One Win Away: Indian Men Crush Uzbekistan 2 to Near Olympiad Gold

The Scenario

Currently, the Uzbekistan team is leading the tournament with 18 match points; India is in 2nd place with 17 match points. Ukraine, Germany, and Hungary are on 16 points. In the final round, India is facing Hungary, while Uzbekistan is facing Ukraine. If India wins, the medal is confirmed, and there are chances of gold if Uzbekistan loses. If Uzbekistan draws their game and India wins, it will come down to tiebreak scores. Overall, an exciting day ahead

Open Section: Uzbekistan 2 vs. India (0.5-3.5)

It was a dominating win over Uzbekistan's 2nd team. Nihal Sarin, World Champion D. Gukesh, and India's No. 1 R. Praggnanandhaa scored wins for the Indian team, and Arjun drew his game. We are expecting the same team for the final round too, but it will be out at midnight

Board 1: Jakhongir Vakhidov vs. R. Praggnanandhaa (0-1)

Vakhidov decided to play an aggressive game, and in the process he created a lot of weaknesses in his position. Pragg managed to get the advantage, but it slipped, and the game was equal. Eventually, Pragg managed to outplay him in the rook endgame and won the game.

Board 2: Arjun Erigaisi vs. Abdimalik Abdisalimov (0.5-0.5)

Arjun had some great chances to win this game and make it 4-0 for Team India, but he missed the correct continuation, and the game ended in a draw.

Board 3: Mukhammadzokhid Suyarov vs. Nihal Sarin (0-1)

Nihal got a great advantage out of the opening, and after Suyarov blundered his pawn, Nihal managed to win the game smoothly with black pieces.

Board 4: D. Gukesh vs. Ortik Nigmatov (1-0)

Gukesh played a great game with white pieces and seized the advantage after Nigmatov blundered in the middlegame. With this win, Gukesh is now on 8.5/10.

Replay Uzbekistan 2 vs. India Games

Ranking list after Round 10

In the final round, the Indian Open team will face Hungary.

Pairings for Round 11

Women's Section: China vs. India (2-2)

Savitha Shri scored another important win to keep the chances of a podium finish alive. On the 4th board, she won her game after the Indian team was trailing by 2-1. A win helped to draw the game, and now if the Indian team wins their last game, we can secure a medal in the Women's section too.

Board 1: Zhu Jiner vs. Koneru Humpy (0.5-0.5)

Humpy made a solid draw with the black pieces on the top board

Board 2: Divya Deshmukh vs. Yuxin Sonh (0.5-0.5)

Divya was in a little trouble in the opening, but she managed to navigate her way through the middlegame, and the game ended in a draw.

Board 3: Lu Miaoyi vs Vantika Agrawal (1-0)

Vantika lost a complex game against Lu Miaoyi, and it was her 1st loss of the tournament

Board 4: Savitha Shri vs. Zhai Mo (1-0)

It was a crazy game. Crazy is totally the right word here, as the position was so complex; after almost every move, the evaluation was changing, but Zhai made the last mistake, and Savitha scored another win and goes on 8.5/9.

Replay China vs. India Games

Ranking list after Round 10

In the final round, the Indian women’s team will take on Georgia.

Pairings for Round 11

Replay live stream

Format

System: Swiss format, 11 rounds

Team size: 5 players per squad, 4 play each round

Time control: 90 min for 40 moves + 30 min for the rest, with a 30-sec increment from move 1

Important links

Official website, Tournament regulations, Buy tickets

Check out Open Teams, Pairings/Results, Standings

Check out Women's Teams, Pairings/Results, Standings