun 2018 |
| Blitz | 2,706 | 2,832 | Dec 2018 |
Performance record
| Split | Games | Wins | Draws | Losses | Win rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 4,485 | 1,648 | 2,203 | 634 | 36.7% |
| As White | 2,330 | 1,054 | 1,018 | 258 | 45.2% |
| As Black | 2,155 | 594 | 1,185 | 376 | 27.6% |
Move-by-move preparation stats
Straight from the preparation tree built over all of Viswanathan Anand's games — the same tree the interactive prep board lets you walk to any depth. Scores are from Viswanathan Anand's side.
First moves as White (2,329 games)
| Move | Games | Share | Player score |
|---|---|---|---|
| e4 | 1,903 | 81.7% | 65.9% |
| d4 | 262 | 11.2% | 69.5% |
| Nf3 | 103 | 4.4% | 76.7% |
| c4 | 56 | 2.4% | 70.5% |
| e3 | 2 | 0.1% | 75.0% |
| b3 | 2 | 0.1% | 100.0% |
Main lines as White
- 1.e4 — 82% of White games, 65.9% score
- …e5 (40% of these games) — Anand usually continues Nf3 (63.8% score)
- …c5 (37% of these games) — Anand usually continues Nf3 (66.1% score)
- …e6 (9% of these games) — Anand usually continues d4 (70.7% score)
- 1.d4 — 11% of White games, 69.5% score
- …Nf6 (65% of these games) — Anand usually continues c4 (70.5% score)
- …d5 (27% of these games) — Anand usually continues c4 (64.9% score)
- …f5 (4% of these games) — Anand usually continues g3 (77.3% score)
As Black against 1.e4 (895 games)
| Move | Games | Share | Player score |
|---|---|---|---|
| e5 | 434 | 48.5% | 51.5% |
| c5 | 322 | 36.0% | 62.1% |
| c6 | 106 | 11.8% | 53.3% |
| e6 | 29 | 3.2% | 48.3% |
| d6 | 3 | 0.3% | 83.3% |
| d5 | 1 | 0.1% | 0.0% |
As Black against 1.d4 (845 games)
| Move | Games | Share | Player score |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nf6 | 557 | 65.9% | 56.8% |
| d5 | 269 | 31.8% | 57.2% |
| d6 | 13 | 1.5% | 57.7% |
| f5 | 4 | 0.5% | 50.0% |
| e6 | 2 | 0.2% | 50.0% |
Viswanathan Anand's chess games
All 4,485 games by Viswanathan Anand in the Chess.ceo database (Apr 2003 - Aug 2026) are free to browse, search and replay: filter by opening, opponent, event or date on the player page, or step through any game on the analysis board. Record: 1,648 wins, 2,203 draws, 634 losses.
Openings as White
| ECO | Opening | Games | W/D/L | Win rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| B90 | Sicilian: Najdorf | 220 | 98/89/33 | 44.5% |
| C88 | Ruy Lopez: Closed | 211 | 84/107/20 | 39.8% |
| B42 | Sicilian | 203 | 114/66/23 | 56.2% |
| C65 | Ruy Lopez: Berlin Defense | 166 | 39/114/13 | 23.5% |
| C42 | Petrov's Defense | 112 | 45/58/9 | 40.2% |
| C78 | Ruy Lopez: Morphy Defense | 73 | 40/27/6 | 54.8% |
| B31 | Sicilian: Rossolimo | 64 | 33/21/10 | 51.6% |
| C11 | French: Classical Variation | 60 | 33/22/5 | 55.0% |
| D37 | Indian Defense | 57 | 22/31/4 | 38.6% |
| C18 | French: Winawer Variation | 55 | 32/15/8 | 58.2% |
Openings as Black
| ECO | Opening | Games | W/D/L | Win rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| D46 | Slav Defense | 174 | 48/101/25 | 27.6% |
| E15 | Queen's Indian Defense | 123 | 40/70/13 | 32.5% |
| D37 | Indian Defense | 118 | 20/76/22 | 16.9% |
| B90 | Sicilian: Najdorf | 117 | 48/50/19 | 41.0% |
| E05 | Catalan | 90 | 23/55/12 | 25.6% |
| A29 | English Opening: Reverse Sicilian | 90 | 26/41/23 | 28.9% |
| B65 | Sicilian | 89 | 39/36/14 | 43.8% |
| C67 | Ruy Lopez: Berlin Defense | 84 | 13/55/16 | 15.5% |
