Tribune News Network
Doha
World No. 45 Russian Andrey Esipenko, playing under the FIDE flag, scored a crucial win against Armenian Shant Sargsyan in the 8th and penultimate round of the Qatar Masters Chess 2024 on Wednesday to move into sole lead with 7 points.
At the Aspire Zone Hall, the 22-year-old Esipenko playing with white pieces on the top board check-mated Sargsyan in 92 moves with 91.9 accuracy.
Meanwhile, India’s pre-tournament favourite Arjun Erigaisi hung on to the second spot with 6.5 points.The top seed beat compatriot Murali Karthikeyan, eliminating the latter from the title race.
Speaking after the crucial win, Erigaisi expressed his determination to secure the title despite the stiff competition, and noted the unpredictable nature of the final round due to the narrow point margins among the top six players.
Erigaisi will play against Esipenko in the 9th and final round at 12 noon on Friday in a battle which could decide the champion.
Behind Erigaisi, there are four players who have six points each, namely UAE’s Abdulrahman Salem Saleh, Uzbekistan’s World No.6 Nodirbek Abdusattorov and India’s Leon Luke Mendonca as well as Sargsyan.
Abdusattorov, the runner-up in last year’s tournament, defeated Russia’s David Paravyan to bring his score to 6 points, while the defending champion Nodirbek Yakubboev dropped out of the title race after drawing against Iran’s Pouya Idani.
UAE’s Abdulrahman, the top-ranked Arab player, beat Uzbekistan’s Muhiddin Madaminov to maintain his chances in the title race, while Italy’s Lorenzo Lodici (seeded 26th) lost to India’s Mendonca.
Uzbekistan’s Shamsiddin Vokhidov secured a victory over China’s Zhang Yu, raising his score to 5.5 points.
Qatar’s International Master Husain Aziz lost to Azerbaijan’s Gunay Mammadzada (seeded 61st) as he was left with 3.5 points. Aziz had notable wins in earlier rounds against Poland’s Oliwia Kiolbasa and India’s Mahendru Jaiveer, but his recent losses against Cuba’s Luis Ernesto Quesada and Abdusattorov dampened the Qatar’s player’s hopes.
In the Qatar Masters Open B Tournament which is run simultaneously, Libya’s Yousef Alhassadi is in the lead with 7.5 points, followed by Uzbek Samandar Shermuhammadov (7 points), China’s Mingren Hong (6.5) and Algeria’s Anis Mohamed Achour (6.5).
Qatar’s Ibrahim Al Janahi defeated India’s Shailaja Srinivasan Sriram, while Mohamad Firdaus Erfan beat UAE’s Khamis Essa Saqar. Fahad Al Mansouri beat Neavin Raghunathan, while Abdulrahman Al Atas defeated Sudharsanan Krish.
Victor Bologan, the head of coaches at the Qatar Chess Federation, speaking about the tournament said that the Qatar Masters Championship has become one of the strongest open championships at the global level due to the size of participation, whether from the top ranked players or even international title holders.
Bologan said: "We must commend the efforts made by the Qatari Federation by providing all the elements of success, especially the Aspire Zone Hall that hosts the competitions and the wonderful organization of the tournament, which has been highly appreciated by the International Federation.”