Kiran

Quick summary

Nice work — you’re creating tactical chances, trading into winning endgames, and your long‑term rating trend shows clear improvement. In blitz games this session you won by active piece play and tactical shots, but you also dropped games from tactical oversights and endgame conversion issues. Below are focused, practical steps to keep the momentum going.

What you did well (repeat these habits)

• You look for tactical targets: the wins show good pattern recognition (captures on a6 and forcing queen trades to simplify when it favors you).
• You activate rooks and use the g‑file pressure effectively (example: Rg7 in the Colle game helped win material after the queen trade).
• You play aggressively in openings where you know the traps — this yields quick wins when opponents slip up (keep exploiting those lines).
• Your long term trend shows steady improvement — you’re learning from experience and converting it into better results over months.

Recurring weaknesses to fix

• Tactical oversights under time pressure — a few losses came from missed forks, discovered attacks or allowing a quick tactic (knight forks and loose pieces were decisive).
• Endgame technique and pawn races — in the loss that reached a king-and-pawn phase you were tied up and the opponent’s passed pawn became decisive. Practise simple king+pawn conversions.
• Sometimes you accept “poisoned” material (e.g. grabbing pawns that open tactical lines for the opponent). Before capturing, ask: “Does this create a counter‑tactic?”
• Time management in critical moments — when you have a complicated position, spend an extra second to do a blunder check (even in 3+2 blitz that pays off).

Concrete next steps (30/60/90 day plan)

• Daily (10–20 minutes): Tactics — 20 puzzles focused on forks, pins and mating nets. Emphasize speed + accuracy; mark repeat patterns you miss.
• Weekly (2 sessions): Endgame drills — 10–15 minutes: king and pawn vs king, Lucena basics and simple pawn races. Practice converting a one‑pawn advantage and defending a pawnless king endgame.
• Opening sharpening (15 minutes/session): Pick 2–3 main lines you play (for example your Colle/System choices and the Pirc) and learn 2 common opponent replies + one tactical trap to avoid. Use the game Colle System: Rhamphorhynchus Variation as a reference point.
• Post‑game review: After each session, spend 3 minutes on your worst loss — find the single move that changed the evaluation (blunder or missed tactic). Keep a short list of “my typical blunders” and review weekly.
• Blitz routine: When low on time, apply a 2‑step blunder check — (1) am I leaving a piece hanging? (2) is there an enemy check/fork/skewer that wins material?

Practical micro‑tips for your next blitz session

• Before accepting material: do a 3‑second tactic check. If you can’t see a forced tactic, don’t take it immediately.
• When ahead simplify — trade queens/major pieces if it reduces counterplay and you can convert a pawn advantage.
• If the position is closed and slow, trade down to a winning endgame — don’t keep maneuvering and risk a tactical blow.
• Keep a pocket repertoire of one or two sharp lines you know well — familiarity reduces time spent in the opening and lowers blunder risk.

Games to review (I recommend these positions)

Replay the decisive tactical sequence from your recent Black win — you finished by winning the queen on h5. Study the moment where Qh5/g4/gxf5 occurred: asking “can my queen be trapped?” paid off. Open the game here:

Also review the game where you won by Bxa6 — that capture exploited a loose piece and created lasting pressure. Compare lines where your opponent accepted material vs declined it; that’s where you can force wins.

Review a loss where a knight fork (or similar tactic) decided the game — practice noticing squares where enemy knights can jump (c7, e5, f4, d5 are common fork squares).

Short checklist before you press the clock

• Does my last move leave a piece undefended?
• Does my opponent have a forcing tactic (check, capture, attack) right away?
• If I accept material, what reply gives my opponent counterplay?
• Am I better on the clock? If not, simplify or choose quiet moves.

Resources & practice ideas (quick)

• Tactics sites: set a 10–20 minute daily streak focusing on forks/pins/discovered attacks.
• Endgame videos: 15–30 minute primers on king+pawn endings and basic rook endings.
• Repertoire drills: play 10 rapid practice games in the Colle and Pirc lines you prefer, focus on typical middlegame plans.

Want me to do a focussed post‑mortem?

Pick one loss and paste the full PGN or tell me which move you think lost the game. I can annotate the critical moments, show alternatives, and give a short study plan tailored to that specific mistake. For quick review, open these opponent profiles and games:

• Win (vs blacksheep1977) — watch the queen trade line above.
• Loss (vs gheorghius) — king+pawn endgame conversion, good candidate for endgame drills.
• Loss (vs eric1billy) — blunder/fork tactics study recommended.