Gukesh and Praggnanandhaa keep India’s hopes alive but Ian Nepomniachtchi is in charge – Firstpost

The Indian duo of D Gukesh and R Praggnanandhaa performed quite well at the 2024 Candidates Tournament in Toronto, to the surprise of many, with the legendary Viswanathan Anand believing that the Indians were a ‘long shot’ given the nature fierce from their competitors.

India did not come into this tournament as favorites, Gukesh and Praggnanandhaa held strong despite the difficulties, but it is a different case for Vidit Gujrathi, who is now favorite after his thrilling victory against world number 3 Hikaru Nakamura.

With four rounds played out of 14, there are still 10 matches to play. Things are going well for the Indians, but not in the purest way possible.

Russian Ian Nepomniachtchi, who must play under FIDE colors due to sanctions against his country, is firmly at the top of the standings with three points out of four possible and he could not have hoped for a better start to the campaign. .

With wins against Gujrathi and Firouza Alireza of France and two draws, the Russian secured a heads-up for what could possibly be a third attempt to fight for the world champion crown.

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Historically, no one has ever won the candidates three times in a row.

Nepomniachtchi became the first sole leader of the event after his second victory with white pieces and he is now followed by Fabiano Caruana and Gukesh with 2.5 points each.

Praggnanandhaa is not far behind with two points and is in fourth place while Gujrathi, Abasov, Alireza and Nakamura each have an identical score of 1.5 points. The youngster has his mother, Nagalakshmi, who travels with him as usual and considers her a great emotional support.

“It’s important to have someone in the room, especially when you’re losing. I am grateful for their support,” he said during an interaction with the official FIDE website.

If anyone had asked Gukesh about his tournament debut, he probably would have settled for a 2.5 out of four, but then it’s hard to imagine he would have envisioned Nepomniachtchi being right in front of him.

However, the Indian prop is close and showed nerves of steel, especially when he bowled Praggnanandhaa out of a no man’s land position. His chances depend on him falling after a bad day.

Praggnanandhaa, 18, is a person who reacts instinctively to a bad outcome.

Bouncing back from a bad loss to Gukesh, Praggnanandhaa has earned the respect he deserves at the highest level and his chances will depend on his acumen in handling whatever position comes on board.

Caruana still remains a feared competitor given his history and pedigree. However, one cannot rule out the fact that he did not have a dominant start despite being the favorite and top seed.

Nakamura, who is also an ardent streamer, doesn’t seem as focused as the others, but a few good matches can still see him bounce back in the scheme of things. For Gujrathi, the road may be tough, but as everyone saw at the FIDE Grand Swiss, the Indian has too much firepower and will come roaring back.

Matches round 5: Firouza Alireza (FRA, 1.5) against Hikaru Nakamura (USA); D Gukesh (IND) vs. Nijat Abasov (AZE); Vidit Gujrathi (IND) versus Fabiano Caruana (United States); R Praggnanandhaa (IND) against Ian Nepomniachtchi (FIDE).

With PTI inputs