chess Chess is a board game for two players, called White and Black, each controlling an army of chess pieces in their color, with the objective to checkmate the opponent's king. It is sometimes called international chess or Western chess to disti ...

, opposition (or direct opposition) is a situation in which two kings are two squares apart on the same or . Since kings cannot move adjacent to each other, each king prevents the other's advance, creating a mutual blockade. In this situation, the player not having to move is said to ''have the opposition''. It is a special type of

zugzwang Zugzwang (German for "compulsion to move", ) is a situation found in chess and other turn-based games wherein one player is put at a disadvantage because of their obligation to make a move; a player is said to be "in zugzwang" when any legal move ...

and most often occurs in endgames with only kings and pawns. The side with the move may have to move their king away, potentially allowing the opposing king access to important squares. Taking the opposition is a means to an end, normally to force the opponent's king to move to a weaker position, and is not always the best thing to do. There are extensions of direct opposition, such as diagonal opposition and distant opposition, which can be conducive to reaching direct opposition. All three types may be referred to simply as ''opposition'' if the type is unambiguous in context.

Direct opposition

''Direct opposition'' is a position in which the kings are on the same rank or file and are separated by one square. When the term ''opposition'' is used, it normally refers to direct opposition.
In this diagram, the player whose turn it is ''not'' to move has the opposition. If it is Black's turn to move, White has the opposition and wins. (See

King and pawn versus king endgame The chess endgame with a king and a pawn versus a king is one of the most important and fundamental endgames, other than the basic checkmates. It is an important endgame for chess players to master, since most other endgames have the potential of ...

.) If it were White's turn to move, Black would have the opposition and the position would be a

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. In order to ensure correct play in situations like in the diagram, it may be helpful to remember that each time the pawn steps forward, it must be without giving check. If the pawn checks the opponent's king, the opposition will be lost and the game drawn.

Example

In the game

Svetozar Gligorić Svetozar Gligorić (Serbian Cyrillic: Светозар Глигорић, 2 February 1923 – 14 August 2012) was a Serbian and Yugoslav chess grandmaster and musician. He won the championship of Yugoslavia a record twelve times, and is consider ...

–

Bobby Fischer Robert James Fischer (March 9, 1943January 17, 2008) was an American chess grandmaster and the eleventh World Chess Champion. A chess prodigy, he won his first of a record eight US Championships at the age of 14. In 1964, he won with an 11� ...

, 1959, Black can draw by keeping the white king from getting to any of the key squares (marked by dots). This is accomplished by not allowing White to get the opposition, and seizing the opposition if the white king advances. : 57... Kb8! This is the only move to draw. (In the actual game the players agreed to a draw at this point.) Other moves allow White to get the opposition and then get to a key square. If the white king gets to a key square, White wins. For example 57...Kb7? 58.Kb5, then the black king moves and the white king gets to a key square and then wins by forcing

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of the pawn. : 58. Kc5 Kc7 : 59. Kb5 Kb7 : 60. Ka5 Ka7 and Black draws. In this sequence, any other moves by Black lose.

Diagonal opposition

Opposition along a is called ''diagonal opposition''. Sometimes diagonal opposition is used to achieve direct opposition. An example is the position in the first diagram, with Black to move. White has the direct opposition in this position, but it does him no good because his king cannot attack the black pawn after the black king moves away. White needs to achieve direct opposition closer to the pawn. :1... Kf8 2. Kd6 and White has the diagonal opposition (second diagram). :2... Ke8 3. Ke6 White now has direct opposition on a useful square, and White wins: : 3... Kf8 4. Kd7 Kg8 5. Ke7 Kh8 6. f6 gxf6 7. Kf7 7.Kxf6 also wins for White.

Distant opposition

''Distant opposition'' is a position in which the kings are on the same rank or file but are separated by more than one square. If there are an odd number of squares between the kings, the player not having the move has the (distant) opposition. As with diagonal opposition, it is often converted to direct opposition, as in the diagram: :1. Ke2 White takes the distant opposition. :1... Ke7 2. Ke3 Ke6 3. Ke4 Taking the direct opposition; and now Black must step aside. :3... Kd6 If 3...Kf6 then White plays the corresponding 4.Kf4! :4. Kd4 4.Kf5 would lead to both pawns queening. :4... Kc6 4...Ke6 5.Kc5 and White is way ahead in the queening race. :5. Ke5 and White has a choice of which pawn he wins, using the created passed pawn as an outside passed pawn unless he can promote it directly. Black can be tricky and try: :1... Kf8 The point is if 2.Ke3 then 2...Ke7 and now Black has the distant opposition and draws. Similarly, if 2.Kf3 then 2...Kf7. White must remember that the aim of the opposition is to penetrate, so to step sideways and forward with ... :2. Kd3 Ke7 Otherwise White will be able to penetrate with Kc5, and will win the race to queen. :3. Ke3! White again has the distant opposition, transposing into the main line.

Teaching tool

This position is very similar to the previous position. White is to checkmate, moving the rook only once in the process. The main line is: :1. Kg2 Taking the distant opposition. :1... Kg7 2. Kg3 Kg6 3. Kg4 Kh6 Since the black king has been forced to step aside to the h-file, White can now penetrate on the f-file. :4. Kf5 Kg7 If 4...Kh5 then 5.Rh1. :5. Kg5 Kh7 6. Kf6 Kg8 If 6...Kh8 then 7.Kf7 Kh7 8.Rh1#. :7. Kg6 Kh8 8. Rf8# Again, Black can be tricky and try: :1... Kh8 2. Kf3! Again, White penetrates. If 2.Kg3 then 2...Kg7 3.Kh3 Kh7 gives Black the distant opposition. :2... Kg7 If 2...Kh7 then 3.Kf4! :3. Kg3 etc.

Purpose

Yuri Averbakh Yuri Lvovich Averbakh (russian: Ю́рий Льво́вич Аверба́х; 8 February 1922 – 7 May 2022) was a Russian chess grandmaster and author. He was chairman of the USSR Chess Federation from 1973 to 1978. He was the first centenari ...

pointed out that the opposition is a means to an end; the end is ''penetration to a ''. This can be a square in front of a pawn, so the king can lead it to the queening square, or into a critical zone to win an enemy blocked pawn. In the diagram, White should play :1. Kc5 Taking the opposition by 1.Ke4 merely draws.
This second position shows a simpler example. If White takes the opposition with 1.Ke6 he makes no progress. The winning move is :1. Kc7 (See

References

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