Hi Robert!
Your recent games show why you hold GM strength: the tactical win against FerAsensio2024 demonstrates excellent piece co-ordination and the ability to keep the initiative under severe time pressure. Below is a balanced review—what is already working, what can still improve, and how to train purposefully.
What You’re Doing Well
- Dynamic Piece Play. In the Budapest Gambit win you maintained queen activity (Qd2–Qa4–Qb5–Qg5) that kept Black’s king under fire while converting material.
- Practical Endgame Technique. Several wins (e.g. vs Alaju3l3) converted technical rook-pawn endings with 0 : 05-0 : 10 on the clock—evidence your endgame “autopilot” is reliable.
- Opening Variety. You comfortably switch between 1.d4 systems (Budapest, Nimzo-Indian) and 1…e5 with Black, giving opponents little prep time.
Key Improvement Areas
- Time Management. Five of the last seven losses came from winning or equal positions that bled away to time trouble. Consider imposing a “red-zone” rule (never let the clock drop below 25 % of start time before move 20) to reduce flagging incidents.
- Early King Safety vs Gambits. In the Scotch Gambit loss to Artem-chess2, …Nh6?! left your monarch vulnerable and led to a forced mating net. A sounder line is 5…d5 6.Bxd5 Nf6, keeping the king castled.
- Handling Pawn Storms in Benoni/Benko Structures. Against Khagan Ahmad the sequence 10…c6?! 11.Nbc3 e5 allowed White’s a- and h-pawns to advance with tempo. Review modern …b5/…Qa5 lines to blunt that space grab.
Illustrative Tactic – Missed Resource
In the final phase of the Scotch Gambit game you still had drawing chances. After 28…Kh8 the critical line was:
Instead of 30…Ne4? you could play 30…Rd6! consolidating and freeing the queen for defence.
Training Recommendations
- Clock Discipline Drill. Play a set of 15 blitz games forcing yourself to move before the clock shows 0 : 45. Track results with .
- Anti-Scotch File. Prepare a compact file covering 4…Bc5 5.Ng5 lines—focus on the modern …Qf6 & …Nh6 antidotes; revisit it weekly.
- Benoni “Anchor Squares” Exercise. Set up positions where White advances a4-a5 and h4-h5. Practise finding counter-play plans with …b5, …c4 and timely …f5 breaks.
- Endgame Speed Tests. Solve 10 rook-and-pawn table-base puzzles under 30 seconds each. Log performance via .
Stats Snapshot
Blitz peak: 2954 (2025-06-24) Bullet peak: 2814 (2025-06-20) Rapid peak: 2583 (2022-10-31)
Next Steps
Keep leveraging your tactical flair, but anchor it with a stricter clock routine and sharper anti-gambit prep. Incorporate the drills above for two weeks and re-evaluate the flagged weaknesses—your conversion rate should noticeably rise.
Good luck, and feel free to send the next batch of games for review!