One
of the greatest ways to improve in chess is by studying common patterns that
occur in games. Pattern recognition is how you will begin to notice and
discover more possibilities and ways to overcome your opponent and take your
games to more advanced levels. By learning how to recognize patterns in more complex
positions, you will also have less trouble pursuing an endgame checkmate.
In
rare cases when you are left with a lone king on the opposing side, and a
knight, a bishop, and king on your side, it can be tricky to force a checkmate.
When you find yourself in minor piece end games, it is important that you know
how to face the situation intelligently. While the chances that you will arrive
in a bishop and knight check-mating situation is only one in five thousand,
studying these kinds of endgames can be a good way to improve in chess. These are excellent
puzzles to test your skills in minor piece coordination and chessboard square
control.
A
bishop-knight checkmate is a form of lone king check mate that is forced by the
opposing bishop, knight, and king. With perfect play, this kind of checkmate
can be forced in under thirty three moves, beginning at any starting position
where the defensive cannot quickly capture any of the stronger side’s pieces.
Exceptions do occur, but they only constitute 0.5% of possible positions.
Checkmates
with a bishop-knight-king offense are possible when the defending king is
cornered in a square that is the same color as the bishop. To achieve this, the
bishop and the knight mist form a boundary that the defending king cannot
cross. The two pieces must be in sync with each other and be able to push the
king to the desired corner, otherwise, the defending king will be able to run
to the wrong corner. The idea of a bishop-knight checkmate is very similar to
“boxing in the king” as in the case of a rook and king versus a lone king.
