Tribune News Network
Doha
Armenian Grandmaster Shant Sargsyan played out a draw against India’s GM Arjun Erigaisi in the 7th round of Qatar Masters Chess on Tuesday to share lead with Russian GM Andrey Esipenko with 6 points each in the prestigious tournament played under the Swiss system of nine rounds.
On the second table at the Aspire Zone Hall, Russian Andrey Esipenko defeated Emirati Abdulrahman Salem Saleh, the leader among Arab players, to reach 6 points and share the second spot with Sargsyan, but is behind by a difference of moves.
Erigaisi and India’s GM Murali Karthikeyan are second with 5.5 points while AR Salem Saleh shares the third place on 5 points with ten others.
Qaar’s IM Husain Aziz continued his winning run as he beat Indian Mahendru Jaiveer, ranked 133, to raise his score to 3.5 points. Aziz had won in the sixth round against Polish Oliwia Kiolbasa, while he tied in the fifth round with Indian Rajesh, and also tied in the fourth round with Mongolian Turmankh Mionkhozul, while he had lost to Cuban Luis Ernesto Quesada and Uzbek Abdulmalik Abdusalamov, and tied in the opening round with Chinese Zhang Yu, ranked 35th.
Uzbek Nodirbek Abdusttorov, ranked sixth in the world and runner-up in the last tournament, defeated his Indian Bharath Subramaniyam, ranked 28th, to raise his tally to 5 points.
Uzbek Nodirbek Yakubboev, the defending champion, tied with compatriot Mukhiddin Madaminov, ranked 38th, to reach five points, maintaining his chances of competing for the top places.
Olympic gold medalist, Uzbek Shamsiddin Vokhidov, tied with India’s Adhiban Baskaran to take his score to 4 points, while Italian GM Lorenzo Lodici defeated Iranian Parham Maghsoodloo, ranked third in the tournament, to reach 5 points.
As for the Arab players, Egyptian Adham Fawzy, ranked 39th, defeated Bulgarian Arkadji Nagditch, ranked 16th, to reach 5 points and revive hopes of competing for the top positions.
Hamad Al Tamimi, Executive Director of Qatar Chess Association and Director of the Championship, said that despite only two rounds remaining, a clear contender for the title is still not in sight given the tight contest. “I think the chances seem equal between several players and everything is possible and we may witness the crowning of a new champion for this tournament as the chances have become great for the Armenian player Sargysyan and Indian Erighaisi,” he said.
The tournament director added: “The competitions were full of strength and rivalry between the players and everyone showed good levels during the matches and we hope that the excitement will increase in the last two rounds, and we also hope that all the players of the Qatari teams will succeed in doubling their balance in the International Championship B.”
GM Murali Karthikeyan said that he was looking forward to achieving an advanced position, stressing the difficulty of the competition. “I was lucky in today’s match and was able to achieve victory, and I believe that the chances are still there for all the players in the first 7 places to win the title, and I will try to make more effort so that I can win tomorrow’s match,” he said.
The player praised the organizational atmosphere at the Aspire Zone Hall, expressing his great happiness to be in Qatar and participate in the fourth edition.
Meanwhile, the International B Championship continued with the participation of 40 countries from around the world, including 13 Arab countries, as the sixth round of the championship, which is held in parallel with the Qatar Masters Championship, concluded, and witnessed the attendance of 153 male and female players ranked under 2300 points.
Among Qatari players in the Qatar Masters Open B tournament, Erfan Mohamed Firdaus was victorious when he outplayed Pakistan’s Khan Muhammad, while Hamad Al Kuwari beat Filipino Lara Manuelito. Layan Al Qassabi outsmarted India’s Kandipalli Govindaraju, while Abdulrahman Al Atas beat India’s Dulange Tejas. Ali Al Naimi beat his Qatari compatriot Asma Al Hammadi, while Mohammed Al Subaiey overcame Khalifa Al Malki.
