Nimzo-Indian Defence: Ideas, Plans and Main Lines

Few openings have such a clean idea. After 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3, Black pins the knight with 3...Bb4 and asks White an awkward question from move four: what are you going to do about the e4 square, and about your structure?

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Bb4

Aron Nimzowitsch, one of the great theorists of chess, turned it into a system, and for a century it has been one of the most respected defences against 1.d4 at the top. Its appeal for club players is different: it is flexible. Black can choose the type of position after seeing what White has done.

The idea in one sentence

Black controls e4 with pieces rather than pawns, and is willing to exchange the bishop for the c3 knight if that leaves White with doubled pawns. The game is usually a fight between White's bishop pair and the damaged structure that comes with it.

What each side wants

Black:

• Control e4 with ...Bb4 and ...Nf6, and sometimes with ...b6 and ...Bb7.
• Capture on c3 when it damages White's structure, then attack the doubled pawns with ...c5, ...Na5 or ...Ba6.
• Keep the position closed while White has both bishops: bishops thrive in open positions.

White:

• Avoid doubled pawns, with 4.Qc2 or 4.Bd2, or accept them in exchange for the bishop pair and the centre.
• Open the position for the bishops.
• Build the centre with e4 whenever possible.

The main lines

4.e3: the Rubinstein

Solid, flexible development: White accepts doubled pawns if, in return, development is completed and the centre is built. It is one of the most played lines, and it produces very instructive structures: the c3-d4-e3 centre, the fight for e4 and the c4 pawn as a target.

4.Qc2: the Classical or Capablanca

The queen protects the knight: if Black captures on c3, White recaptures with the queen and has no doubled pawns. It costs some time, and Black uses that time for central strikes such as ...d5 or ...c5.

4.Bd2: breaking the pin without commitments

A modern way to avoid doubled pawns: if Black exchanges on c3, the bishop recaptures. It leads to calmer positions, with less theory and plenty of manoeuvring.

The surprise lines

Besides the three main systems there are 4.a3, 4.f3, 4.Bg5, 4.g3 and other rarer alternatives, as well as Black replies off the beaten track. In a club tournament, knowing what to do against the unexpected is worth as much as knowing the main line.

Typical mistakes

• Capturing on c3 out of habit. The exchange is good when the doubled pawns can be attacked; otherwise it just hands over the bishop pair.
• Opening the position against the two bishops. As Black, keep the centre closed while White has both bishops.
• As White, defending the doubled pawns passively. White's compensation is activity; sitting back means accepting the bad half of the deal.
• Forgetting about e4. It is the square the whole opening revolves around.

Who is the Nimzo-Indian for?

For players who want a defence against 1.d4 that is both solid and ambitious. It is not an opening of traps or memory: it is an opening of ideas, and that is why it teaches so much chess. It pairs very well with the Queen's Indian Defence, for when White avoids 3.Nc3, and with a solid defence against 1.e4 such as the French.

If you prefer something more aggressive against 1.d4, the King's Indian and the Grünfeld are the fighting alternatives.

How to study it

First, the exchange on c3: when it works and when it does not. Then the structures of each system, and only then the theory. Almost everything in the Nimzo-Indian can be reasoned out once the balance between bishops and structure is clear.

The course Nimzo-Indian Defence: Classical variations, Capablanca and surprise lines, with grandmasters Andrés Rodríguez Vila and Diego Flores, devotes two lessons to 4.e3, two to the Capablanca Variation, one to the modern 4.Bd2 and one to the surprise lines, with their structures, typical plans and tactical resources.