Gukesh retains his position as joint leader; Vidit and Praggnanandhaa score big wins – Firstpost
Indian grandmasters R Praggnanandhaa and Vidit Gujrathi scored big victories in the sixth round of the Candidates Chess Tournament as D Gukesh continues to be on top.
Indians Vidit Gujrathi and R Praggnanandhaa scored crushing victories against Firouaz Alizera and Nijat Abasov respectively in the sixth round of the 2024 Candidates Chess Tournament in Toronto on Wednesday. Gukesh, meanwhile, held world number three Hikaru Nakamura to a draw to retain the tournament’s top spot with Ian Nepomniachtchia as the Indian grandmasters continued to impress.
Nepomniachtchi also drew against top-seeded American Fabiano Caruana.
The Indian players, however, disappointed on Wednesday. R Vaishali, sister of R Praggnanandhaa, lost to Russian Kateryna Lagno, who, like Ian, plays under the FIDE flag. Koneru Humpy also lost her match against Chinese Tingje Lei. In another match, Aleksandra Goryachkina defeated Bulgarian Nurgyul Salimova while China’s Zhongyi Tan won against Ukraine’s Anna Muzychuk.
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Praggnanandhaa started as favorite against Abasov and ended the match that way. He was at his technical best against the Azerbaijani opponent and for the young Chennai player, it is all about playing well.
“Every day I hope for a calmer game but I don’t get them, it’s just that we have to play well whatever position we get,” he said.
Against Nakamura, Gukesh achieved almost nothing with white’s pieces, the latter employing a Sicilian defense.
Against Alireza, who also employed a classic Sicilian, Gujrathi opted for the Sozin variation. He then spoke about his strategy. “I used to play the classic myself, I just thought it would have a little element of surprise,” Gujrathi said.
Alizera made a mistake early in the competition, which allowed Gujrathi to improve her game and ultimately win a rally and a pawn to clinch the victory.
With his victory, Praggnanandhaa is now third with Caruana on 3.5 points, while Gujrathi is fifth with Nakamura on three points. Alireza and Abasov now find themselves in a difficult situation with just 1.5 points each to their name so far, with the tournament now approaching the halfway point.
In the women’s section, Zhongyi Tan leads with 4.5 points in the women’s section. Aleksandra Goryachkina is her next closest competitor with four points. Vaishali and Humpy, with 2.5 and 2 points respectively, find themselves in a precarious position with the other competitors catching up.
Round 6 results (Indians unless otherwise noted):
Men: Vidit Gujrathi (3) defeated Firouza Alireza (Fra, 1.5); D Gukesh (4) drew with Hikaru Nakamura (USA, 3); R Praggnanandhaa (3.5) defeated Nijat Abasov (Aze, 1.5); Ian Nepomniachtchi (Fid, 4) drew with Fabiano Caruana (Usa, 3.5).
Women: R Vaishali (2.5) lost to Kateryna Lagno (Fid, 3.5); K Humpy (2) lost to Tingjie Lei (Chn, 3); Zhongyi Tan (Chn, 4.5) beat Anna Muzychuk (Ukr, 2); Aleksandra Goryachkina (Fid, 4) beat Nurgyul Salimova (Bul, 2.5).
