Nimzo-Indian Defense: Dilworth Gambit
1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e4
The Nimzo-Indian Defense: Dilworth Gambit is a chess opening classified as ECO E20, reached after 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e4. It is a line of the Nimzo-Indian Defense. Black is to move.
In 12.6 million rated Lichess games (blitz and slower), this position was reached 292 times by this move order. White won 41%, 3% were drawn and Black won 56%. The most popular continuation is 4… Nxe4 (58% of games).
Engine evaluation: −0.71 (Stockfish, depth 55; best line 4… Nxe4 5. Qc2 Nxc3 6. bxc3 Bd6 7. Bd3)
- ECO
- E20
- Moves
- 7 plies
- FEN
rnbqk2r/pppp1ppp/4pn2/8/1bPPP3/2N5/PP3PPP/R1BQKBNR b KQkq - 0 4- PGN
1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e4
Analyse with Stockfish · Board image (SVG) · Open on Lichess
Results by rating
| Average rating | Games | White / draw / Black |
|---|---|---|
| 0-1499 | 71 | |
| 1500-1999 | 180 | |
| 2000+ | 41 | |
| All | 292 |
Most played moves
| Move | Games | White / draw / Black |
|---|---|---|
| 4… Nxe4 | 169 (58%) | |
| 4… Bxc3+ | 61 (21%) | |
| 4… d5 | 19 (7%) | |
| 4… O-O | 16 (5%) | |
| 4… c5 | 12 (4%) | |
| 4… d6 | 6 (2%) | |
| 4… c6 | 2 (1%) | |
| 4… Nc6 | 2 (1%) |
Master games
13 over-the-board games are classified under this line (White 23%, draw 15%, Black 62%). The strongest:
- CM Leo Crevatin (2171) – IM Shiyam Thavandiran (2420) 0-1 · Titled Tuesday 22nd Dec · 2020-12-22
- IM Alexey Chos (2296) – CM Rachid Schrik (2198) 0-1 · Titled Tuesday 9th June · 2020-06-09
- Nicolas Cogan (2112) – FM Denis Khayrullin (2359) 1-0 · Titled Tue 30th Jul Early · 2024-07-30
- Michael Buscar (2041) – IM Adar Tarhan (2420) 1/2-1/2 · Titled Tue 9th Jan Early · 2024-01-09
- Arsal Gardezi (2106) – FM Alexandre Bouget (2282) 0-1 · Titled Tue 30th Aug Late · 2022-08-30
Search all games of the Nimzo-Indian Defense: Dilworth Gambit and its sub-variations
Highest-rated Lichess games
- Enmanuel091 (2460) – Theoldulf (2467) 1-0 · 2026-09-05 · 180 + 0s
- jim2600 (2461) – chessdax (2456) 0-1 · 2026-09-06 · 180 + 0s
- Enmanuel091 (2454) – FM eltigremzllo (2407) 0-1 · 2026-09-06 · 180 + 0s
Comes from
Nimzo-Indian Defense (3. Nc3 Bb4) 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4
More Nimzo-Indian Defense lines (all)
- 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
- Nimzo-Indian Defense: Spielmann Variation, Carlsbad Variation E23
- Nimzo-Indian Defense: Spielmann Variation, Romanovsky Gambit E23
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.