The knight is a good blockader, but it is a short-range piece and it travels slowly. If the opponent's passed pawn is far from the knight and supported by its own king, the knight may simply be too late.
Here Black has the king on b1 and a pawn on b3; White has the king on h2 and the knight on e4. Black to move, and Black wins (per the tablebases): the b3 pawn, supported by the king, gets through before the knight can reach the queening square.
The lesson: when judging knight against pawn, count the tempi. Unlike a bishop, a knight cannot reach a distant pawn in one move - sometimes the race is lost before it starts.
Drag a piece onto the board, or click a piece and then click the squares. The cross beside the pieces sweeps every piece of that colour off the board, and a single piece can be dragged off the edge.
The pieces will be arranged into the chosen pattern.
It is the mating side to move. Find mate in one.
Openings, endgame positions and breakthrough studies - the set-up appears on the board.
When it is one tempo short of the blockading or queening square: a knight cannot «pass», and losing a tempo is critical for it.
By the number of moves to the square you need - for a knight that number is always definite, and it is easy to compare with the pawn's.
Aim to put the knight on a square from which it controls the queening square, and bring the king up.
Build your own position in the board editor, read up on the rules of chess or run a tournament on your own positions in the free app.
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