Download PGN of June ’24 Nimzo and Benoni games
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Nimzo-Indian: 4 f3 c5 [E20]
4 f3 c5 5 d5 b5 6 e4 0-0 7 e5 Ne8 8 f4 exd5 9 cxd5 d6 10 Nf3 c4 11 a4:
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This is one of the sharpest lines of the whole of the Nimzo-Indian, and it’s no surprise to see it as part of Arjun Erigaisi’s repertoire. 11...Nd7 is the most popular choice here, but Parham Maghsoodloo instead chose the rare 11...dxe5!? 12 fxe5 Bg4, which looks like a reasonable alternative for Black. See the notes to Erigaisi, A - Maghsoodloo, P for an update on this line.
4 f3 c5 5 d5 b5 6 e4 d6 7 Bd2 a6 8 a4 Ba5!?:
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8...bxc4 is played more often here, but we’ve seen this idea of ...Ba5 in similar positions. Retreating the bishop allows Black to meet axb5 with ...axb5. After 9 dxe6 Bxe6 10 axb5 axb5 11 cxb5:
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Black gets typical compensation for the pawn - see Barbot, P - Guichard, P for analysis.
Nimzo-Indian: 4 e3 0-0 5 Bd3 d5 6 cxd5 exd5 [E48]
4 e3 0-0 5 Bd3 d5 6 cxd5 exd5 7 Nge2 Re8 8 0-0 Bd6 9 Bd2:
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Black gets obvious counterplay after 9 f3 c5!, but in recent years White has cleverly delayed or avoided f3 in favour of Bd2 and Rc1, which makes Black’s plans less clear. A recent game between Caruana and Pragg continued 9...b6 10 Rc1 c5! 11 Ng3 Nc6!:
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Pragg’s pressuring in the centre looks logical, but Caruana found a good solution in 12 Nh5!, offering a pawn sacrifice for some initiative. See Caruana, F - Praggnanandhaa, R for details.
Nimzo-Indian: 4 e3 0-0 5 Bd2 [E46]
4 e3 0-0 5 Bd2 c5 6 a3 Bxc3 7 Bxc3 Ne4 8 Ne2 b6 9 d5 Ba6:
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Hikaru Nakamura has previously played this line as Black, so it was interesting to see how he would handle it on the other side. Against Pragg, the game continued 10 b3 b5 11 Qc2 exd5 12 cxd5 Nxc3 13 Qxc3 d6 14 Ng3 Nd7 15 Be2 Nf6 16 Qd2!:
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With 16 Qd2, White not only protects the d5-pawn but also guards against ...b4 tactics. In this complex position, chances are level, but Nakamura’s greater familiarity with the position helped him to achieve a clear advantage over the next few moves. See the notes to Nakamura, H - Praggnanandhaa, R.
Nimzo-Indian: 4 e3 b6 5 Nge2 Ba6 [E45]
4 e3 b6 5 Nge2 Ba6 6 Ng3 Bxc3+ 7 bxc3 d5 8 Qf3 0-0 9 cxd5:
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4...0-0 has been Caruana’s main choice against 4 e3, but he’s also played 4...b6 on a few occasions, and generally he hasn’t been afraid to look for new ideas in lesser played lines. In this position he unleashed 9...Bxf1! This natural move is virtually a novelty (ChessBase only has one earlier correspondence game on its database), but it’s the best option for Black. Perhaps surprised by 9...Bxf1, Nakamura responded by recapturing with 10 Kxf1, but after 10...exd5! Black was already fine. The zwischenzug 10 dxe6! is the critical response - see Nakamura, H - Caruana, F for analysis.
Bogo-Indian: 4 Bd2 c5 [E11]
4 Bd2 c5 5 g4!?>:
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This g-pawn lunge is a novelty here, and quite a promising one too (to be fair, 5 Bxb4 cxb4 6 g4!? has been seen a number of times, and a transposition with 5 g4 is more than likely). After 5...0-0 6 g5 Bxd2+?! (6...Ne4! is much better) 7 Nbxd2 Ne8 8 dxc5!:
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White already had a promising position. See Blohberger, F - Kilgus, G for analysis of this interesting idea.
Till next time, John
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