44th Chess Olympiad final today; India in contention for podium finish in both sections

D. Gukesh (Image via Twitter/FIDE)

From the stratosphere to an amateurish blunder: Dommaraju Gukesh’s dream run at the 44^th World Chess Olympiad couldn’t have suffered a worse setback when on Monday he lost to Uzbekistan’s Nodirbek Abdusattarov.

For the best part of the six-hour contest, Gukesh was in the driver’s seat. Within the first 30 moves, he had created for himself an advantage big enough to be easily converted into a win, but from there on he somehow missed the most powerful lines of play.

His opponent was clearly on the mat and Gukesh had many options to carve out a win, but instead allowed Abdusattarov to slowly claw back into the game. As the tide turned, Gukesh could have easily shifted gear and escaped with a draw. But on the 72^nd move, he blundered in what looked like a tricky but balanced position to immediately hand the game to Abdusattarov.

It was a move that even a club level player could be ashamed of, and Gukesh was so devastated that he hid his face in his hands and quietly sat at the board, forgetting to complete the formalities for a considerable length of time.

Even a draw would have given Gukesh’s India 2 the much-needed victory in their match against overnight leaders Uzbekistan because by then R. Praggnanandhaa had won and the two other games had ended in draws.

Had Gukesh managed to secure a draw, India 2 would have jumped to the pole position going into Tuesday’s final round. Instead, the match ended in 2:2 tie, allowing the Uzbeks to stay at the top of the league table with 17 match points, jointly with Armenia.

The Indian youngsters still remain in the hunt: jointly with India 1—the more experienced side between the two—and the US, they trail the leaders by a point.

While the youngsters of India 2 suffered their worst heartbreak of the tournament, the Indian women, favourites from the start to win the title, staged a remarkable comeback with a 3.5-0.5 victory over Kazakhstan, after Sunday’s shocking defeat against Poland.

In the women’s section, India 1 enters the last round as the sole leaders with 17 match points, followed closely by four countries with 16 match points apiece: Poland, Azerbaijan, Ukraine and Georgia.

After Sunday’s victory, Poland had caught up with India 1 at the top of the league table, but on Monday, they were held to a 2:2 tie by Georgia, allowing India 1 to edge past them yet again.

In Tuesday’s final round, the Indian women are to take on the US. Their authoritative win in the penultimate round is bound to give them a lot of confidence as they seek an outright win. They are fielding Koneru Humpy, R. Vaishali, Tania Sachdev and Bhakti Kulkarni in the last round—the winning combination from the 10^th round—and resting Harika Dronavalli, the second highest rated player in the side, who has drawn all the seven games she has played.

Sachdev, who was the first to wrap up a win on Monday against Kazakhstan, is the highest scorer for the team: she has delivered 8/10 individual points, remaining unbeaten and conceding only four draws. On the fourth board, Kulkarni stepped in to make up for what Dronavalli couldn’t deliver: she won all the four games in which she was fielded.

Vaishali has been consistent throughout the tournament, and has displayed a lot of grit while defending uncomfortable positions. She has faltered only in the ninth round against Poland, and has so far scored 7/10 individual points with one loss and four draws.

Humpy, India’s highest-rated woman with 5.5/9 points, needs to deliver in the final round to live up to her billing. She was brilliant in her game on Monday, and will be going into the final round with a reassuring win behind her.

In the open section, India 2 are paired against Germany, a strong side seeded ninth by average rating. India 2 are making a change on the fourth board, bringing back Raunak Sadhwani, another teenager, to replace B. Adhiban, the only player on the team in the 20s.

Gukesh, Praggnanandhaa and Nihal Sarin are to lead the charge. It’s a must-win situation, and the key to staging a comeback is Gukesh’s ability to put Monday’s loss behind him. That, to be sure, is not going to be easy, given the paucity of recovery time. Gukesh is still among the top performers in the open section with an individual score of 8.5/10 points, and is more or less sure of winning an individual medal.

Though the victory was far from perfect, India 1 beat Iran on Monday to claw back into contention for a podium finish. The top-rated player in the side, Pentala Harikrishna, lost on the top board, but wins by Vidit Gujrati and S.L. Narayanan and a draw by Arjun Erigaisi ensured they prevailed over Iran.

India 1 are to take on the mighty US, the highest ranked side by average internal ratings, fielding the same combination as in the penultimate round. Though led by stars such as Fabiano Caruana, Wesley So and Levon Aronian, the US have not lived up to their billing at the Olympiad. They are resting Aronian in the final round.

Yet again, both sides must push for an outright win, and though the youngsters of India 2 have trounced the US 3:1 in the eighth round, it wouldn’t be easy for the more experienced home team. With the contest still wide open, the final round promises to be a grinding battle of nerves.