Nimzo-Indian Defense: Classical Variation, Modern Variation
1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 d5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 Ne4 7. Qc2 c5
The Nimzo-Indian Defense: Classical Variation, Modern Variation is a chess opening classified as ECO E37, reached after 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 d5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 Ne4 7. Qc2 c5. It is a line of the Nimzo-Indian Defense. White is to move.
In 12.6 million rated Lichess games (blitz and slower), this position was reached 4 times by this move order. White won 75%, 0% were drawn and Black won 25%. The most popular continuation is 8. e3 (50% of games).
Engine evaluation: +0.27 (Stockfish, depth 40; best line 8. dxc5 Nc6 9. Nf3 Qa5+ 10. Bd2 Qxc5)
- ECO
- E37
- Moves
- 14 plies
- FEN
rnbqk2r/pp3ppp/4p3/2pp4/2PPn3/P7/1PQ1PPPP/R1B1KBNR w KQkq - 0 8- PGN
1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 d5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 Ne4 7. Qc2 c5
Analyse with Stockfish · Board image (SVG) · Open on Lichess
Results by rating
| Average rating | Games | White / draw / Black |
|---|---|---|
| 1500-1999 | 1 | |
| 2000+ | 3 | |
| All | 4 |
Most played moves
| Move | Games | White / draw / Black |
|---|---|---|
| 8. e3 | 2 (50%) | |
| 8. dxc5 | 1 (25%) | |
| 8. cxd5 | 1 (25%) |
Master games
247 over-the-board games are classified under this line (White 32%, draw 47%, Black 21%). The strongest:
- GM Shakhriyar Mamedyarov (2809) – GM So, W. (2799) 1/2-1/2 · FIDE Candidates 2018 · 2018-03-14
- GM Shakhriyar Mamedyarov (2814) – GM Sergey Karjakin (2778) 1/2-1/2 · Vugar Gashimov Mem 2018 · 2018-04-21
- GM Shakhriyar Mamedyarov (2808) – GM Sergey Karjakin (2782) 1/2-1/2 · GCT Rapid YourNextMove · 2018-06-13
- GM So, W. (2757) – GM Magnus Carlsen (2832) 1/2-1/2 · CrunchLab Masters Div 1 L · 2024-07-21
- GM So, W. (2752) – GM Magnus Carlsen (2830) 1/2-1/2 · CCT Final KO 2023 · 2023-12-16
Highest-rated Lichess games
- Capablanca86 (2144) – SidneyS (2178) 1-0 · 2026-09-05 · 180 + 0s
- ImplicitVal (2108) – marco11111 (2116) 1-0 · 2026-09-01 · 180 + 2s
- Mameloshn (2044) – KSN01 (2036) 0-1 · 2026-09-01 · 1800 + 0s
Comes from
Nimzo-Indian Defense: Classical Variation, Noa Variation (6… Ne4 7. Qc2) 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 d5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 Ne4 7. Qc2
More Nimzo-Indian Defense lines (all)
- Nimzo-Indian Defense (3. Nc3 Bb4) E20
- Nimzo-Indian Defense: Dilworth Gambit E20
- Nimzo-Indian Defense: Kmoch Variation E20
- Nimzo-Indian Defense: Mikenas Attack E20
- Nimzo-Indian Defense: Romanishin Variation (3… Bb4 4. g3) E20
- Nimzo-Indian Defense: Romanishin Variation (5… O-O 6. Bg2) E20
- Nimzo-Indian Defense: Romanishin Variation, English Hybrid E20
- Nimzo-Indian Defense: Three Knights Variation E21
- Nimzo-Indian Defense: Three Knights Variation, Euwe Variation E21
- Nimzo-Indian Defense: Three Knights Variation, Korchnoi Variation E21
- Nimzo-Indian Defense: Three Knights Variation, Shocron Gambit E21
- Nimzo-Indian Defense: Spielmann Variation E22
Opening names and moves from the Lichess openings dataset; statistics from the Lichess open database, 2026-09 (CC0), sample of 12.6 million games, bots excluded; evaluations from Lichess cloud analysis (all CC0). Master games from The Week in Chess #920–#1664 by Mark Crowther, used with permission.