Superbet Classic Chess: Gukesh Draws Against Nepomniachtchi, Pragg Shares Point with Vachier-Lagrave
Superbet Chess Classic Round 2: Gukesh Draws with Nepomniachtchi, Praggnanandhaa Shares Points with Vachier-Lagrave
Bucharest (Romania): In the second round of the Superbet Chess Classic, part of the Grand Chess Tour, World Championship contender D Gukesh drew with Ian Nepomniachtchi of Russia, while fellow Indian R Praggnanandhaa shared points with Maxime Vachier-Lagrave of France.
The day was notable for a rare blunder that cost top seed Fabiano Caruana a potential second consecutive win against compatriot Wesley So. Meanwhile, French player Alireza Firouzja launched his campaign with a victory over Nodirbek Abdusattorov of Uzbekistan.
In the USD 350,000 prize money tournament, the other match concluded in a draw as Anish Giri of the Netherlands was unable to secure a victory against the lowest-ranked Deac Bogdan-Daniel of Romania.
With seven rounds remaining in the 10-player double round-robin event, Gukesh and Caruana continued to lead with 1.5 points each. They are closely followed by Alireza, Praggnanandhaa, Giri, Wesley, Vachier-Lagrave, and Nepomniachtchi, all with one point apiece. Deac Bogdan-Daniel and Abdusattorov each have half a point.
Gukesh experimented with various strategies, this time opting for a different variation of the Ruy Lopez where the Indian encountered some tense moments. Nepomniachtchi seized upon improved piece placement in the middle game, establishing control in the center and securing a distinct advantage.
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