Chess Olympiad: Indian in with a chance for historic twin gold

The second-seeded Indian men shocked the top seed United States 2.5-1.5, to retain their two-point lead

India will go into Sunday (September 22, 2024) final round of the Chess Olympiad in Budapest with chances of striking gold in both the open and women’s sections.

The second-seeded Indian men shocked the top seed United States 2.5-1.5, to retain their two-point lead. Only a miracle could prevent them from winning the gold.

In the final round, the Indian will play Slovenia, seeded 26th. They should not have too many problems to retain their unbeaten record in the tournament.

India’s win against the Americans was spearheaded by D. Gukesh, who turned the table on the World No. 3 Fabiano Caruana on the top board. The 18-year-old from Chennai has been in top form in the same tournament, continuing from where he left off at the last Olympiad, which India had hosted in 2022.

It was Arjun Erigaisi who ensured India’s victory against the Americans. He beat Leinier Domínguez on the third board.

R. Praggnanandhaa had lost on the second board to Wesley So. On the fourth board, Vidit Gujrathi held Levon Aronian to a draw.

The Indian women bounced back to the joint lead after beating China 2.5-1.5. Not for the first time, it was Divya Deshmukh who turned out to be the heroine for the top seed.

She scored India’s lone victory, as she prevailed over Ni Shiqun on the third board.

All the other games were drawn — D. Harika vs Zhu Jiner; R. Vaishali vs Guo Qi; Vantika Agrawal vs Lu Miaoyi.

India was joined at the top of the table by Kazakhstan, who drew with Georgia 2-2. India and Kazakhstan have 17 points each and they are followed half-a-point by the United States and Poland.

In the final round, India will take on sixth seed Azerbaijan, while Kazakhstan will meet the United States.

Published - September 22, 2024 07:50 am IST