Julia Novkovic WFM

Hi Julia!

Great work pushing your rating above 1952 (2020-08-16) and maintaining an aggressive style that keeps your opponents under pressure. Below is a personalised review based on your last few rapid games.
(Key reference games: latest win vs. Andrés Delgado and most recent loss vs. Ronald Frasco.)

What you are doing well

• Fearless pawn storms. Your g-pawn thrusts (e.g. 5.g4 in both win and loss) frequently disorient opponents and create long-term space advantages on the kingside.
• Piece activity out of the opening. In the Modern Defence win you reached …Ndf4, …Nxf2 and …Rxc2 in only 30 moves—excellent use of active knight and rook play.
• Time-pressure handling. Several victories were “won on time” even in objectively equal endings, showing you can keep your cool when the clocks tick down.

Main growth areas

• King safety after early advances. The loss to Ronald Frasco shows how the dark-squared holes created by h- and g-pawn pushes can be exploited. Before playing g4/g5, ask “Can my king castle safely and can I cover the dark squares?”
• Conversion technique. In several wins you were still objectively equal or slightly worse when your opponent flagged. Try increment-aware conversion drills: start a winning endgame with 30 seconds +2″ and practise finishing under increment.
• Tactical blunders in sharp positions. In the A45 loss you missed 18…Nc4! ideas and later 25…Bxd4!, both stemming from loose piece coordination. Add 10 minutes of daily Puzzle Rush Survival to reinforce pattern recognition when pieces hang.

Opening suggestions

• As White: Your early h3–g4 system scores well, but mix in a classical build-up (e.g. Be3, Qd2, 0-0-0 versus Sicilians) so opponents can’t prepare solely for g-pawn pushes.
• As Black: The Modern (…g6) is working, yet in slower time controls opponents will test you with Austrian Attack setups. Consider learning a backup like the Pirc with …c6 and …d5 ideas to keep them guessing.

Critical moment spotlight

Here is the turning point from your latest win; replay it and ask “How would I convert without relying on the clock?”

[[Pgn|1. e4 g6 2. d4 Bg7 3. Nf3 d6 4. Bc4 c6 5. Bb3 a5 6. a4 Nf6 7. Qe2 O-O 8. h3 Nbd7 9. e5 dxe5 10. dxe5 Nd5 11. e6 N7f6 12. exf7+ Rxf7 13. Ne5 Rf8 14. h4 Nh5 15. c4 Ndf4 16. c5+ Kh8 17. Bxf4 Nxf4 18. Qe4 e6 19. h5 Bxe5 20. Qxe5+ Qf6 21. Qxf6+ Rxf6 22. hxg6 Nd3+ 23. Kd2 Nxf2 24. Rxh7+ Kg8 25. Bc2 e5 26. Nc3 Bf5 27. Bb3+ Be6 28. Bc2 Rd8+ 29. Ke2 Ng4 30. Rah1 Rf2+ 31. Ke1 Rxc2 32. Rh8+ Kg7 33. R1h7+ Kxg6 34. Rxd8 Kxh7 35. Re8 Bc4 36. Re7+ Kg6 37. Ne4 Re2+ 38. Kd1 Rxe4 0-1]]

Next steps

1. Finish 20 endgame studies this week—focus on rook & pawn endings.
2. Alternate your pawn-storm openings with one positional line to improve flexibility.
3. Track your performance trends with
   
   and
   ; aim for ≥55 % in your preferred time slot.

Keep the energy on the board and balance it with a bit more structure—your rating ceiling will rise quickly. Good luck in your upcoming games!