| A07 | Réti Opening | 82 | 17/47/18 | 20.7% |
| A17 | English Opening | 73 | 13/44/16 | 17.8% |
Notable wins
| Date | Opponent | Elo | Event | ECO |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 2014 | Magnus Carlsen | 2,881 | Wch Rapid | D10 |
| Mar 2014 | Levon Aronian | 2,830 | Candidates Tournament | C88 |
| Dec 2014 | Fabiano Caruana | 2,829 | 6th London Classic Elite Blitz | A07 |
| Jun 1998 | Garry Kasparov | 2,825 | Chess Classics Giants | B90 |
| Aug 2016 | Maxime Vachier-Lagrave | 2,819 | 4th Sinquefield Cup | B11 |
Top events
| Event | Year | Games | Score | TPR |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Corus | 2010 | 117 | 73 | 2,807 |
| Wch Rapid | 2018 | 73 | 47.5 | 2,791 |
| Hoogovens | 1999 | 65 | 40 | 2,712 |
| Wch Blitz | 2022 | 64 | 40.5 | 2,782 |
| FIDE-Wch k.o. | 2001 | 61 | 40.5 | 2,783 |
| Leuven GCT blitz | 2018 | 54 | 27 | 2,785 |
| PCA/Intel-GP | 1995 | 52 | 30.5 | 2,734 |
| 4th World Blitz | 2009 | 42 | 28 | 2,848 |
Frequent opponents
Head-to-head records: Magnus Carlsen (144 games) · Veselin Topalov (132 games) · Vasyl Ivanchuk (132 games) · Levon Aronian (128 games) · Boris Gelfand (115 games) · Alexei Shirov (96 games) · Hikaru Nakamura (95 games) · Michael Adams (93 games)
Interactive opening tree from all 4,485 games, weak-spot detection and engine analysis.
Start preparationFrequently asked questions
Where can I find Viswanathan Anand's chess games?
4,485 games by Viswanathan Anand, from Apr 2003 to Aug 2026, are free to browse and replay move by move — no signup needed. The preparation view groups them into an opening tree showing every line Viswanathan Anand has played.
What does Viswanathan Anand play on the first move as White?
Across 2,329 games with White in our database, Viswanathan Anand opens with 1.e4 (82% of games), 1.d4 (11% of games), 1.Nf3 (4% of games). Against 1.e4 as Black, Viswanathan Anand answers 1...e5 (48% of games), 1...c5 (36% of games), 1...c6 (12% of games). Against 1.d4: 1...Nf6 (66% of games), 1...d5 (32% of games), 1...d6 (2% of games).
What openings does Viswanathan Anand play as White?
As White, Viswanathan Anand's most-played openings in our database are: Sicilian: Najdorf (220 games, 44.5% win rate); Ruy Lopez: Closed (211 games, 39.8% win rate); Sicilian (203 games, 56.2% win rate). The full breakdown of 2,330 games with White is in the table above.
What openings does Viswanathan Anand play as Black?
As Black, Viswanathan Anand most often plays: Slav Defense (174 games, 27.6% win rate); Queen's Indian Defense (123 games, 32.5% win rate); Indian Defense (118 games, 16.9% win rate). See the table above for the top ten Black openings across 2,155 games.
What is Viswanathan Anand's FIDE rating?
Viswanathan Anand is currently rated 2,739 in classical chess, 2,721 in rapid and 2,706 in blitz. Peak classical rating: 2,817 (Sep 2011).
How many games has Viswanathan Anand played?
Our database contains 4,485 games by Viswanathan Anand, covering Apr 2003 to Aug 2026. Overall record: 1,648 wins, 2,203 draws, 634 losses (36.7% win rate).
How do I prepare against Viswanathan Anand?
4,485 games by Viswanathan Anand reveal their opening repertoire, most-played lines, and the variations where they score worst — the raw material for targeted preparation. The interactive opening tree lets you walk every line to any depth.