The Indian men’s team was close to clinching their first-ever gold at the Chess Olympiad after the end of the penultimate round of the 45th Chess Olympiad in Budapest, Hungary. The Indian Men’s team registered a victory against the USA to continue their undefeated streak. Meanwhile, the women’s team beat China to move to the top position.
The Indian men’s team displayed another impressive performance as they defeated the 6-time champions USA with a score of 2.5-1.5. D. Gukesh triumphed over World No.3 Fabiano Caruana in the first board. On the second board, however, Praggnanandhaa suffered a loss against Wesley So. Arjun Erigasi made a strong comeback by winning against Leinier Dominguez. In the final result, Vidit Gujrathi secured a stalemate against Levon Aronian, sealing India’s victory.
The Indian men’s team currently holds a total of 19 points after playing 10 games. China is in second place with 17 points, and India is in a strong position to secure the gold. If India wins or draws their final round match, they will claim the top spot. Even if India loses their final game and China wins, the two teams will share first place, and tiebreaker rules will determine the outcome. Despite having a favorable tiebreaker score at the moment, there is still a slim chance China can prevail. In the final round, India will face Slovenia, who are third with 16 points, while China will face the USA, who are in fourth place with 15 points.
The Indian women’s team achieved a remarkable 2.5-1.5 victory over 6-time champions China. Divya Deshmukh secured a win with white pieces against Ni Shiqun. D. Harika, R. Vaishali, and Vantika Agrawal played out draws in their respective matches.
The Indian women’s team has claimed the top position once again with 17 points after Kazakhstan, who was leading before the ninth round, played out a 2-2 draw against Georgia. Both teams now have an equal count of 17 points each, but the Indian team has a better tie-break score and therefore is in first place. In the final round, India will face Azerbaijan, who are one of the other five teams with 15 points, while Kazakhstan will take on the USA, who is in third with 16 points and is tied with Poland.