Nimzowitsch Defence 1.

e4 Nc6

<< < (5/14) > >>

16thompsong:
@Munich: Are you sure that this is solid enough for use as someone's main defense against 1.e4? All I've ever heard is that it's gimmicky, and not equalizing for
Black. I would love to learn this and use it, but I'm skeptical. For one, MCO doesn't take too kindly to the Nimzowitsch. Also, I have played against it, and won
effortlessly (Which I attribute to the caliber of opponent I was playing).

And, finally, I wonder about your assessment of the Chigorin. After your third move main line, the only difference is that White has a e-pawn and not a c-pawn.
Granted, this is more helpful for White. But what I see is that Black doesn't need a kingside attack. He can normally manage with restrictive play on White's
center.

munich:
16thompsong:
There is one critical line in the Nimzowitsch Defense:
1.e4 Nc6 2.Nf3 .... after which blacks best move is 2...e5, going back (with different move order) into very common waters.
Because 1.e4 Nc6 2.Nf3 2...d5 can be refuted.

However, even in the "refutation line", black is not worse than 0.5 - 0.6 pu. However, this "refutation" is others openings "normal", such as the kings indian, the
Pirc, the scandinavian center counter, and the Aljechin Defense.
To be honest, I dont think the program evaluation in the kings indian is "fair", even though white scores indeed pretty well against normal king indian set ups.
More of concern is the Pirc, the scandinavian, and the Aljechin, where a 0.5 pu disadvantage is normal, too, but I believe they are indeed inferior.
And the Nimzowitsch Defense has this 0.5 pu disadvantage, too, and in the case of the refutation line, black has deserved this 0.5 disadvantage evaluation. Like
the other bad openings (he Pirc, the scandinavian, and the Aljechin) the Nimzowitsch defense is not hopeless, though, and definitely not lost.

I can understand that the Pirc, the scandinavian center counter and the Nimzowitsch Defense are hardly seen at Super GM level.

Luckily, the refutation of the Nimzowitsch defense is not very known, and it is also not straight forward logical. So if white does not know about it, he wont find
it OTB.
That is why black scores even in the Refutation line more wins than white does, unless white knows how to refute it.

munich:
However, in most lines that are practically played, the Nimzowitsch Defense is not only sound, it is even difficult for white to equalize!

What are the most commonly played lines?

Create PDF in your applications with the Pdfcrowd HTML to PDF API PDFCROWD
I'd say these lines I see very often (I give guesstimated, felt percentages):
a) (most popular line, my guesstimate is this happens 30% of the time)

( ) vs ( )
Date:
Event:
Site:
Round:
Result:

new PgnViewer({highlightFromTo:true,showCoordinates:true,autoScrollMoves : true, squareColorClass : '-lightgrey',boardName:'41137-360',pgnDiv:'41137-

360-pgn'});1.e4 Nc6 2.d4 d5 3.exd5 Qxd5 {Rybka gives white a slight advantage here. However, dont get fooled! Following Rybka's best white moves, the eval
of white drops until black is better. The statistics say, that black has the better chances to win.} 4.Nf3 Bg4 5.Be2 {and what Rybka misses is, that white cant get
rid of the Bg4 bishop with h2-h3, because first the rook h1 is hanging, and after castling, black sacrifices the bishop (h3xBg4 is answered with Nf6xg4, and then
black works on getting rid of the Nf3, in order to check mate on h2. Very difficult to see for Rybka that far ahead, but when the sac happens, the eval is usually
better for black.}

b1) (very popular line, it happens 20% to me)

( ) vs ( )
Date:
Event:
Site:
Round:
Result:

new PgnViewer({highlightFromTo:true,showCoordinates:true,autoScrollMoves : true, squareColorClass : '-lightgrey',boardName:'41137-2220',pgnDiv:'41137-

2220-pgn'});1.e4 Nc6 2.d4 d5 3.e5 f6 4.f4 Nh6 5.Nf3 Bf5 {Rybka gives black an 0.3 advantage here!} 6.c3 ({or} 6.Bd3 e6 7.c3) 6...e6 7.Bd3 Be4! 8.O-O f5
{not bad for a "french" Bishop, isnt it? You could not wish for a better "bad" bishop for black, could you?}

Create PDF in your applications with the Pdfcrowd HTML to PDF API PDFCROWD
b2) (happens in 5-10% of all cases)

