OBNAK

Quick summary of the session

Nice session — you won a clean, tactical game against fatmircakaj (see replay below) and overall your opening choices are paying off: your opening win-rates (Scandinavian, Alekhine, Colle lines) show you know the typical plans. The main problem this session was time — several games ended on the clock or with you low on time. Fix the clock leak and a lot of your losses will turn into wins.

Win — what you did well

Your last win shows many strong elements:

• You created a passed pawn in the center and used it as a tactical lever (the d-pawn advanced to d6 and later to c7). That forced favorable exchanges and opened lines toward the enemy king.
• You played actively with the queen and rooks — checks and forcing moves pushed the opponent into passive replies and finally mate.
• Good decision to castle opposite sides: you understood the attacking potential and chased active play instead of getting bogged down.
• Opening choice worked: the resulting pawn structures were familiar and you followed thematic ideas rather than wandering early.

Replay of the win (click to inspect):

[[Pgn|d4|d5|c3|Nf6|Nf3|Bg4|Bg5|e6|Bxf6|Qxf6|Nbd2|Nd7|h3|Bh5|e4|Bxf3|gxf3|dxe4|fxe4|e5|d5|Bc5|Qe2|O-O-O|O-O-O|Bb6|Nc4|a6|d6|Qxf2|dxc7|Kxc7|Nxb6|Qxb6|Qc4+|Qc6|Qxf7|Qh6+|Kb1|Rhf8|Qc4+|Kb8|Qb3|Nc5|Qb4|Rxd1+|Kc2|Qd2#|fen|1k3r2/1p4pp/p7/2n1p3/1Q2P3/2P4P/PPKq4/3r1B1R w - - 2 25|orientation|black|autoplay|false]

Patterns & recurring issues

From the recent losses and the session as a whole I see a few clear patterns to correct:

• Time trouble / flagging: multiple games ended by opponent winning on time. You frequently reached panic clock values (under 10 seconds) in critical positions. This causes errors or missed defensive resources.
• Allowing counterplay on the kingside: in a couple of games you pushed pawns (g‑pawn, h‑pawn) and your opponent generated threats or a passed pawn. Be cautious about expanding near your king without full calculation.
• Occasional tactical oversights in complicated positions — you create imbalances but sometimes miss a defensive tactical resource from the opponent (knight forks, discovered checks on the last few moves in losses).
• Endgame technique and simplification decisions: in some long games you had active pieces but let the opponent simplify into winning minor piece / king activity scenarios. Convert piece activity to material or a clear plan before simplifying.

Concrete improvements — what to practice this week

Make these practical, short drills you can do before playing blitz:

• Clock routine: play 5 games at 5+3 and force yourself to keep 30–40 seconds on the clock until move 20. Practice spending max 15–20 seconds on most moves in early middlegame — save time for critical tactics.
• Tactics: 12–15 tactics/day (forks, pins, discovered checks). Focus on positions with checks and captures — these are the motifs that cost you time and material in blitz.
• Opening + 1 plan: pick 2 opening lines from your best list (for example Scandinavian Defense and Alekhine Defense or the Colle line you use). For each, write a 3-move plan for both sides (ideal piece placement + pawn breaks) and review it before each session.
• Basic endgames: 10–15 minutes on king+rook vs king, rook endgame basics and king activity. That will increase your conversion rate when you keep pieces on the board.
• Post-mortem habit: after each loss, pick the single turning move (the moment your position became worse or the clock got scarce) and write it down. One-minute identification — no need for engine at first, then check with engine later.

Specific suggestions based on your openings

Your Openings Performance shows clear strengths — double down where it pays most, and shore up the weaker lines:

• Double down on your top performers: Alekhine Defense and the Colle lines where you have ~73% wins. Learn one or two common endgame transitions from those lines so you convert advantages more reliably.
• Scandinavian: high game count and strong win rate. Add 5–10 model games to memory and learn how typical queen exchanges lead to knights vs bishops endgames (common theme).
• Work on the Slav/Quiet variations where your win-rate is lower — identify the key pawn breaks opponents use and a single defensive plan you can fall back on.

Practical blitz checklist (during a game)

• Before move 10: stick to opening plan; if you deviate, trade pieces or simplify only if you gain something concrete.
• At move 10–20: keep 30+ seconds on the clock if possible — avoid a single move that eats >40 seconds unless it wins material or prevents mate.
• When ahead: avoid unnecessary pawn storms near your king; instead improve piece activity and restrict opponent counterplay.
• When behind on time: play fast safe moves (develop, keep king safe), avoid speculative complications unless they create practical winning chances.

Short training plan (2 weeks)

• Days 1–3: Tactics 15/day + 30 minutes reviewing your last 5 games’ turning points.
• Days 4–7: 5 games 5+3 control focusing on time management rules above; review each game for the move when clock pressure began.
• Week 2: 20 minutes endgame basics + 3 sessions reviewing model games in your top two openings (Scandinavian Defense and Colle: 3...e6 4.Bd3 c5).
• Ongoing: keep the “one turning-move note” after every loss — it trains spotting the moment you start to get into trouble.

Next steps & small goals

• Goal 1 (this week): reduce games lost on time by 50%. Track number of flag losses per session.
• Goal 2 (two weeks): convert at least one won opening into a 60%+ conversion rate by studying 5 model games for that opening.
• Goal 3 (one month): add a short routine to post-mortem your losses — 5 minutes per loss will pay off disproportionately.

Opponent references & follow-ups

Look back at these games to see the turning moments: your win vs fatmircakaj (mate using passed pawn tactics) and the time-loss vs tweetumz49 (practice the clock routine to avoid this). If you want, send me one of the loss PGNs you want a deeper line-by-line review of and I’ll highlight the exact move(s) to fix next.