This one is Black to Move and Draw. If it were white’s move, the win would be simple: 1. Kf3 Kd6 2. Ke4 Kc6 (2... Kc5 3. Ke5 Kc6 4. Kd4 Kb6 5. Kc4) 3. Kd4 Kb6 4. Kc4 Ka5 5. Kc5 Ka6 6. Kxb4 and easily queens one or both pawns. However, who has the move is important in chess. Equally important is the right move. What is black’s right move to draw?

A study by N.D. Grigoriev in 1922: The essential drawing idea for Black is to keep the white king from getting to e4, d4 or c4, so: 1... Kd6 2. Kh3 or 2. Kf3 Kd5 3. Kf4 Kd4 4. a5 Kc5 5. Ke4 Kb5 6. Kd4 Kxa5 7. Kc5 Ka6 8. Kxb4 and now, for beginners, Black draws by this well-known method: 8.. Kb6 9. Kc4 Kc6 10. b4 Kb6 11. b5 Kb7 12. Kc5 Kc7 13. b6+ Kb7 14. Kb5 Kb8! (keeping the opposition) 15. Kc6 Kc8 16. b7+ Kb8 17. Kb6 Stalemate or 2. Kg3 Ke5 3. Kf3 Kd4 4. Ke2 Ke4 5. Kd2 Kd4 6. Kc2 Ke4= 2... Kd5 3. Kh4 Kd4 4. Kg5 Ke5 5. Kg6 Ke6 and, as you saw in the variations, pushing the a-pawn doesn’t work. BTW, your chess engine may say early on that White is decisively won, but it’s wrong!

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