( ) vs ( )
Date:
Event:
Site:
Round:
Result:

new PgnViewer({highlightFromTo:true,showCoordinates:true,autoScrollMoves : true, squareColorClass : '-lightgrey',boardName:'41137-3709',pgnDiv:'41137-

3709-pgn'});1.e4 Nc6 2.d4 d5 3.e5 f6 4.exf6 Nxf6 5.Nf3 Bg4 6.Be2 e6 7.O-O Bd6 {black has a little lead in development. When he castles ...O-O, then the rook
on f8 is already developed, too, whereas the Rf1 needs to go to e1 to be activated. This lead in development gives Black the initiative. He has a pawn majority
in the center, and to get e6-e5 going has never been a problem for me so far. Rybka gives it 0.00 after long thinking. I am not sure I agree with Rybka, even
though it is above 3000 elo. My argument: It will be difficult to find people who like the white position more (if you present them the final diagram), so I
wonder why I get it then so often?!}

b3) (happens in 5% of all cases)

( ) vs ( )
Date:
Event:
Site:
Round:
Result:

new PgnViewer({highlightFromTo:true,showCoordinates:true,autoScrollMoves : true, squareColorClass : '-lightgrey',boardName:'41137-5577',pgnDiv:'41137-

5577-pgn'});1.e4 Nc6 2.d4 d5 3.e5 f6 4.Bd3 g6 {and now it usually goes often that way:} 5.exf6 Nxf6 {the difference to the "b2" line is, that the bishop on g7 is
less well placed than on d6. The move g7-g6 was costing black a move, and his lead in development is mostly gone (he is still a move ahead, though). That is
why the eval drops to about equal for both sides, with white being a little bit "more equal than black". I still do well here, and like blacks position more than

Create PDF in your applications with the Pdfcrowd HTML to PDF API PDFCROWD
white's.}

c1) (happens in 25% of all cases and is actually the "refutation line".)

( ) vs ( )
Date:
Event:
Site:
Round:
Result:

new PgnViewer({highlightFromTo:true,showCoordinates:true,autoScrollMoves : true, squareColorClass : '-lightgrey',boardName:'41137-7342',pgnDiv:'41137-

7342-pgn'});1.e4 Nc6 2.Nf3! d5 3.exd5 Qxd5 {and now I divide into "white knows" (3% of my games) and "white does not know" (22%)} 4.Nc3 Qa5 ({in Blitz
games I am so audacious to play "hope chess" and do} 4...Qh5? {often transposing to the "a" line after 5.Be2?, but my queens-move is bad because of} 5.Nb5!
Kd8 {black stands really bad, so 4...Qh5? is not possible if it isnt a Blitz game. Seriously, I did my queens move maybe 10 times so far (Blitz games only), and
NEVER got punished with Nb5! but see the reflex move 5.Be2? instead.}) 5.d4 {this move is the choice of the "does not know group". Black is fine here.}

c2) (and here stood my analysis of: how the Nimzowitsch gets beaten up badly, and thus the Nimzowitsch Defense is "bad". I deleted it, because I seem to be
the only one who has it analysed in depth, and so this could become the only source of how to play against the Nimzowitsch Defense as white. See the follow
up comment of 16thompsong. Theory is very thin covered. I dont want to sink my own ship, so I deleted whites best moves. All I say is, that white's move
2.Nf3! is by far not enough to prove anything, and that it requires a lot of precise moves up to move number 9 for white, after which he "only" has a 0.5 pu
advantage. That is happening all the time in other black openings, too, such as the KID for instance. If 0.5 pu advantage is not really a "refutation", then there
simply does no refutation exist.
Do your own research if you doubt that!)

Just in case I meet one day somebody, who did do research in great detail and found the 0.5 pu advantage line for white: I am "only" standing passive. I have no
weakness, I know this line very well, I might find my way out of the misery and I have chances to reach the draw. Imagine, I did the moves till move 15 within
10 minutes, while he used up 50 minutes. Maybe it helps me for drawing this 10 moves later? Well, I agree, these thoughts and arguments are cheap excuses,
and they become very poor excuses when I am playing against a master. But at club level, the Nimzowitsch Defense is practically a good choice. Dont show the
refutation line in your club if you intend to play the Defense. I believe I can play it at my expert level, too. I dont think the Nimzowitsch Defense is suitable for
GM level, though.

