Comments on https://lichess.org/@/alexletacticien/blog/road-to-im-week-3-the-first-tournament/sD3zyDqO
"Too much zeitnot. Gotta stop playing on 5 seconds." * On the contrary: it is good practice to use all time before move 30.
"Not enough practical play. The lack of real games showed." * It is normal to be slower after a hiatus.
"Catastrophic repertoire. My openings are a 2000s museum." * You did not draw or lose because of the openings.
"Openings: I worked on them, but clearly not enough." * You lost a game because of a tactic and you drew a game because you took fright. Openings have nothing to do with that.
"Next deadline: a blitz tournament on August 30." * Neither rapid nor blitz will bring you closer to IM.
@tpr
"Too much zeitnot. Gotta stop playing on 5 seconds."
-> Completely wrong, time management is an essential component of a game (40 moves on average), and being in total zeitnot between moves 25 and 30 is a genuine catastrophe.
"Catastrophic repertoire. My openings are a 2000s museum."
-> Knowing a variation by heart is not the same as knowing an opening; it’s about understanding the plans and key moves of that opening. Some are calculable and understandable, while others are really difficult. In the third game, thankfully, I knew to play h5 against h4, otherwise I’d have been crushed online (I’ve lost many games online because of this...). In the fifth game, I narrowly escaped disaster because I played a position in which I know I’m clearly not comfortable. I lost the seventh game because I was completely unfamiliar with the tricky setup my opponent proposed, ending up in a catastrophic position after spending way too much time and energy, which led to the blunder.
"Next deadline: a blitz tournament on August 30."
-> Once again, you’re missing the bigger picture. There is a correlation between skill level regardless of time control; a GM never plays at a 2100 level in blitz... Moreover, this type of tournament helps identify gaps in the repertoire or validate the technique for converting a winning position. I shouldn’t have to think to convert certain endgame positions or win with a rook up.
"time management is an essential component of a game" * Most games are essentially decided by move 30. So it makes sense to use all time up to move 30 and then finish the game on increment.
"being in total zeitnot between moves 25 and 30 is a genuine catastrophe." * 5 seconds/move is not total Zeitnot. Bullet players play at 1 s/move. 5 s/move is blitz speed. Once the position is clear 5 s/move should suffice taken into account all previous thought about the position.
"There is a correlation between skill level regardless of time control" * Yes, to some extent. However what works in blitz does not work in rapid and what works in rapid does not work in classical. You have to look deeper and stay concentrated for a longer time.
You seem to have a good opening repertoire with KID as Black and e4 as White - but you call it catastrophic!? Also, being in low time is worth it if you can get a close to winning position.
@chesstom2021
My KID theory is stopping around the 6th move that's why I need to fix some hole and work some position and idea.
Sadly I was in low time mostly with a worse position than my oppo :-(
oof that's unlucky.
@AlexLeTacticien said in #6:
> @chesstom2021
>
> My KID theory is stopping around the 6th move that's why I need to fix some hole and work some position and idea.
> Sadly I was in low time mostly with a worse position than my oppo :-(
yeah that makes sense. but knowing the main choices against the gligoric is a start :)
@AlexLeTacticien Bro seeing ur blog makes me feel like I should try to lol...nice blog :)) I am ur follower from nowww sir! Want to see ur journey :) best of luck
@bombing_knight
That really makes me so happy and warms my heart Thank you so much for your support!
I really hope you get to IM I believe in you and ill be reading your blogs from now on i will also follow you!