Hi Lazaro!
Your recent blitz sessions show why you are one of the most feared players on the site: you convert advantages cleanly, handle time pressure with ease and maintain an imposing . Below is a quick snapshot of when you win most often: .
What already works
- Consistent clock handling. In every win you kept at least 15-20 seconds in reserve while your opponents were gasping for time. This allows you to keep the quality of your moves high all the way to move 60.
- Flexible opening repertoire. You switch smoothly between 1.e4 and 1.Nf3 as White, and between the Caro-Kann, QGD and Ruy Lopez lines as Black. That keeps opponents guessing and helps you steer games into middlegames you understand well.
- End-game conversion. The rook-and-pawn ending against kokosikkaka was textbook: you activated the king early and never let the passed c- and b-pawns out of your control.
Growth areas & targeted drills
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Handling of symmetrical queen-less structures.
In the loss to Particle-Accelerator you traded queens on d2, reached a harmless-looking endgame, but then conceded the initiative with 22…Qd6 followed by 27…Nd5. Your minor pieces became passive and White’s rook infiltrated.
🛠 Suggested drill: Play out queen-less IQP/isolani positions vs. a strong engine at depth-limited settings. Force yourself to keep one rook active on the 7th or 4th rank at all times. -
Dark-square weaknesses after early …b5/b4 pushes.
Both the QID loss and the Sicilian O’Kelly defeat vs Little_Skib feature the same theme: an early …b5 left the c6/e6 squares soft and cost dark-square control.
🛠 Opening tweak: In the QID consider the modern 12…Qe7 instead of …Bb4, delaying …b5 until the bishop sits on b7 and your knight can guard c6. -
Berlin-type endgames vs. high-rated grinders.
In the Rio-Berlin loss vs BATEK_HA_TPAKTOPE you reached a typical 4 vs 3 kingside ending but allowed the queenside majority to roll.
🛠 End-game set-up: Practise the “anchor rook on e4” plan (…Re4-h4-g5) which Caruana employs; it fixes White’s structure and gives you practical chances.
Opening notes
• Caro-Kann (Black): your Advance/Botvinnik coverage is excellent. Keep an eye on the fashionable 4…g6 sideline—rapid players are starting to test it.
• Queen’s Gambit Declined (Black): against MAMJJA2006 you allowed cxd4 and an awkward knight on d7. After 9…Nd7 consider 10…cxd4 only when you can recapture with the piece, not the pawn, so the c-file stays closed.
• 1.e4 repertoire (White): your Caro-Kann Tartakower crush is lethal. Here is a neat miniature you might add to the file:
Practical/psychological tips
- Early move 10-15 is where most of your time sinks occur in the losses. Try the “20-second rule”: if the position is still roughly equal and has no forcing tactics, cap yourself at 20 seconds and bank time for later.
- Review games at the exact time of day you usually lose more often—see . A short tactics warm-up before those sessions may flip the statistic.
Final thought
You are converting >80 % of positions where you reach a one-pawn advantage—world-class numbers. Shoring up the dark-square issues and the “dry” equal endgames could push that even higher and nudge your blitz peak past the next milestone.
Keep up the great work and enjoy the grind!