How to Dismantle Your Opponent's Defense
From Good to Great: Pro-Level Tips
The Exchange Sacrifice
A common way to capture a defender is with an "exchange sacrifice," where you give up a rook for a knight or bishop. While you lose a little material, if that minor piece was the only thing stopping you from winning a queen or delivering checkmate, the sacrifice is well worth it.
Look for Overloaded Pieces
Sometimes a piece is defending two things at once (it is "overloaded"). By capturing one of the things it defends, you force it to recapture, thereby abandoning its defense of the other. This is a subtle but powerful way to exploit a defender.
A Move That Made History: Tal vs. Botvinnik, 1960
Mikhail Tal, the "Magician from Riga," was the ultimate master of capturing defenders. In his world championship match against Botvinnik, Tal would constantly make intuitive sacrifices to remove key defensive pieces around Botvinnik's king. He understood that a king with no defenders is a weak king, no matter how much material is on the board. His games are a masterclass in this tactical theme.
The Winning Combination: This game was full of removing defenders.