The Benefits of Consistent Play

I've been playing online everyday now for 34 days straight which is certainly a lifetime record. Usually I play two games and today and managed to win both so that my rapid ranking reached 1351 which is the highest it's been for a while. I only play rapid 15 | 10 and Figure 1 shows a summary of my results on chess.com.

Figure 1: my status as of 6th January 2026

Two things have happened recently. The first is that I began not to take my defeats too personally. I committed to playing everyday and reasoned that the more I played the more proficient I would become or at least my play wouldn't get any worse. The second is that I'm rediscovering the style of play that suits me best: safe and positional. By this I mean not opening up the position too much, maintaining a strong defense and patiently maneuvering my pieces into their optimum positions. 

When doing this successfully, I can almost sense the frustration in my opponent as he probes for weaknesses but doesn't find any and can't develop a coherent game plan. Figure 2 shows a position from one of my two games today where it is White's turn to move.

Figure 2: White to move

The position is relatively equal but none of White's attack on the Kingside failed and my position is pretty much locked down. White has been piling up pressure on the c file and trying to break through. With under three minutes on his clock, he rashly plays 27 Rxd5 to which I replied 27 ... Be6 and he resigned. A lot of players don't like this positional, defensive style of play and eventually lash out inadvisedly.

The second game reveals how I often overreach when I should be defensive. Figure 2 shows the position when it is White's 23rd move. Black has a pressure on the f2 square thanks to his Rook and Queen battery. The King and Queen are defending this square but I played 23. Re7 and this was a mistake. Naturally I wanted to place my Rook on the seventh rank but this was too ambitious. I should have played 23. Re2 and further defend the f2 square and prepare to double up on the e file. However, after Black's 23 ... Rd8, he is threatening to penetrate to d2 with his Rook with drastic consequences. I had to retreat with my Rook to guard the d2 square and was on the backfoot a little after this. Fortunately I won and was lucky that I had the luxury of retreating when I needed to.

Figure 2

World Chess Champions

Using a chess notebook that I have set up in Gemini's NotebookLM, I got it to create a timeline of male world champions with photos, country flag and length of reign. See Figure 1.

Figure 1

I asked NotebookLM to create a similar timeline for the women but instead it came up with key milestones for women in chess. See Figure 2.

Figure 2

My notebook has access to 48 sources so there is plenty of scope for more research, summaries etc.

Englund Gambit

Today, on chess.com I played White against the Englund Gambit and swiftly lost. I thought I'd better acquaint myself with this opening in order to avoid future disasters. I asked trusty Gemini the following question:

What is the best response to the Englund Gambit in chess opening theory.

The best response to the Englund Gambit ($1. d4$ $e5$) is to accept the gambit and enter the Main Line Refutation ($4. Bf4$).

This line is objectively the strongest because it allows you to keep the extra pawn while Black's position collapses due to a lack of development and a misplaced Queen.

The Refutation Sequence

Memorize this exact sequence to punish the opening:

$1. d4$ $e5$ (The Englund Gambit)

$2. dxe5$ $Nc6$

$3. Nf3$ $Qe7$ (Black attacks the pawn for the second time)

$4. Bf4!$ (The critical test. You defend the pawn and develop.)
Note: Black will now try their main trick with $4... Qb4+$.
$4... Qb4+$ $5. Bd2$ $Qxb2$ (Black grabs the b2 pawn and attacks the Rook.)
$6. Nc3!$ (This is the winning move. Do not play $6. Bc3??$ which loses immediately to $Bb4$.)

Why This Wins

By playing $6. Nc3$, you defend the Rook on a1 indirectly (if Black takes the Rook, you trap their Queen). You are now threatening to play $Rb1$ to harass the Queen and $Nb5$ to fork Black's King and Rook.

Black is usually forced to retreat or play awkward defensive moves while you have a massive lead in development and an extra center pawn.

The One Trap to Avoid

The only way White loses this position is by playing $6. Bc3??$.

• If you play $6. Bc3$, Black plays $6... Bb4!$, pinning your Bishop. You will lose your piece and the game.

• Remember: Always play the Knight to c3 ($6. Nc3$) to protect your Rook.

Relevant Video

Ending the Englund Gambit | GM Naroditsky

This video is relevant because Grandmaster Naroditsky details the exact $4. Bf4$ refutation and explains the tactical nuances of the $Nc3$ vs $Bc3$ distinction to ensure you convert the advantage.

My addendum: here another video by Remote Chess Academy that deals with the gambit.

Always Check for Check

Here's an example of how quickly one's fortune can turn in a game of chess. Figure 1 shows a position in which I had the Black pieces and had a decisive advantage.

Figure 1

Had I played Qc5+ my advantage would have been - 4.73. Instead I panicked and played Rf1+ and my advantage was suddenly a disadvantage of + 5.63 had White captured with his King. As it was he captured with his Rook and I had some counterplay. See Figure 2.

Figure 2

The lesson to be learned here is to always look for a check, especially when faced with a Knight fork. A check cannot be ignored. It must be dealt with by the opponent, by moving the King, capturing the attacker or by blocking with my pawn or piece. Currently my rating on chess.com is 1329, down from a recent high of 1353. I seem to be stuck around the middle 1300's. It's rare that I'm on the back foot right from the start. In most of my games, I have a decisive advantage at some point but manage to squander due to poor choices or blunders.

It occurred to me how little chess I actually play. I'm hardly battle-hardened and I need to be if I'm going to improve my rating. I play terribly on a phone but I should make use of the chess app that is on my phone or even open a new account on one of the online platforms where I can just play, get extra practice and not worry about my rating.

Back in the Saddle Again

I've only recently started playing 15 | 10 on chess.com again after playing very little since my return from Australia. Currently my rating is 1355, much lower than it is on lichess.org but no matter. I'll stick with the former for the time being. I think it's important to play early in the day before I become too tired. Late morning or early afternoon would seem ideal.

Sometimes the mistakes I make are disturbing. For example, Figure 1 shows an example of a game that I played today in which, playing black, I needed to defend my pawn on g6 that was under threat of capture from the White Queen.

Figure 1: I'm Black and White has just played Q-c2

Instead of playing my Knight to e7 and defending the pawn, I played my Bishop to e7 allowing the pawn to be captured. Had I moved my Knight, White would probably have played his Bishop to g5 pinning my Knight. I would then have played my King to f7 protecting the pawn. If White captured my Knight with his Bishop, I would recapture with my Bishop and if he checked me by moving his Knight to g5, I would have captured the Knight and held the pawn, Chess blindness, I guess you'd call it. Anyway, the more games I play the less likely I will succumb to such blunders.