Just starting to try the Nimzo defenses. Thanks for this article.

Why not 13. b4 ... instead of 13. Qc2 ... ?

I used this plan in the following blitz game to great success.

After 10.Be1 followed by 11.Nd2 White is better.  Duchamp just played weak chess without a plan.

4...c5 putting immediate pressure on the White centre tends to be a good antidote to most weird lines in the Nimzo. It works well here too.

I play the Nimzo-Indian and my opponents often play 4Bd2. There is very little theory on the move. The Queen's Indian/Dutch response shown here seems very effective.

Instead, I have played in the center with moves like ...d5 and ...c5. White usually plays a3. After black captures on c3, white recaptures with the bishop. At this point, it looks like white has achieved his goal of winning the two bishops while keeping his pawn structure intact. However then I play ...Ne4 and am able to trade knight for bishop. So white doesn't win the two bishops after all. I usually get a fully satisfactory game this way.

4Bd2 is logical, but it just doesn't offer much for white. Black can respond in various ways and get a good game. Nevertheless, black will have to find his own way after this un-theoretical move. 4Bd2 is so common that it deserves an article.

Thanks for the article!

One can simply avoid the Nimzo with 3. Nf3 Bb4 4.Bd2 Qe7 etc.....

@mburl The pin doesn't actually hurt white's position. It opens the b-file for white's rook if he wants it, also the c3-c4-d4 pawn structure with the bishop on d3 is a very solid structure, even if the c4 pawn is taken bc Black can't hold on to that pawn effectively and white can eventually make the c4 push with his won pawn and all is good

Marcel Duchamp the inventor of conceptual art.

Nc3 than Nimzo-Indian pin 3...Bb4 much better choice,a later freed bishop could just take knight threatening.knight once in the center,just covering too many squares! to some extend,that's like making one white knight totally unfunctionally.

interesting. will note it for the future.

 

unfortunately, at my low level i dont understand why all the moves were made in that game.

nonetheless, thanks for the interesting and informative post!!

Nice article about the Nimzo-Indian!

At my simpleton level, I'm happy when white doesn't break the pin. I double the pawns and then attack them. It gives me some direction in my game. As white, I've taken to playing 3. Nf3 to avoid it.  Thanks for the article.