Last Friday, we played a different variation from regular chess; chess 960. Although I lost some of my games, I played well overall and won more games. Following last week’s Hive Chess Tournament, I closed my Lichess app, letting it collect digital dust for days. I was more focused on anime and my other projects, so I didn't play chess or solve puzzles for days. It is safe to say that I actually forgot about the Hive Chess Tourney and the benefits of practicing. Thanks to the host’s frequent reminders, I got back to playing chess and solving puzzles. On Wednesday, I got a notification from the host, Stayoutoftherz on my Lichess app, reminding me of the tournament. I navigated to my Lichess app, dusting off the digital dust that had already settled on it. I checked the host’s message and saw that the tournament would be a bullet variation: 2+2.
Over the past few months, bullet chess has been my go-to variation. I knew the time wouldn't be my problem. I’d been training myself by playing bullet chess. I was ready to give my all into the tournament. Yesterday’s tournament went pretty well. I must say, round 4 of the Hive Chess tourney was my best performance since we started Season 19 of the Hive Chess. Although I lost a few games (to higher-rated players), I won more games, and even won against some higher rated players. I didn't lose any match against a lower rated player and that’s a big reason for me to jubilate. I'm finally getting a hang of this. I lost against two players; Tonystar and Rosmarly. As usual, I’ll review my games in this post.
There were quite a few higher-rated players that I expected to be paired with one of them in my first game. Surprisingly, I got paired with Guisep73. I checked our previous games and saw that I had lost against him 3 times before. “I’ve got this.” I whispered to myself. He played White while I played Black. Our openings were solid, with both players fighting for the center board. Things were going well until I castled and got my King in a very tight spot. He seized the opportunity and started playing offensive, threatening my King with his Bishop, Knight and Queen. My opponent would have won the game or at least had extra materials if he hadn’t blundered. He left his Bishop hanging and I swiftly captured it. I managed to fork his King and Queen with my Knight. I love those forks. Feeling defeated, my opponent resigned. Even though I knew I’d lose some games, I was so happy that I won the first one.
Next, I was paired with Rosmarly. Before yesterday’s tourney, I had encountered Rosmarly several times and all the time we played, he won more games. He is a very strong player, and I knew I wouldn’t be surprised if the game went south. The first mistake I made was to leave a pawn hanging. Swiftly, he captured the hanging pawn with his bishop. We traded queens, bishops and knights, leaving us to a black bishop each and pawns. The game was in his favour because he had an extra pawn, plus, the position of his pawns were favorable. I managed to keep my cool and play well, but he was stronger. He promoted one of his pawns to a Queen and I was forced to resign.
There are two players I always want to get paired with; B0s and Olujay. I always want to show them who the boss really is. Lucky for B0s, I didn’t get paired with him. On the other hand, Olujay fell into my hands and I was sure enough to land big blows on his cheeks. Everything was going well for Jay until I baited him with my Knight and queen. He didn’t see it coming. I managed to capture one of his Rooks. He left his Knight hanging and as expected, I captured it. I thought my opponent would resign after that blunder, but he didn’t. I checkmated him with my Queen and Rook.
Next, I was paired with Rosmarly, again. This time, I played slow, steady and calculated moves. The first beautiful move that put me a step ahead was when I forked his Queen and Rook with my knight. He was forced to give up one. As expected, he surrendered his Rook. After that, he started playing aggressively. Little did he know I was cooking a beautiful checkmate with my Bishop and Queen. Game 5 was against Geo52rey, a lower-rated player. My opponent resigned when I captured his Queen (he blundered and left it hanging.) Game 6 against Masterswatch was supposed to be a draw. Luckily, my opponent left the game and I claimed the victory. A win is a win. I was happy that I won 3 games in a row. Little did I know the danger ahead.
Game 7-11 was tight and messy. I was paired with the top players; Tonystar and Rosmarly. Out of those five games, I won just one against Masterswatch. My other games against Tonystar and Romarly were messy. I think I lost these games because I had given up even before they started. I will try to do better next week.
My 12th game was against RD-cast. I don’t know why, but I really enjoy playing against him. In our last tourney, we both played well. If my memories are not flawed, I won more games against him. I was craving a win badly after my losses against Rosmarly and Tonystar. I would have also lost the game against RDcast, but he blundered. Unfortunately for him, he blundered his bishop. Knowing that I had more materials, my confidence increased. I promoted my pawn (to a Queen) and landed a very sweet checkmate. My next game was against Rosmarly. I was surprised when he berserked. I guess he wanted more points. Well, he blundered his Queen and when I captured it, he resigned.
Game 14 was with Olujay. He blundered his Bishop and Rook. I felt super confident and let my guard down. Swiftly, he capitalized on it and before I knew it, the tide was changed in his favour. He captured my officials. I was on the verge of giving up, seeing that I had less materials. Luckily, Jay made a wrong move and the game ended in a stalemate. The game didn’t count because the tourney was over.
Overall, I played well. I hope to maintain this same energy and play better games next week.
All images in this post are mine.
Thanks for reading.
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