Exchanging rooks (after ...Rc8) might still be drawish.

well he played ..h6, pretty obvious I suppose -...g5,...g4 coming

Castlerock; yes I did; in my experience Fritz9 overestimates the compensation for pawn sacrifices particularly (this is a common view, not just mine). But I think he'd generally be sweeter on two knights against a rook than humans; the troubles two knights sometimes have in a open position arising much later in the game with pawns on both wings are beyond his horizon. And to be fair Fritzy himself is a wizard at co-ordinating two minor pieces in endings; this is one of those tasks us poor humans lag way behind him in. So he maybe rates them for his own use, as it were.

Anyway, I confess I'm growing quite optimistic of a hold. Those rooks are very active and unless Black can activate or trade his rook you wouldn't think he could play for a win really.

castlerock wrote on 10/05/06 at 13:29:10:

Toppy's using your fritz

Bc7 would make the rook on b7 clamped in I think

The endgame as it is looks won to me. I dont see how white is going to hold with or without a rook swap. Maybe he has got a chance if the queenside pawns are cleared.

No, rook to the c-file. 

Can Black exchange it? White keeps rooks on c7 and b7; how does Black progress? He can't move either knight and the a-pawn's loose. In fact I wonder how he defends the a-pawn at all after 29...Kd8 30 Rcc7. Maybe he's going to rule that out with 29....Nd5, but then 30 Rc6 comes, perhaps.

I'm feeling a bit more cheerful - specially if Fritz thinks Black's only a bit better; generally he'd quite like the material advantage, I think.

Black can always exchange the rook when it gets to c6 because of back rank. Fridz says slightly better for black. Nothing great. (I hope)

Almost instantly Rb7 from Kramnik. Does he want to trade bishops and bring the other rook to c7 - does that set-up tie Black down to the extent he can't do anything?

So what's Fritz's evaluation, castlerock?