By Eric Morrow
Chess Column
May 12, 2008 08:19 pm
—
What is black’s
best move?
Reilly v. Morrow, 2008
This week’s position is from a tournament game of mine against Patrick Reilly. I’m black; Reilly’s white.
Because of black’s extra pawns, black is winning. However, as long as the player’s rooks are on the board, the chances of black finding a miracle draw are greatly increased. With this hint in mined please try to find black’s best move.
In chess notation, the board is a grid: the vertical columns are numbered “1” through “8;” the horizontal rows, “a” through “h.” Each square on the board is identified by a specific letter and number. For example, if the black pawn at a5 were to move to a4, the notation would be a5 (pawn moves are described by identifying the square occupied by the pawn after it moves, r=rook, k=king, etc.).
Black has many roads to victory. The best road begins with advancing the h4 pawn to h3.
Black offers this pawn to white. This is because if white’s king takes the h3 pawn, black’s rook captures white’s f3 pawn with check.
More importantly, this check forces white to trade rooks. As a result, the position is simplified and black’s road to victory is less likely to encounter an unexpected bump. If white rejects the h3 pawn and moves his king to h2, for example, black still wins white’s f3 pawn. While white avoids a forced trade of rook, black gains a three pawn mass which will be next to impossible to stop.
In chess, sometimes the simplest road is best.
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