Makwana, Gangolli in joint lead
Marimuthu K. pushed Makwana hard but ultimately ran into time pressure and had to offer a draw
Gujarat’s Ashvin K. Makwana and Kishan Gangolli were in joint lead with 6.5 points after the eighth round of the 12th AICFB national A chess championship in Mumbai.
On the top board, West Bengal’s Yudhajeet De defeated Amit Deshpande of Maharastra.
Playing with white pieces, Deshpande opted for a Caro-Kann defence and despite a safety first approach in the middle game, he blundered on a pawn move to allow his opponent through.
Maharastra’s Swapnil Shah played out a draw with statemate Shirish Patil. Playing with white pieces, Shah opted for a Ruy Lopez opening and the contest was equal up to the middle game but he miscalculated a move and lost a full piece for no compensation. Thereafter, Patil took control but made a blunder from a winning position, and had to share the point.
Karnataka’s Krishna Udupa, playing white against statemate Gangolli made an error while developing his pieces. The defending champion made Udupa pay for the blunder.
Makwana had to play at his best to get past Marimuthu K. of Tamil Nadu. Though he lost his exchange for a pawn, Marimuthu played brilliantly and pushed Makwana hard but ultimately ran into time pressure and had to offer a draw.
Odisha’s Soundarya Pradhan and statemate Subendu Patra played out a draw while Maharashtra’s Aryan B. Joshi was too good for Shashidhar K.M. of Karnataka.
Delhi’s Akhil Sharma playing white lost to Milind Samant of Maharashtara, his inexperience showing in a Pirc defence.