Coach Chesswick
Personalised Feedback for Linda Krumina
1. Quick Performance Snapshot
• Peak blitz rating: 2298 (2024-10-15)
• Activity overview:
2. What You Are Already Doing Well
- Opening consistency with 1.d4 systems. In most wins you reach familiar middlegames quickly, e.g. the Colle-type structure in your game versus EILAPPI.
- Piece activity & rook lifts. The h-file rook swing (Rh1-h4-g4) appeared more than once and scored well (see move 41 in the win against “Sicillianenthusiast2”). Spotting these aggressive manoeuvres is a real strength.
- Tactical alertness in favourable positions. When you have the initiative, you calculate concrete lines accurately – the conversion in your Chess960 win is a good example: .
- Practical time usage. You generally keep ~30–40 seconds for the final phase, giving opponents the chance to blunder under time pressure; two recent wins came on the clock.
3. Repeated Trouble Spots
- Early central tension as Black.
Several losses (e.g. vs aly_khalel) featured …c5/…e5 breaks that you met passively. After 14…Bb7 you drifted into a cramped position and never equalised. - Pawn-structure awareness.
In the loss to “crazypelerin” the sequence 6.Nb5 d6 7.dxc5 allowed White a protected passed d-pawn and the Nc7+ fork. Accepting an IQP or hanging-pawn structure is fine, but only when your minor pieces are active enough to compensate. - King safety vs opposite-side play.
Games where you castle short and push the h-pawn work well, but remember that the same plan can boomerang against you. The resignation against “henrider” started with 20…c3 opening files toward your own king. - Converting extra material.
You were a pawn up in the endgame against lucian_gl yet resigned after pressure on the second rank. Extra material is useless if pieces are passive; prioritise piece activity over pawn-grabbing when ahead. - Tactical blunders in quiet positions.
In the KIA loss you overlooked 33.Nc5! removing the queen’s defender. These oversights often happen after a long sequence of manoeuvring; a 15-second “blunder check” before committing can save half your games.
4. Targeted Action Plan
| Theme | Concrete Exercise | Goal for Next 4 Weeks |
|---|---|---|
| Central counterplay as Black | Play 20 rapid games starting from a Queen’s Gambit Declined position with …c5 already on the board; train with “equalise then simplify” mindset. | >55 % score and <2 inaccuracies per game. |
| Tactics in quiet middlegames | Daily mixed-theme puzzle rush after a 5-minute meditation to mimic slower positions. | Solve 500 puzzles, maintain ≥85 % accuracy. |
| Endgame conversion | Endgame sparring vs engine: rook + extra pawn vs rook. | Win from the starting FEN 8/8/8/8/8/5k2/5P2/5RK1 w - - 0 1 in <60 moves at least 8/10 times. |
5. Opening Notebook (first steps)
• Add a direct antidote to early …c5 systems: consider the London Anti-Benoni plan with c4 → Nc3 & Qb3.
• As Black versus 1.d4 experiment with the Nimzo-Indian; it fits your dynamic piece-play style and prevents passive pawn structures.
• Store critical lines in your private study; revisit them weekly.
6. Mindset & Practical Tips
- 90-second post-game review. Immediately tag one critical position and one missed resource; quick feedback reinforces patterns.
- “Seat-belt move”. Before leaving any piece en-prise, ask: “What is my opponent threatening if I pass?” This one-sentence ritual will curb spontaneous blunders.
- Stamina. Your win rate climbs in late-evening sessions but dips mid-afternoon – data proves it (see charts above). Schedule rated streaks during high-focus hours, casual games elsewhere.
7. Inspirational Moment
Replay the finish of your Chess960 victory – a masterclass in converting an outside passed pawn while controlling knight forks:
Keep Going!
Your tactical eye and fighting spirit already put you in the 2100+ bracket. Ironing out a few structural misunderstandings and tightening calculation in quiet positions will push you toward 2200 faster than any new opening surprise. Enjoy the climb!