kylemeister wrote on 02/06/09 at 23:24:00:


They don't. But it's (in my opinion) more effective than 3.Nc3 e5 4.d5 Ne7 5.g3/e4 or 3.Nf3 e6 4.a3, the latter of which was once considered a refutation of the Tango (it isn't).

Transposing to the Bogo-Indian with 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 Nc6 3.Nf3 e6 4.g3 Bb4 5.Bd2/Nbd2 is not forced; Black can instead reach a main line Catalan with 4...d5 if he follows up with 5...dc4. 

No, one cannot rely solely on the Tango against 1.d4: 1...Nf6 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d5 is better for White, as is 2.Bg5 Nc6 3.Bf6 followed by e3, when the c6-knight seems misplaced. 3.d5!? also looks promising for White, since I don't trust either 3...Ne5 4.Nc3 or 3...Nb8 4.Bf6 ef6 5.g3.

However, most Tango advocates meet 2.Nf3 with 2...e6 and 2.Bg5 with one of the sharper lines, e.g. with a quick ...c5.

Regarding the current state of the Tango itself: It hasn't been 'busted' yet, but 3.Nf3 e6 4.Nc3 Bb4 5.Qc2 looks like a very effective antidote, e.g. 5...d6 6.Bg5 h6 7.Bd2 0-0 8.a3 Bc3 9.Bc3 (9...Qe7 10.e4 e5 11.d5 is advantageous for White as well) Re8 10.0-0-0 Qe7 11.h3 e5 12.de5 (12.d5!?) de5 13.e3 and White was better in Matveeva-C. Stevens, Guelph open 2005 (for detailed annotations I refer you to 'Challenging the Nimzo-Indian'). 

However, at 2000 level the majority of your opponents won't have prepared for the Tango or Zurich Variation, unless they have faced it recently or have studied Palliser/Vigorito.