New Delhi: Indian Grandmaster R Praggnanandhaa bounced back to prevail over world champion and compatriot D Gukesh 2-1 in the tiebreaker of the Tata Steel Masters to win the chess tournament in Wijk aan Zee, the Netherlands. The two youngsters ended at levels with 8.5 points each following the conclusion of the 13th and final round of the event.
Both Praggnanandhaa and Gukesh suffered loss in their respective classical games in the last round. While Gukesh lost to another countrymen Arjun Erigaisi, Praggnanandhaa was handed defeat by Vincent Keymer of Germany. However, both of them accounted for 5.5 points each to hold the top position at the leaderboard.
The Tiebreaker: A Battle of Indian Chess Geniuses
This led to the two brightest prospects of Indian chess to compete in the tiebreaker for the title later in the day. In the first game, Praggnanandhaa faced the Benoni in reversed colours. As it seemed the 2023 World Cup runner-up levelled in the middle of the game, Gukesh eventually won after pouncing on the blunder of his Indian opponent which helped him to capture his full rook.
The defeat didn’t deter Praggnanandhaa to shake his confidence and he came up with the Trompowsky opening with the white pieces. He waited patiently and capitalised on the unforced errors from Gukesh, starting with a taking of the pawn and swiftly ran through the black pieces’ defence to make it 1-1 thanks to the impeccable positioning.
Praggnanandhaa’s Maiden Tata Steel Masters Victory
The tiebreaker entered the sudden death. Gukesh started with his tactic of imaginative play, netting the pawn by playing on the queen side.
Praggnanandhaa went for the defence, though he was lagging behind in the endgame, as the time control of two minutes and thirty seconds was for white pieces against three (minutes) for the black.
Gukesh lost his pawn and knight to lost the strength on the board as the other Indian teenager made no mistake to pocket the full point and completed his maiden triumph at the Masters’ level.
Gukesh has now lost the tournament for the second time in a row after ending as the joint-leader only to lose the tiebreaker in both instances. In the previous edition, the Tamil Nadu player suffered a defeat to Wei Yi of China.
Czech’s Thai Dai Van Nguyen was the winner of the Challengers’ division and will be invited to the Masters in the next edition.
Indian Grandmaster R Praggnanandhaa defeated compatriot and world champion D Gukesh in a thrilling tiebreaker at the Tata Steel Masters chess tournament in Wijk aan Zee. Both players finished the classical rounds tied, leading to a dramatic playoff. Praggnanandhaa, after an initial loss in the tiebreaker, recovered to win 2-1, securing his first Masters title. Other Sports Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
