2 weeks Ago
NAGPUR: In a battle of Indian prodigies, Raunak Sadhwani handed Nihal Sarin his first defeat in the Global Chess League as the Mumba Masters tried to halt PBG Alaskan Knights ’ winning march in the eighth round on Wednesday. However, despite the 9-10 defeat, the Knights (18) continued to lead the table and are well-placed to qualify for the final. Of the two remaining rounds, the Knights just need a win to make it to the two-match title clash to be fought between the top two finishers of the league.
The Alireza Firouzja-led Triveni Continental Kings and Magnus Carlsen's Alpine Pipers won their respective matches, closing the gap with the Knights, as both teams now have 15 points each, sharing the second position. While Raunak cornered Nihal’s king for a desired queen attack in the endgame to emerge victorious in 50 moves, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave vanquished Anish Giri in a 61-move icon board encounter. On the women’s board, India No.
1 Koneru Humpy surprised higher-ranked Chinese GM Tan Zhongyi in 55 moves to propel the Masters to an exhilarating victory. The day’s second match delivered decisive results on all six boards as Triveni Continental Kings edged out Ganges Grandmasters with their black pieces 12-9. Although both teams secured three victories apiece, the extra point awarded to players wielding black pieces proved pivotal in the Kings clinching the eighth round by three points.
This triumph elevated the Kings' match points tally to 15, positioning them in close pursuit of the table-topping Knights (18). On the top board, Alireza Firouzja defeated Vishy Anand, while Teimour Radjabov and Alexandra Kosteniuk emerged victorious in their respective games, defending with their black pieces as the Kings eliminated the Ganges from the league. In the last match, Praggnanandhaa R stunned higher-ranked Polish GM Duda Jan-Krzysztof with his black pieces as Carlsen-led Pipers defeated American Gambits 11-6.
After Carlsen and Hikaru Nakamura repeated their moves to play a quick draw, Pragg became a knight up in the 43rd move to outclass Duda in a marathon 63-move encounter. On the lower board, Dardha defeated Jonas on time as Pipers joined Kings to close the gap with Knights. RESULTS (Round 8) (white named first; 3 points for white's win; 4 points for black win; one point each for a draw): Mumba Masters bt Alaskan Knights 10-9: Maxime vs Giri 3-0; Vidit vs Abdusattorov 0-4; Svidler vs Mamedyarov 0-4; Humpy vs Zhongyi 3-0; Harika vs Kashlinskaya 1-1; Raunak vs Nihal 3-0.
Ganges Grandmasters lost to Triveni Continental Kings 9-12: Anand vs Firouzja 0-4; Arjun vs Wei 3-0; Parham vs Teimour 0-4; Vaishali vs Kosteniuk 0-4; Salimova vs Valentina 3-0; Volodar vs Sindarov 3-0. American Gambits lost to Alpine Pipers 6-11: Hikaru vs Carlsen 1-1; Duda vs Pragg 0-4; Yangyi vs Rapport 1-1; Bibisara vs Yifan 1-1; Elisabeth vs Kateryna 3-0; Jonas vs Dardha 0-4..
