Coach Chesswick
Constructive Feedback for Amma Avetisyan
What You’re Already Doing Well
- Tactical Vision. Your win against schkompti (French Tarrasch) shows excellent calculation: 24.Nxe7+ followed by 27.Qe7# was clean and convincing.
- Conversion Technique. In the long Sicilian Kan end-game you kept calm, improved the king and pushed your passed pawns until Black’s resignation. Good discipline!
- Piece Activity out of the Opening. You consistently develop quickly and castle early, giving yourself practical chances even in unfamiliar positions.
Key Areas to Improve
- Time Management. Four of the last six losses were on time, including a completely playable position vs. virrus1. Get into the habit of “chunking” your thinking time (e.g. 25 % opening, 50 % middle-game, 25 % end-game) and use the increment for calculation, not for making the moves.
- Handling the Caro-Kann Exchange (as White). In the loss to virrus1 you allowed …b5-b4 and ceded the initiative. Typical plan: place a knight on e5, keep pawns on c3-d4, and aim for a kingside attack with Qf3, Re1, h4-h5. The following schematic line shows a safer setup:
- Black Repertoire—Early-Queen Scandinavian. Three recent defeats feature …Qxd5/…Qa5 followed by middlegame difficulties. Consider switching to a more solid line such as the Caro-Kann or a modern French Defense. If you keep the Scandinavian, study the 3…Qa5 main lines so that …Bf5 and …e6 arrive smoothly.
- Dark-Square Safety. In the Closed Sicilian vs. Yordan_Okov the dark squares around your king were weak (…g6, …Bg7, …e6) and you lacked a defender on f8. When you fianchetto, keep the e-pawn flexible and watch for Nf6-g4-h6 ideas that guard h7.
- End-game Fundamentals. The Scandinavian loss to nazar_matvienko turned into a rook-and-pawn ending where you drifted. Refresh king activity, opposition, and basic rook end-game rules (keep the rook behind passed pawns, cut off the enemy king, etc.).
Six-Week Action Plan
- Week 1-2: Daily 15-minute session on tactical motifs; aim for 150 puzzles/week with 85 % accuracy.
- Week 2-3: Build a concise Caro-Kann Exchange White file (10-12 tabia positions) and play at least 15 training games focusing on the Nd2-f3-e5 plan.
- Week 3-4: Pick a new Black defence (Caro-Kann or French). Watch one 60-minute video series or read a chapter, then create your own cheat-sheet of critical ideas.
- Week 4-5: End-game boot camp: solve 30 fundamental rook-end-game studies and play “king & pawn” endings vs. engine set to Easy.
- Continuous: Use a visible countdown (phone or physical clock) to allocate time during games; move when below 50 % of starting time in the opening.
Progress Trackers
Peak rapid rating: 1900 (2020-05-05)
Hours of the day you score best:
Win rate by day of the week:
Stay curious, keep analyzing your own games, and celebrate the small improvements—you’re on a solid path upward. Good luck, Amma!