Timur Gareyev GM

Hi Timur!

You continue to play creative, dynamic chess that keeps the initiative in your hands. Below is a short review of the strengths that repeatedly show up in your games, followed by concrete suggestions that should convert even more of your good positions into points.

What is working well

• Opening flexibility. In the recent streak you successfully handled both 1.e4 (Scotch, Ruy López) and 1.d4 (King’s Indian, Modern) with active piece play and unbalancing pawn thrusts such as …g5/…h5. Opponents were often pushed out of their preparation early.
• Dynamic pawn play. The advance …f5 in the Reti win and …g4/…h4 in the Modern gave you space and clear attacking targets. When timed correctly, these pawn storms forced concessions without weakening your own king too much.
• Conversion technique with initiative. In your win vs MITerryble you coordinated rooks and minor pieces perfectly, leaving White in zugzwang before the flag fell. Similar clean conversions are visible in several of the 600 + 2 victories.

Opportunities to score even higher

• Time management. Two of the five recent losses (vs Kacparov and Rutricks) came from completely playable or even winning positions that ran out of clock. Try forcing a “minimum think” rule in quiet positions (e.g. 5 seconds per move in 60 s games, 10 s in 600 + 2) and banking your deeper calculations for critical moments.
• Over-extension of the h-pawn. In the loss to sergoy your ambitious 8…h5 weakened the dark squares after you had already given up the g7–bishop. Consider delaying that thrust until your light-squared bishop is outside the pawn chain or your queen is covering h4/e5.
• Light-square strategy in the Pirc/Modern. You often aim for the Pirc set-up with …d6, …g6, …Bg7. When you later play …Nh6–f5 and swap the f4-bishop (as in the game vs sergoy), create a replacement defender first—e.g. …b6 & …Bb7 or …Nd7–f6 so that e6/g6 don’t collapse.
• Clarify winning endgames sooner. Even when clearly better you sometimes keep many pieces on and allow counter-chances (see 31…Rb8? vs ChessLover0108). Trading into a technically winning ending will both shorten the game and reduce clock pressure.

Critical moment to review

After 17…Rh2? in your loss to sergoy, White’s central break with 20.cxd5! and 21.e6! ripped open the position while your rook was stranded. Compare this line with the quieter 17…Qd7 returning the rook to h8 before launching the pawn storm:

Quick wins & practice ideas

1. Run 10-minute themed blitz sessions starting from your main Modern/Pirc tabiya, practising not pushing the h-pawn until your pieces are coordinated.
2. Spend 15 minutes daily on rook-and-pawn endgames with 5-second increment to reinforce fast, clean technique.
3. Review your hourly performance graph to choose your sharpest playing windows:
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At a glance

Peak Blitz rating: 2937 (2022-07-12)
Weekly win distribution:

Keep embracing your trademark creativity, but couple it with a touch more restraint in pawn pushes and a firmer grip on the clock. That combination should push your performance past the next rating milestone.

Good luck and happy hunting on the board!