Padmini beats Stupak and Pranesh beats Arjun in round 9 of 11th Chennai Open 2019
Shahid Ahmed·4 min read
GM Levan Pantsulaia defeated overnight leader GM Maxim Lugovskoy in a Rook and pawn endgame which propelled Levan into sole lead by a half-point heading into the final round. IM Padmini Rout defeated GM Stupak Kirill in King's Indian Attack/Reverse Benoni, when outplayed his opponent in the middle game and gained too many pawns. Untitled Pranesh M surprised GM Erigaisi Arjun when Arjun lost his Queen after his weakened King was threatened with a checkmate. Pranesh scored his maiden IM norm with a round to spare. We bring you the most exciting games from round 9 of the tournament. Photo: David Llada and Amruta Mokal
Reigning Asian Continental women's champion IM Padmini Rout defeated GM Stupak Kirill emphatically | Photo: David Llada
The game started as Reverse Benoni/King's Indian Attack and soon allocated almost all her resources on the queenside of the board which black managed to stall for a while.
It seems like Black managed to stop all attempts for white. So how should white continue here?
Black has a space advantage on the kingside but that also makes his king vulnerable. How can white exploit it?
White is ahead by a pawn and has advantage too but how can white maintain it?
Pranesh secures his maiden IM norm by defeating GM Erigaisi Arjun
Pranesh's phenomenal performance continued as he ran through GM Erigaisi Arjun in the penultimate round | Photo: Amruta Mokal
13-year old Pranesh secured his maiden IM-norm by defeating GM Erigaisi Arjun. He will face GM Susanto Megaranto in the final round
Arjun decided to sacrifice an exchange to stop all kinds of possibilities for a future attack but Pranesh was determined to attack.
Arjun sacrificed an exchange to prevent future attack with 30...Rg4
Pranesh took it and Arjun recapture with the h-pawn. How should white continue here?
White is looking for a way to attack and Black's last move 33...Kf7 gave him an opportunity. What should white play here?
GM Levan Pantsulaia played dominantly and defeated GM Maxim Lugovskoy to get into the sole lead heading into the final round | Photo: Niklesh Jain
Maxim wanted to capitalize on the backward d-pawn, but the plan was flawed. What is the best continuation for black here?
Despite the position being completely open, Levan's Knights are dominating the pace of the game
Suddenly white's knight is trapped, white cannot move it. White must liquidate into a losing Rook and Pawn endgame.