Gukesh stuns Shirov as India B stay on top with all-win record
D Gukesh doesn’t seem to care for reputations. His adversary on Tuesday was Alexei Shirov, a former world No. 2 and a World Championship runner-up. At 50, the player from Latvia, who is representing Spain at the 44th Chess Olympiad here, still exudes an intimidating aura. But none of it came in the way of the 16-year-old chess prodigy from Chennai notching up his fifth consecutive victory in the tournament. It lifted Gukesh’s live rating to 2714. He first crossed a rating of 2700 last month, becoming the third youngest to do so.
With his teammate B Adhiban also winning on Tuesday, India B have an all-win record after five rounds, retaining the top spot in the standings. R Praggnanandhaa lost to Spain’s Jaime Santos Latasa while Nihal Sarin was held by David Anton Guijarro as India B won 2.5-1.5. India A, seeded second behind the stumbling USA, also won on Tuesday but India B are clearly laying the marker for the rest. World No. 1 Magnus Carlsen knew what he was talking about before the tournament when he said that India’s young guns were the ones to watch out for.
Gukesh was willing to take calculated gambles against Shirov. By moving his black pawn to b5 off his 19th move, he allowed his king’s side to be attacked with the aim of baiting Shirov.
“B5 was surely a provocative move. I had the same mentality from the start. My strategy was to provoke him. He is a very aggressive player and couldn’t resist,” Gukesh told reporters.
On his 23rd move, Gukesh also initiated an exchange of queens. Shirov took the offer, allowing the youngster to gain a distinct advantage.
Gukesh’s burgeoning rise makes for compelling viewing, especially considering fellow teens Praggnanandhaa and Sarin are also improving at the same pace.
“All of us are rivals on the board and very good friends off the board. All of us know each other very well. We play as a team. There is no shortage of team spirit. We have full trust in each other. It is a very good thing,” said Gukesh.
India C also triumphed, making it a hattrick of wins for the hosts in the open section on Tuesday.
Although the USA and Norway won, they have some catching up to do. The top seeds are sixth in the standings while Carlsen’s Norway are languishing in 28th.
Sachdev shines again
In the women’s section, India A defeated France 2.5-1.5, but there was disappointment for the other two teams. India B lost to Georgia 1-3 while India C drew 2-2 with Brazil.
Like on Monday’s fourth round, India A’s victory hinged on Tania Sachdev. The 35-year-old from Delhi managed to put it past France’s Andreea Navrotescu while Koneru Humpy, Harika Dronavalli and R Vaishali all managed draws. Sachdev’s chances of victory swelled when her opponent moved the bishop to d6 and the Indian rammed home the advantage. India A have won all five matches and currently occupy the top spot in the women’s standings.
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