Opening Overview
Nimzo-Indian Defense
98 linesAbout This Opening
Black pins the knight and immediately attacks White's central structure.
The opening usually invites White to occupy space, then challenges that center with piece pressure, pawn breaks, and flexible development.
In practice, the key is to know when to strike at the center and when to keep pieces flexible, because the wrong timing can leave the position passive.
Key ideas
- Typical theme: pressure on the center rather than immediate occupation.
- Common plans include fianchetto setups and timely pawn breaks.
- Best for players who like asymmetry and counterplay.
- Study the transition from setup to active central challenge.
Choose a variation
Nimzo-Indian Defense: St. Petersburg Variation, Romanishin-Psakhis Variation
1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e3 b6 5. Ne2 c5 6. a3 Ba5
Nimzo-Indian Defense: St. Petersburg Variation, Fischer Variation
1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e3 b6 5. Ne2 Ba6
Nimzo-Indian Defense: Normal Variation
1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e3 O-O
Nimzo-Indian Defense: Reshevsky Variation
1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e3 O-O 5. Ne2
Nimzo-Indian Defense: Simagin Variation
1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e3 O-O 5. Ne2 d5 6. a3 Bd6
Nimzo-Indian Defense: Normal Variation
1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e3 O-O 5. Bd3
Nimzo-Indian Defense: Normal Variation, Classical Defense
1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e3 O-O 5. Bd3 d5
Nimzo-Indian Defense: Ragozin Defense
1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e3 O-O 5. Bd3 d5 6. Nf3 Nc6 7. O-O
Nimzo-Indian Defense: Normal Variation, Botvinnik System
1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e3 O-O 5. Bd3 d5 6. a3 Bxc3+ 7. bxc3
Nimzo-Indian Defense
1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e3 O-O 5. Nf3
Nimzo-Indian Defense: Normal Variation, Ragozin Variation
1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e3 O-O 5. Nf3 d5
Nimzo-Indian Defense: Normal Variation, Sämisch Deferred
1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e3 O-O 5. Nf3 d5 6. a3