Chess Explained the Nimzo Nimzo

CHESS EXPLAINED: THE NIMZO-INDIAN
Author: Reynaldo Vera
Gambit Publications (2007)
111 pages
$23.95

Reviewed by IM John Donaldson

Cuban Grandmaster Reynaldo Vera's second book for Gambit Publications, CHESS EXPLAINED: THE NIMZO-INDIAN, follows the usual format for this series with 26 well annotated model games that are current (almost all are 2006-2007) and feature strong players.

The material is weighted as follows:

4.f3 and 4.a3 (games 1-3 plus game 12 which transposes to the Samisch)
4.Qc2 (games 4-11)
4.e3 (games 12-20)
4.g3 and 4.Nf3 c5 5.g3 (games 21-23)
4.Bg5 (games 24-25)
4.Qb3 (game 26)

It's important to realize that while this book is written for both sides, the emphasis is on Black. It is quite possible to construct a Nimzo opening repertoire using only this book, but not for White. For example, while White's major weapons 4.Qc2 (30 pages) and 4.e3 (35 pages) make up more than half the book, the former only examines the variations that modern opening theory considers most important 4...d5 and 4...0-0 and the latter doesn't cover 4...b6. Taking into account that IM David Vigorito wrote a 325-page book on just 4.Qc2 last year (CHALLENGING THE NIMZO-INDIAN) you get some idea of the sort of space constraints Vera had to deal with, but there is some real gold here.

In game two he highlights an effective answer to 4.f3 that was missed by GM Yakovich in his book PLAY THE 4.f3 NIMZO-INDIAN (Gambit 2004). After 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Bb4 4.f3 Nc6 5.e4 (5.a3 may be better, transposing to a Samisch) 5...d5 6.cxd5 exd5 7.e5 Ng8 8.f4 Nh6 9.Be2 Nf5! was played by Peter Heine Nielsen against Tiger Hillarp Persson in the Danish League in 2001/2002. This was a sizeable improvement over Tiviakov's suggestion of 9...Bg4 and after 10.Nf3 Ba5! Black was starting to gang up on the d4 pawn.

Games 17-19 are devoted to what was once called the Parma variation -- 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Bb4 4.e3 0-0 5.Bd3 d5 6.Nf3 c5 7.0-0 dxc4 8.Bxc4 Nbd7. Now 9.Qe2 b6 10.d5 was the start of the long main lines several decades ago but the modern treatment is much different. In game 19 we see 9.a3 Ba5 10.Qe2 cxd4! 11.exd4 Bxc3 12.bxc3 Qc7! (exclamation marks by Vera) . Black has transposed in to the old Karpov line 8...cxd4 9.exd4 b6 but without allowing the aggressive 10.Ne5 Bb7 11.Bg5. He will finish development with ...b6, ...Bb7, ...Rac8 and ...Rfe8 with a very harmonious position. That White's pawn stands on a3 and not a2, taking away Ba3 and standing a little more exposed, is a small plus for Black as well. As Vera points out, White doesn't have a good waiting move that preserves his options after 9...Ba5, which may be why interest has shifted to 9.Qb3.

CHESS EXPLAINED: THE NIMZO-INDIAN is recommended for players 1800 on up who play either side of the Nimzo.

Click to buy (or get more information about) CHESS EXPLAINED: THE NIMZO-INDIAN

Also by Reynaldo Vera: CHESS EXPLAINED: THE MERAN SEMI-SLAV

Other CHESS EXPLAINED titles:

CHESS EXPLAINED: MODERN BENONI

CHESS EXPLAINED: QUEEN'S GAMBIT DECLINED

CHESS EXPLAINED: THE c3 SICILIAN

CHESS EXPLAINED: THE CLASSICAL SICILIAN

CHESS EXPLAINED: THE ENGLISH OPENING

CHESS EXPLAINED: THE FRENCH

CHESS EXPLAINED: THE QUEEN'S INDIAN

CHESS EXPLAINED: THE TAIMANOV SICILIAN