Black to move. Can black hold this position? How should black proceed?
Daily Chess Improvement: Special Knight and Pawn Endgame
Black to move. Can black hold this position? How should black proceed?
First reaction – black just needs to get his king to d8. How difficult can that be ?
Second reaction – no, that doesn’t look possible. So black just needs to kill the pawn with his knight. How difficult can that be ?
Third reaction – simply because I can’t find a solution doesn’t mean there’s no solution to be found. After all, how difficult can this puzzle be ?
And now I wait for other regulars to solve it. 😀
My first guess was …Nb3 but …Nd3 is the move I’m backing even though it looks weak against Nf3
1…Nd3 2.Kc7 (2.d7 Ne5+ draws or 2.Nf3 don’t know)
2…Nb4
A 3.Kc8
B 3.Nf3
C 3.d7
A 3.Kc8 Nd5 (if 4.d7 Nb6+ draws)
4.Kd8 Kf7 5.Nf3 (5.Kd7 Nf6+ maybe) Ke6 6.d7 Nb6 draws
4.Nf3 don’t know
B. 3.Nf3 Nd5+ maybe
c. 3.d7 Nd5+ (4.Kd8/c8 Nb6 draws)
4.Kc6 Ke7
5.Nf3 Nf6 draws
I think Nd3 is correct (if it does draw) over Nb3- 1. ….Nd3 keeps d7 from being immediately played as you note, but I don’t think 2. …Nb4 is correct:
1. ………….Nd3
2. Kc7 Nb4??
3. d7! Nd5 (nothing works in my opinion)
4. Kd6!
I have had this exact kind of position more than once in online games.
I think black should play 2. ….Kf7. If white plays 3.d7, it is again drawn after black plays 3. …Nc5- the pawn can’t queen with check anymore (one of the points of 2….Kf7), and black will fork the king and queen to draw. I have to think about white’s other options, though.
1. ….Nd3 does draw- white’s knight can never productively stop the following:
1. …………..Nd3!
2. Ne2 Kf7 (probably not the only draw)
3. Nd4 Nb4 (Ne5 ok too)
4. Kc7 Nd5 (Na6 ok, too)
5. Kb8 Nf6
6. Kc8 Nd5
Again, black has other options, but this outlines white’s problem the most clearly- he can’t support d7 without the king on c8, but the knight then comes to d5 to threaten a fork from b6. White can start to maneuver his knight to cover the b6 square, but……
7. Nc6 Nf6
The black knight just returns to cover d7 from the other side.
8. Ne5 Ke6 (Ke8 ok, too, probably Kg8 and g7 too)
9. Nc4
Covering the fork from b6, but how does white dislodge the knight on f6? Total draw after 1. ….Nd3.
Thanks very much 🙂