Robert Ris' Fast and Furious: Gukesh handles the Nimzo-Indian masterfully

by Robert Ris
7/6/2025 – In his new Fast & Furious show, Robert Ris goes over an impressive victory by reigning world champion Gukesh Dommaraju, who punished Nodirbek Abdusattorov's risky pawn grabbing out of a Nimzo-Indian Defence. | Fast & Furious is available on-demand with a ChessBase Premium Account. You can register a Premium account here.
This video course offers you a complete, clear repertoire for Black against the moves 1.Nf3 and 1.c4. The recommended variations are easy to learn and not difficult to remember, but also pose White serious challenges.

The reigning world champion Gukesh Dommaraju was on fire in the rapid section of the SuperUnited tournament in Zagreb, Croatia. After suffering a loss in the first round, he managed to win five (!) consecutive games in very impressive style.

His most impressive game was played in the fourth round, as he totally demolished Nodirbek Abdusattorov in only 27 moves with the black pieces. Typically, in the Classical Variation of the Nimzo-Indian, after trading off the dark-squared bishop for the knight, Black attempted to take advantage of his small lead in development.

White's pawn grabbing with 16.Qxc5? was certainly too risky, but at that point Black had already a very comfortable position. Soon, White regretted his decision, as his king stayed in the centre till the very end of the game. A true model game for any Nimzo player!

Exercise: Black to play. Both sides missed the key move here for Black. 

N. Abdusattorov - Gukesh, Zagreb 2025
Black to play

Feel free to move the pieces on the live diagram!

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Topics: Fast and Furious
Robert is an International Master who mostly spends his time training and coaching talented youngsters. On the PlayChess server The Fast and the Furious is a popular show where he explains sharp opening lines for a wider audience. He is also a well-known ChessBase author who produced numerous DVDs and regularly contributes to ChessBase Magazine as well. Since 2015 he is the organizer of the Dutch Rapid Championships in his home town Amstelveen. He has started a YouTube channel with chess analysis as well.
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6/29/2025 – In his new Fast & Furious show, Robert Ris takes a look at a candidate for the "Game of the Year" 2025: Richard Rapport's creative attacking win against Praggnanandhaa at the UzChess Cup in Tashkent. | Fast & Furious is available on-demand with a ChessBase Premium Account. You can <a href="https://account.chessbase.com/en/create-account" target="_blank">register a Premium account here</a>.
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Robert Ris' Fast and Furious: A quick win with the Pirc

6/21/2025 – In his new Fast & Furious show, Robert Ris takes a look at the game Nodirbek Yakubboev vs Arjun Erigaisi from the UzChess Cup Masters in Tashkent. In the first round of the tournament Erigaisi decided to try the Pirc Defence against Yakubboev and was rewarded with a surprisingly quick and easy win. | Fast & Furious is available on-demand with a ChessBase Premium Account. You can <a href="https://account.chessbase.com/en/create-account" target="_blank">register a Premium account here</a>.

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60m English The Austrian Attack

What to do against the Pirc? Many players find it difficult to play against Black’s set-up. Try the Austrian Attack! It is a solid but dangerous weapon and guarantees White an effective attack from the very start! Learn the key tricks of this deadly line and crush the Pirc with ease!

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arzi arzi 7/11/2025 01:29
Almost anything can be fixed with a powerful enough engine, but unfortunately the engine cannot and should not be used during the game unless you play email chess.
thirteen thirteen 7/8/2025 06:44
Mr Ris. You say you 'used to' play the Caro Kann, but got stuck with all the g4 sacrificing attacks? Well, just maybe you should check them again, with a powerful enough engine.
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