Warm-up Position

Before making my move, I analyze the position and its key elements. I start by assessing the material balance, which is in my favor since I have two extra rooks. Next, I examine the position of all the pieces on the board, their influence, strengths, and weaknesses.

My rooks are well-placed, restricting the black king to two files. Although I don't see a clear checkmate immediately, I notice that the black king is constrained, and I can prepare a mating net. Intuitively, I consider the potential counterplay by my opponent.

In this position, my opponent's counterplay can only come from the pawns. I analyze the possibility of promotion, with the c3 pawn being the most dangerous. However, I can easily prevent its advance by placing a rook on c1 or c7. The h- and f-pawns are blocked by other pieces, while the b-pawn, despite being on an open file, isn't a passed pawn as it is controlled by my a2 pawn.

A final intuitive thought is to be cautious of stalemate, but with many of my opponent's pawns still on the board, I believe I am safe from any stalemate threats.

Moves: I want to ensure that the black king cannot escape from the last two files, so I achieve this by playing

1. Rxf4

How does this work? After my opponent plays

1... Kg5

attacking my rook, I play

2. g3

which nicely keeps the black king confined to the last two files—my main goal.

My opponent then plays

2... b5

likely aiming to support the c-pawn's promotion. I respond with

3. Rc1

attacking the c3 pawn.

While this is a somewhat passive move in terms of achieving checkmate, it serves the purpose of simplifying the endgame.

My opponent plays

3... b4

to defend the c-pawn.

At this point, I see two relatively simple paths:

• I could temporarily abandon the goal of restricting the black king to the last two files and instead capture both the b- and c-pawns.
• Alternatively, I could calculate that playing 3. a3 would maintain my goal of limiting the black king, after which both black pawns would fall in a few moves.

In this situation, I find it more reasonable to keep it simple: allow the black king to escape the last two files and eliminate the counterplay by capturing the two pawns.

In my opinion, when faced with a position like this in a real chess game, it's important to prevent the opponent's counterplay and eliminate stalemate opportunities. The number of moves it takes to checkmate the opponent is not necessarily the primary concern. Hence:

4. Rxb4 Kf5

5. Rxc3

Now, the final chance for my opponent's counterplay is eliminated.

5. ... Ke5

6. Rc5+ Kd6

The king attacks my rook.

7. Rh5

Here, my goal is to move as far away as possible from the king's attack.

7. ... Kc6

The black king moves closer to the b4 rook, preventing the check on b6.

8. Rf4

I prepare Rf6+, which cannot be stopped.

8. ... h6

9. Rf6+

This pushes the black king to the 7th rank.

9. ... Kd7

10. Rhxh6 Ke7

The black king attacks my rook on f6. Intuitively, I move my rook away from the king:

11. Ra6 Kf7

12. Ra7+ Kg8

13. Rb6 Kh8

14. Rb8#

While Stockfish finds a mate in 6 moves, I chose a line that prioritizes more general concepts applicable to similar positions. In my opinion, the priorities should be:

Clear Plan:

• Define what I aim to achieve.
• Create a plan that cannot be stopped, regardless of the number of moves.

Prevent Counterplay:

• Focus on preventing any counterplay, whether through pawn promotion or potential stalemate.

With both priorities achieved, I checkmated my opponent.