Chess: India men, women teams win easy; remain in second spot at Asian Games

India take on South Korea in the 9th and final round on Saturday while China face UAE

Hangzhou: Indian men and women’s teams put up a strong show, posting convincing wins in the eighth round of the chess team competition at the Asian Games here on Friday.

The men outplayed South Korea 3.5-0.5 while the women thrashed Hong Kong 4-0.

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After eight rounds, both the teams are in second spot with a round to play.

In the India-South Korea match, D Gukesh went past Junhyeok Lee on the top board, while Praggnanandhaa got the better of Se Hyun Kwan.
Arjun Erigaisi’s win over In-Jung Gu came after a stiff fight with the Korean having gained an advantage before slipping up.

The experienced P Harikrishna salvaged a draw against Ahn Hongjin on the fourth board from what seemed a lost position.

The top-seeded men’s team meets the Philippines on Saturday in the final round while Iran comes up against South Korea.

In the women’s match, India did not have any trouble with the quartet of D Harika, R Vaishali, Vantika Agarwal and B Savitha Shri winning easily.

With none of the Hong Kong players rated above 2000 (Elo), the powerful Indian line-up outplayed their opponents.

In the men’s section, Iran continue to lead the standings with 14 match points (two MPs for a win and 1 for a draw) with India close on their heels with 13 MPs, followed by China (12) and Uzbekistan (11).

Among women, China continue to lead with 15 MPs, two clear of second-placed India with Kazakhstan further behind on 11.

India take on South Korea in the 9th and final round on Saturday while China face UAE.