Rahul Joshi

Hi Rahul!

Great work playing regularly and experimenting with attacking openings. Below is some structured feedback to help you climb toward your next target of 763 (2024-01-22).

1. What’s already working

• Early initiative: In your recent win against insanechesser you used fast development and the open f-file to deliver mate on move 20. Your pieces were active and coordinated.
• Willingness to sacrifice: You don’t shy away from giving material for time or attack (e.g. 6.Bxf4 and 12.Nxf6+ in the King’s Gambit). That fighting spirit is vital at your level.
• Central control: With White you often start 1.d4/1.e4 and place pawns in the centre, following core opening principles of development and king safety (castling by move 10 in most wins).

2. Quick win spotlight

Review this game once more and ask “why did my attack succeed?”

3. Key areas to improve

1. Opening accuracy as Black
   • In your loss to polodolo7 you played 5…e5?! and 6…e4?! in a Queen’s Gambit structure, weakening d5 and leaving the king in the centre. Stick to safer plans such as …e6, …Be7 and quick castling.
   • Build a compact repertoire: for example, reply to 1.e4 with the Scandinavian (…d5) you already know, and meet 1.d4 with the Queen’s Gambit Declined (…e6, …d5) without early pawn thrusts.
2. Tactical blunder check
   • Several defeats come from hanging pieces (e.g. 12.Nxe4 in your recent loss). Before every move, do a three-point scan: “What changed? What is attacked? What is unprotected?”
   • Spend 10 min/day on puzzle rush or basic fork & pin drills.
3. Time management
   • Two of the last five losses were on time in winning or equal positions. Try 5- or 10-minute games until you automatically make a move, press the clock, then think on the opponent’s time.
4. End-game confidence
   • Your games often finish in the middlegame, but learning king & pawn basics will give you confidence to trade when ahead.

4. Suggested weekly routine

• Mon/Wed/Fri: 3 rapid games (10 + 5) → annotate briefly.
• Daily: 20 tactical puzzles; keep a notebook of tricky motifs.
• Weekend: Replay one master game in an opening you use; pause every 5 moves and guess the next idea.

5. Progress trackers

Check these to visualise consistency:

6. Mini-checklist before every move

1. Are my king and queen safe?
2. Can I develop with tempo?
3. What are my opponent’s threats?

Keep the momentum, Rahul! With disciplined openings, fewer blunders, and improved clock handling, reaching the next rating band will come quickly.