NEW DELHI: On Monday, India’s open team was paired against hot favourites and tournament hosts Uzbekistan in Round 6 of the 46th Chess Olympiad in Samarkand.The anticipation around this fixture had been building since before the tournament began, perhaps because these two nations have won the last two Olympiads between them, or because Dommaraju Gukesh will face Javokhir Sindarov for the World Championship later this year, or simply because these are, right now, two of the most potent chess nations on the planet.India had arrived at the board sitting in the leading group after five rounds, level with Uzbekistan and Germany at the top of the standings, which only added to the stakes. Hence, captain Srinath Narayanan put the strongest line-up forward, with Praggnanandhaa on Board 1, Arjun Erigaisi on 2, Nihal Sarin on 3, and Gukesh on 4.Consequently, Vidit Gujrathi had a rest day, thanks to which he was momentarily part of the ChessBase India commentary team at the venue.His eyes lit up when Nodirbek Yakubboev, playing White, pushed 35.f4 against Nihal. With every other board on the day ending in or heading towards a draw, this was the one game left with a winner in it.Nihal replied 35…e3, and Vidit’s eyes only became brighter. Yakubboev’s 36.fxg5+ put India in a genuinely promising position.But then what followed was a sequence no Indian fan would have wanted to see — 36…Kxg5 37.g3 Nf5.Vidit felt Nihal, sensing a clear advantage, got swept up in the moment and pushed a little too hard. Soon after, his queen was captured (40.Qxc7), and the entire commentary panel, Vidit included, could only put their hands on their heads.The disappointment was more palpable because Nihal still had plenty of time left on the clock. This wasn’t a case of time pressure forcing a mistake, just a hanging piece missed in the heat of a winning position. But that is what it was.Amid all that activity, Nihal’s queen was left completely undefended on c7. Yakubboev’s 40.Qxc7 simply took it for free.From a position where Black had real winning chances just a few moves earlier, the game swung entirely in White’s favour, and Yakubboev converted the resulting material advantage into a full point without much further resistance.It proved decisive. With Praggnanandhaa, Erigaisi and Gukesh all drawing their games on the other three boards, Nihal’s loss was the difference. Uzbekistan won the match 2.5-1.5, handing India their first team defeat of the tournament in the open section.
India’s women back to winning ways
India’s women, by contrast, had a comfortable day at the office after a Round 5 defeat to Poland, beating the United States 3-1 on Monday.Koneru Humpy and Divya Deshmukh both drew their games against higher-pedigree opposition in Carissa Yip and Alice Lee, but the difference came further down the order, with Vantika Agrawal beating the experienced Irina Krush, and Savitha Shri getting the better of Rose Atwell.Tuesday is the tournament’s only scheduled rest day, a timely break for India’s open side after a result that will sting more for how close it came to going the other way than for the actual damage on the scoreboard.Play resumes on Wednesday with Round 7, when India’s open team takes on England, and the women’s team faces Germany.
