Rasmus Svane GM

Quick summary

Nice cluster of games: you converted a technical win with an advanced passed pawn, you outplayed Zhigalko in the middlegame/endgame and finished cleanly, but you also had a couple of games where king safety and queen infiltration cost you. Time control was 3|0 — no increment — so both practical clock skills and fast, accurate decisions mattered.

What you did well

• Creating and pushing a passed pawn at the right moment — excellent in the win vs Zhigalko_Sergei where the pawn became the decisive force.
• Good piece activity and coordination in the middlegame: you used rooks and minor pieces to generate threats and open lines.
• Strong opening repertoire — your Caro‑Kann and English systems are reliable and score highly for you. Caro-Kann Defense English Opening: Agincourt Defense
• Practical clock awareness: you won on time in a long defensive struggle, showing good grit in pure blitz.

Key areas to improve

• King safety and queen checks — in the loss to chessdjw the queen infiltrated and delivered mating ideas. When queens are on the board, tidy escape squares or create luft earlier.
• Transition judgement: avoid simplifying into positions where your king becomes exposed or the opponent’s queen gains targets. Before trades, check king safety and pawn weaknesses.
• Time management in 3|0 — avoid spending too long on non‑critical moves early. Save time for tactical and endgame decisions.
• Tactical alertness on loose pieces and forks — blitz punishes small oversights. Short, intense tactic practice reduces these misses under time pressure.

Specific game notes (actionable)

Win vs Zhigalko_Sergei — why it worked

• You advanced a central pawn to create a passed pawn and used it as a decoy to open files. That forced the opponent’s pieces into passive roles and let your rooks invade — well timed and concrete.
• Key idea to reuse: if a passed pawn ties opponent pieces and generates tactical motives, advance it even in messy positions, but keep a defender nearby.

Loss vs chessdjw — recurring tactical/king problems

• Several trades left your king vulnerable to checks and mating nets. Before trading into queen‑heavy or open positions, ask: “Where does my king hide?” If no safe square, delay the trade or create luft.
• Practical tip: when under attack from a queen, try to exchange queens or create a permanent guard (rook or minor piece) that controls the key entry squares.

Practical training plan (next 2 weeks)

• Daily 15–20 minute blitz (3|0) session but stop after 6 losses in a row to avoid tilt.
• 15 minutes/day tactics focusing on back‑rank mates, queen forks and mating nets — do them under a short clock to simulate blitz pressure.
• Endgame routine 3×/week (20 minutes): rook + pawn vs rook, king + pawn races, and queen endgames with passed pawns. Drill conversion and defense patterns.
• One weekly 20‑minute opening review of main Caro‑Kann and English lines — pick one practical plan and one tactical motif per line to memorize.

Short checklist to use during a blitz game

• Before trading queens: count checks and identify escape squares for your king.
• If you’re low on time, avoid simplifying into unclear queen endgames — keep active counterplay if possible.
• When you create a passed pawn, ensure at least one piece is ready to support it or exploit the open lines it produces.
• Two‑move rule: if you can force a win in two moves with a forcing sequence, take it — don’t reach for a prettier plan when time is short.

Notes from your data (context)

• Your opening win rates are excellent in Caro‑Kann and English — keep these as your blitz anchors. Caro-Kann Defense English Opening: Agincourt Defense
• Strength‑adjusted win rate (~0.498) suggests you’re performing close to expected vs similar opponents — small tactical/clock improvements will convert into rating gains.
• Recent short‑term rating dip is small; six‑month trend is positive. Focused, short practice should turn the 1‑ and 3‑month dips around.

Micro‑exercises for the next 48 hours

• 10 rapid puzzles (3 minutes total) — only back‑rank and mating patterns.
• 5 rook‑endgame drills — practice converting a single passed pawn while opponent tries to trade pieces.
• Play a 3|0 session and annotate two losses: write one sentence per loss about the decisive oversight.

Want a deep dive?

Pick one game (win or loss) and I’ll do a concise annotated post‑mortem with candidate moves, missed tactics and a concrete training map for that specific game. Example opponent available: Sergei Zhigalko