The Old Indian Defense is a chess opening defined by the moves:
- 1. d4 Nf6
- 2. c4 d6
This opening is distinguished from the King's Indian Defense by Black developing his king's bishop on e7 rather than the fianchetto at g7. Mikhail Chigorin pioneered this defence late in his career.
The Old Indian is considered sound, though developing the bishop at e7 is less active than the fianchetto, and it has never attained the popularity of the King's Indian. Some King's Indian players will use the Old Indian to avoid certain anti-King's Indian systems, such as the Sämisch and Averbakh variations.
The opening is classified in the Encyclopaedia of Chess Openings (ECO) with the codes A53–A55.
Read more about Old Indian Defense: Main Line, Janowski Variation
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