Coach Chesswick
Hi Boris!
Below is personalised feedback based on your latest blitz sessions. Keep in mind that blitz games can be chaotic, so the main goal is to spot patterns, not to micro-analyse every move.
Your current profile snapshot
- Peak Blitz rating so far: 2547 (2024-07-23)
- Typical activity:
- Best playing days:
What you’re already doing well
- Opening variety with 1.d4/1.c4 as White. You’re comfortable in both the Queen’s Gambit and the Catalan structures and often seize the initiative early. Games vs. Aleksandr Ivanov and Jaroslav Sobek show confident central control.
- Direct kingside attacks. Your h-pawn storms (e.g. 10.h4 › 12.Rxh5! against JaroslavSobek) are well calculated and catch opponents off-guard.
- Tactical alertness. In the Semi-Slav win you found the nice sequence 21.Ng5+! › 29.Qg7# even under 15 seconds. Blitz instincts are clearly sharp.
Recurring issues that cost points
- Time management. Four of your last five losses were on time in positions that were roughly equal or even winning (see games vs. nitpicker, Jesper_Kjaergaard-Jensen, and rionelG). You often enter the final 30 moves with <10 seconds.
- Caro-Kann middlegames as Black. In multiple losses (e.g. vs. carloseduar100 & rionelG) you reached passive positions after …Bg4/Bh5 and couldn’t generate counterplay. The queenside pawn breaks (…c5 or …f6) came too late.
- Finishing technique in technical endings. Even when ahead a pawn you steer into complex rook endgames that demand precision under a ticking clock. Example: the win vs. th3d4rkness got messy on moves 40-55 when a simpler liquidation was available.
Action plan (next 2-3 weeks)
| Focus area | Practical drills | Expected benefit |
|---|---|---|
| Clock handling | • Play 10 games of 3|2 forcing yourself to spend ≤ 15 sec on the first 10 moves. • Use “move confirmation” off to build instant-move habits in known openings. • After each game, note first moment you dropped <40 sec – ask why. |
Finish games with 20-30 sec reserve; fewer flag losses. |
| Caro-Kann structures | • Review 5 GM games in the Two-Knights & Classical setups. • Practise the thematic break …c5 in a Lichess “Opening Trainer” line 15 times. • Spar four 15|10 games from the position after 6…e6 7.Nf3 (Maróczy Attack). |
Reach active piece play & avoid cramped queenside. |
| Endgame conversion | • Daily 10-minute session on rook endgames with an outside passed pawn (Chessable/CT-Art). • Solve 20 studies tagged Zugzwang / “cut-off king”. • Analyse move 30 to finish in your win vs. th3d4rkness – try to force a textbook Lucena. |
Cleaner wins; conserve clock & energy. |
Illustrative moment
Below is the critical attacking sequence from your Semi-Slav win. Play it against the engine until you can convert in ≤ 30 sec:
Final tips
- Adopt a “driver’s seat” mindset: when up material, exchange pieces quickly; when down on time, simplify positions.
- Between blitz sessions, squeeze in one 15-minute rapid game to reinforce strategic thinking that later speeds up your blitz intuition.
- Keep a mini-notebook of three recurring tactical motifs you spot in your wins (e.g. Greek Gift, back-rank mates, deflection) and look for them consciously during play.
Good luck, Boris—your attacking flair is already Master-level; polish the clock skills and you’ll break the next rating ceiling soon!