Create PDF in your applications with the Pdfcrowd HTML to PDF API PDFCROWD
Edit: I deleted the "refutation line" because I have seen it nowhere else. People only say 2.Nf3! is the refutation, and it is common knowledge that the
Nimzowitsch Defense is "bad". But where is the analysis to this? Am I the first who gives it?
Probably not, but those who found the refutation kept it secret. It could be found in home preparation, but because there are lots of variations to be learned, one
might miss to look at my special line (starting at move 8), too, and all advantage is gone if white does not find the refutation here, too. I doubt a normal mortal
(even a GM) can find it OTB. But it is possible to prepare s.th. at home with the help of a program if my opponent expects me to play the Nimzowitsch Defense.
Because at GM level (if I ever reach that level!) they certainly look my games up, and thus in this case the Nimzowitsch Defense is not playable anymore, other
than an occasional surprise weapon. Or: I find a refutation to my refutation line.

16thompsong:
I decided to look in MCO 15 ed., and surprise, surprise! It doesn't even consider the move 2...d5! It gives 2...d6, and a note on that Black can go back into the
Open games with 2...e5.

munich:
@16thompsong: I have the impression that there is more about the "Halloween Gambit" then there is about the Nimzowitsch Defense!

In wikipedia I read a quote:

Quote

World Champion Garry Kasparov and Grandmaster Raymond Keene wrote that it "has never been fully accepted as a dependable opening. Nevertheless it is
sound and offers the maverick spirit a great deal of foreign territory to explore."

"Nevertheless it is sound", and as I remember Garry he usually is not so kindly to openings.

The Nimzowitsch Defense helped me in winning many games in less than 20 moves. Such an innocent looking move. But then again, I should know better:
1.Nf3 is an innocent looking move, too, and leads to very sharp positions (In case of the Reti of course favorable for white).

Both openings offer often enough a lead in development, and to exploit this lead it is only logical to open up the game for tactics, which lead to these sharp
positions.

Here a nice Blitz game, which ended after move 15 against a formidable opponent:

( ) vs ( )
Date:
Event:
Site:
Round:
Result:
Create PDF in your applications with the Pdfcrowd HTML to PDF API PDFCROWD
new PgnViewer({highlightFromTo:true,showCoordinates:true,autoScrollMoves : true, squareColorClass : '-lightgrey',boardName:'41241-1160',pgnDiv:'41241-
1160-pgn'});[Event "Live Chess"] [Site "Chess.com"] [Date "2013.11.04"] [White "Laverda750SFC"] [Black "Munich"] [Result "0-1"] [WhiteElo "1745"]
[BlackElo "1747"] [TimeControl "5|2"] [Termination "Munich won by resignation"] 1.e4 Nc6 2.d4 d5 3.exd5 Qxd5 4.Nf3 Bg4 5.Be3 {when white places his
bishop here, I often try to exploit this position by shifting my queen to a5 instead of h5} 5...Nf6 (5...Bxf3 {causing a double pawn is probably playable, too, but
white has the pair of bishops in a pretty open position. I wasnt sure, and think that I dont need to go into this and keep a little advantage anyway. And yes, I
think black is already in a slightly better position here!}) 6.c4 {For your insight: that is usually the plan of white when he plays Be3: guarding d4 for the
moment and then to follow up with c4. Otherwise, white plays Nc3 imediatly if he does not intend to play c2-c4.} 6...Qa5+ {but the diagonal is weakened with
Be3 and c4, and thus this is only logical. However, if white would withdraw his bishop to Be3-d2, then I would shift the queen over to h5} 7.Nc3 (7.Bd2 Qh5)
7...O-O-O 8.Be2 (8.Bd2 {is not possible here, me thinks, because the d4 pawn would fall, and I dont see a good discovery for white here.}) 8...e5 {this move
makes a later Queen shift to h5 impossible. That is why I play it pretty late in these cases where I have my queen placed on a5. But I need to act, black has a
lead in development, and the white king is still in the middle!} 9.d5 Bb4 {note that black has a lead in development here, so it makes me not wonder, that the
tactical following intermezzo are likely favorable for black. In such a case (lead in development) I trust my position and play light heartened and optimistically.
It is difficult to "see it all" in a Blitz game}10.Qb3 Bxf3 11.gxf3 Nd4 12.Qd1 Bxc3+ 13.bxc3 Qxc3+ 14.Kf1 Nxe2 15.Kxe2 Qxc4+ 0-1{white's position is
hopeless, and he is many pawns down, so white's resignation is understandable here}

Navigation

[0] Message Index

[#] Next page

[*] Previous page

Create PDF in your applications with the Pdfcrowd HTML to PDF API PDFCROWD