Chess Basics: How to avoid defeat in chess

Cbess is a game played betweeen two players, where one player emerges victorious and the other player loses the game. In other words, one person will say "checkmate" to the other or vice versa. If you cannot say checkmate to your opponent, and have every possibility of losing the game, can you avoid defeat? Yes - it is possible to settle for a draw with your opponent, if any of the following three instances occur :

1. Perpetual Check
2. Stalemate
3. Not enough material

Perpetual Check

Perpetual check is referred to an instance that you threatens the opponent's King with a series of checks, but he moves out of check to a safer square, and you could not convert that check to a checkmate. If the deadlock continues in such a manner, then the game is mutually agreed to have been concluded with no person claiming victory over the other.

If you are in the losing side and has only one King in comparison to more pieces for the opponent, your strategy should be not to fall in trap of the opponent and ensure that you escape every threat and move to safety. In this way, you can avoid a defeat in the hands of your opponent.

Stalemate

A player is said to be in stalemate condition, if, in his turn to make a move and the his king is not in check, he has no legal moves to make. In other words, if the king could not move to any of the surrounding squares which would put him in check, then the king is said to be in stalemate. The stalemate is not equivalent to a loss, since the opponent cannot say "checkmate". As such, stalemate is as good as a draw. In an indirect way, it will be a loss for the other because he cannot offer a direct checkmate on the king, while pushing him to a state where he cannot make further moves.

There is one caveat here. Stalemate can happen only if the King, when not in check, has no squares to move and any of the other pieces, if available, also are not able to move to any squares. If there are other pieces that can be moved, then the situation of stalemate does not arise. You have to move the other piece, even if means you have to lose them. Stalemate can arise only if your king, when not in check, cannot move to any legal square, and other pieces, if available, are blocked or immobile.

Not enough material

A win situation in chess cannot arise if you or your opponent does not have enough material to checkmate the other. Assume that you have only King and the other party also has only King on the board. In such a situation, there is no possibility of a solution. Or even, if you have only a King and a Knight, in comparison to only the king at the disposal of the opponent, there is no question of victory. Similarly, if you have only the King and Bishop, as against the king for the opponent, you cannot enforce a checkmate. Even if thee is one single pawn etc., there is a ray of hope that the pawn can be promoted to a queen. But in the absence of a pawn, checkmate cannot be effected and the players have to settle for a draw, or in other words, avoid a defeat.