Pawn On The Sixth or Seventh Rank
In his 1958 book Chess Endgames, Nikolay Kopaev gave these general guidelines for when the pawn is on the sixth or seventh rank:
- When the black king is cut off two or more files from the pawn, White always wins.
- If the black king is on the long side of the pawn and his rook is on the short side, White wins with very few exceptions.
- If the pawn is on the seventh rank, the only defense involves checks from the side. If the pawn is on the sixth rank, a defense of checks from the rear is possible.
- The defense of checking from the side normally requires three empty files between the pawn and the black rook. Sometimes it is possible with only two files when the pawn is on the seventh rank.
- In order for a defense of checking from behind to be successful, the white king must be behind the pawn, not in front of it.
- There are tactical possibilities: (1) deflecting the black rook, and (2) creating a shelter for the white king (Minev 2004:72).
Read more about this topic: Rook And Pawn Versus Rook Endgame
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