GM Ganguly, Abhijeet Gupta, Iniyan score wins at Senior National Chess in Guntur

Former National Champion GM Surya Sekhar Ganguly led a strong show by top seeds on the opening day of the 62nd Senior National Chess Championship in Guntur. Wins for Gupta, Iniyan, Sasikiran, Sethuraman, Vignesh, Rohith Krishna and Srihari highlighted round two

Hyderabad: Former National Champion GM Surya Sekhar Ganguly (PSPB) registered one of the earliest wins on the top boards in the 62nd Senior National Chess Championship at Vignan University, Guntur, on Tuesday.

Playing the popular Giuoco Piano, Ganguly capitalised on an inaccuracy by Yashad Bambeshwar (Chhattisgarh) on move 19. Sacrificing a bishop and then a knight in quick succession, he seized full control, compelling his opponent to resign on the 30th move.

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GM Abhijeet Gupta (PSPB) scored a fluent victory over former Andhra Women’s Champion WFM Lasya G. In the Classical Sicilian, Lasya opted for a queenside castle, which allowed Abhijeet to launch a sharp pawn offensive. Winning a piece and later exchanging queens, Gupta converted his material advantage into a smooth win.

Top seed GM P Iniyan (Tamil Nadu) defeated Adhiraj Mitra (Jharkhand) in the Scheveningen Sicilian. A miscalculated bishop exchange on move 33 led to a pawn ending where Iniyan’s extra pawn proved decisive.

Veteran GM Krishnan Sasikiran, India’s second player to cross the 2700 Elo barrier, took 64 moves to outclass Hrishikesh Banik (West Bengal). Converting his positional edge into a winning endgame after gaining an exchange, Sasikiran displayed his trademark precision.

Former National Champion GM S P Sethuraman (PSPB) defeated Guru Prakash (Maharashtra) in the Najdorf Sicilian. Exploiting his opponent’s errors, Sethuraman won a minor piece and never looked back. Railways’ GM N R Vignesh also registered a fine win against Sharnarthi Shlok (Maharashtra), converting a rook-for-knight advantage after move 34.

Newly-minted Indian Grandmaster S Rohith Krishna (Tamil Nadu) showcased his class in the Kasparov Variation of the Queen’s Indian Defence. His opponent Devarsh Bhorkateriya (Gujarat) was unable to contain a dangerous passed c-pawn and resigned after 30 moves.

GM M R Lalith Babu (Andhra Pradesh) overcame Ayush Ravikumar (Tamil Nadu) in a fascinating encounter. Although Lalith overlooked a chance to capture his opponent’s queen, his confidence paid off as he converted the game with two powerful passed pawns in the endgame.

Young GM L R Srihari (Tamil Nadu) impressed against Rahul Gurung (Sikkim), exchanging his queen for two rooks and then dominating with doubled rooks on the seventh rank. Gurung’s queen failed to create counterplay, forcing resignation.

The day also witnessed a mild upset when J Ramakrishna (Telangana, Union Bank of India) defeated Andhra’s IM Dhulipalla Bala Chandra Prasad in a 45-move Vienna Game. Meanwhile, GM Neelotpal Das (PSPB) was held to a draw by Gopal Krishna Maheshwari (Uttar Pradesh), and Karnataka’s IM Viani Antonio Dcunha was also held to a draw by Andhra’s youngster Andamala Hemal Varshan.

With the event heating up, the third round promises more exciting battles on the top boards.