The wait is finally over and we are back to the board. After a long break, the Hive Chess Tournament season 19 finally resumed today. I’ve been a part of the Hive chess tournament for quite a while now. Luckily, when I joined Hive I stumbled upon one of @stayoutoftherz posts. I got to know about the tourney and made further inquiries about it from my friends on Discord. For chess lovers on the blockchain, this new season marks a return of competitive games where our chess skills and strategies are put to test. I’ve been practicing for weeks to improve my game, but it seems that when you get into the game, all that you had learned magically disappears, and then the blunders come naturally. In this post, I’ll share my thoughts on the games, the challenges I faced, and what I'm looking forward to in the upcoming matches.
Before the tournament started, one player I hoped not to face was Stayoutoftherz. Ever since I joined the Hive Chess tourney, I've won against him twice. And trust me when I say we’ve played so many games. The last time we played, I was whipped mercilessly, and then I concluded that maybe fate didn't want me to ever win again after those two wins. I sat down comfortably on my couch, where I had a good network connection. It was just me and my Lichess app and I was ready to give it my all.
My first game of Hive Chess season 19 round 1 was against Rosmarly, and unfortunately, it didn't go well. I started the game well; my opening was strong and working well. I was super happy when I captured 2 of his pawns- he was two pawns down. Everything was going well until the endgame when I blundered my king. That mistake led to my defeat. I was disappointed. Before I blundered, I felt confident that I'd win the game. Plus, he had little time left on the clock. I was so close to not losing, but you know what they say “Almost doesn't kill a bird.”
Next, I played against a lower-rated player, RDcast. Usually, I go berserk against lower-rated players, but I didn't want to take risks this time since I lost my first game. Again, my opening was strong- I played the Horwitz defense. I didn't want to take my opponent lightly because he was a low-rated player, so I threaded carefully. I was relaxed when he blundered his bishop and rook. I was happy and sure I had everything in control, until my 3rd game. My 3rd and 4th games went wrong.
Unfortunately, I got paired against a 2000-rated player, Yetundefemi. I didn't want to give up before the game started, so I squinted my eyes and tried to stay focused. Before I knew it, I blundered an official- my rook. Then I resigned. Maybe I shouldn't have resigned and played till the end. I was down and frustrated already. I had just one win in 3 games. My fourth game was against Ajedrezclub2t and I flunked it.
My fifth game was against a lower-rated player, Romeo. I had just 2 points and needed more, so I berserked the game. Now, my opponent blundered his Knight and Bishop. Happily, I captured them. I let my guard down for two reasons- he was a lower-rated player and I was two officials up. I blundered my Bishop. He captured my Knight and Rook with his Queen. Luckily, I managed to push his King into a tight position and secured the win by checkmating the king.
My sixth game was against the top player. I knew it was over before the game started.😂 He went berserk and still won against me. The seventh game was against Ajedrezclub2t. And I lost to him the second time. Which means that he defeated me twice in today's round. Really disheartening.
Things started to get interesting in my EIGHT game. I was paired against my guy from Neoxian City, @b0s. Our last game didn't go in my favour. He won and even boldly said, “I won easily.” I didn't want that to happen again. I was determined to win this time, so I stood up from my couch and got focused. I was so happy when he blundered his Rook. I forked his knight and captured his queen, then he resigned. Better luck next time, B0s. My ninth game was against my game 5 opponent, Romeo. This time, I berserked again and won the game.
I closed out the tournament with a win against @olujay, the detective. Everything was going well for him until he blundered his queen. I seized the opportunity and played carefully till I won the game.
Summarily, the first round of this tournament didn't go too well, but at least I won 5 games (and lost 5). I also won against @b0s and @olujay. I didn't play my best chess today. I let my guard down in several games. I have taken note of these things and will try to do better in my next games. I'm already looking forward to the next round.
Thumbnail created using MetaAi. All images in this post are screenshots from my Lichess account.
Thanks for reading.
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