Himaksh Sharma

Hi Himaksh!

Great job keeping an active schedule—your database shows dozens of rapid and blitz games this week alone. Your determination is the single most valuable asset on your improvement journey. Below is a concise, actionable report based on your most recent games.

Quick snapshot

• Peak rapid rating so far: 902 (2025-06-06)
• Favourite first move (both colours): 1.e4 / …e5
• Typical opening systems: Four Knights, Giuoco Piano and Berlin-type Ruy Lopez lines
• Typical result pattern: many decisive games, very few draws

Your current strengths

1. Tactical alertness. Several wins (e.g. vs. MistaStealYaRook) featured mating nets before move 15. You spot direct checks, captures and threats quickly.
2. Fast piece activity. You rarely leave pieces on the back rank for long; castling and rook lifts such as …Rh8–h7–g7 are common in your games.
3. Confidence to sacrifice. Exchanges like 5.Bxc6+ in the Berlin and pawn sacs with b- and g-pawns show healthy fighting spirit.

Priority areas to address

1. King safety when pushing rook pawns.
   Loss vs. bullishbroadus: the sequence 7…h5 9…h4 left g- and h-files open and you were mated on move 20. Before launching a flank pawn you should ask, “Is my own king completely safe?” If in doubt, finish development first.
2. Central tension & pawn structure.
   In several Black games you allowed dxe4 or cxd5 and recaptured with a pawn that gave White an outside passer (see loss to bt1mxII). Learn when to keep the tension, and when to release it by capturing first.
3. End-game technique.
   Once queens come off, you sometimes drift (e.g. the rook end-game resignation on move 40). Study basic king & pawn endings and Lucena/Philidor rook positions for 15 minutes a day; this converts many “almost winning” positions into victories.
4. Time management.
   Blitz instincts help, but in 10-minute rapid you still finish with 6-8 minutes on the clock. Spend at least ~30 seconds on critical moves (checks, captures, hanging pieces) to reduce one-move blunders.

Opening focus for the next week

• With White, stick to the Italian but switch to the Giuoco Pianissimo plan (c3-d3-h3-Nbd2) instead of early piece exchanges. This will teach you maneuvering.
• With Black versus 1.e4, test the Two Knights Defence (3…Nf6) so you face immediate tactics and learn them in a structured way.
• Avoid very early queen moves; they worked against <900 players but will be punished above 1000.

Middlegame themes to practice

• Zwischenzug tactics – insert an intermediate move before recapturing.
• Fork patterns with knights and pawn pushes (e.g. e4-e5).
• Attacking on opposite wings only after the centre is closed.
• Transforming an attack into a winning end-game (trade pieces after gaining a material edge, not before).

Illustrative moments

Winning tactic (vs. FileXID, move 23):

Critical mistake (vs. BullishBroadus):

Training plan (2 weeks)

Progress tracking

Use the built-in stats to watch your improvement over time:
• Hour-by-hour confidence:

Final thoughts

You already have the tactical eye needed to climb. Blend it with discipline—king safety, pawn-structure awareness and end-game skill—and 1100+ will come naturally. Keep enjoying the game, review every loss, and celebrate small milestones along the way. Good luck!