6. QID Line with the Knight Developed to a6 (...Na6)
The knight develops on the flank to support the ...c5 push without blocking the b7 bishop.
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 b6 4.g3 Bb7 5.Bg2 Be7 6.O-O O-O 7.Nc3 Na6 8.b3 c5
Move by move
- 1.d4 – White occupies the center with the d-pawn, protected by the queen, and frees the c1 bishop. This is the move that starts Queen's Gambit, Catalan and Nimzo-Indian games.
- 1...Nf6 – Black develops the knight toward the center and immediately prevents 2.e4. With Nf6 Black stays flexible: he can choose between the Nimzo-Indian, Queen's Indian, King's Indian or the Queen's Gambit Declined.
- 2.c4 – White gains space on the queenside and attacks the d5 square from a distance. White now threatens Nc3 and e4 to build a big pawn center.
- 2...e6 – Black opens the diagonal for the f8 bishop and prepares both d5 and Bb4. Compared with 2...d5, Black stays elastic: he waits to see whether White plays Nc3, which allows the Nimzo-Indian.
- 3.Nf3 – White develops the kingside knight instead of Nc3 and avoids the Nimzo-Indian: without the knight on c3, ...Bb4 can't pin anything, but White controls e4 less.
- 3...b6 – The Queen's Indian Defense: Black prepares Bb7 or Ba6 to control e4 and the light squares. Without a knight on c3, ...Bb4 would have no pin.
- 4.g3 – White prepares the fianchetto to oppose Black's bishop on the long diagonal. However, the f1 bishop will no longer defend the c4 pawn.
- 4...Bb7 – The bishop goes to the long diagonal, where it will oppose the g2 bishop and control e4. It's the classical line of the Queen's Indian.
- 5.Bg2 – White completes the fianchetto: the two bishops face each other on the long diagonal. White prepares castling and Nc3.
- 5...Be7 – Black develops the bishop to e7 and prepares castling. It's the most solid choice: the bishop defends f6 and doesn't commit to ...Bb4+, which without a knight on c3 wouldn't pin anything.
- 6.O-O – White castles and puts the king safe. He now prepares Nc3 to control e4 and d5.
- 6...O-O – Black castles and completes the kingside development. The fight is now over the e4 square.
- 7.Nc3 – White develops the knight toward e4 and d5: he threatens Qc2 and e4 to take the center.
- 7...Na6 – The knight goes to a6 to reach c7, from where it supports ...d5 and ...b5, without blocking the b7 bishop. Black also prepares ...c5 with the knight controlling c5 and b4.
- 8.b3 – White develops with b3 and prepares Bb2 on the long dark diagonal. The b3 pawn also defends c4.
- 8...c5 – Black hits d4 with the c-pawn: the a6 knight supports the push and can go to c7 or b4. Black now threatens ...cxd4 to open the b7 bishop's diagonal.
How to exploit the position
Balanced, flexible position: Black has developed without weaknesses and prepares play in the center with the a6 knight.
- Bring the knight to c7 to support ...d5: Black contests the center and closes the g2 bishop's diagonal.
- With ...cxd4 Nxd4 and ...Bxg2 Kxg2 Black exchanges the bishops; then ...Qc8 and ...Qb7+ exploit the white king on the light diagonal.
- If White pushes d5, answer with ...exd5 and the knight goes to c7 to attack d5 together with the b7 bishop.
- The knight can also jump to b4 against a2 and d3, if White weakens those squares.
Master tips
The a6 knight isn't out of play
From a6 the knight goes to c7 or b4 and supports ...c5 and ...d5.