Blitz chess is like rapid fire. There’s no time to lock target or take aim. It’s like point and shoot. If you miss, you miss. If you hit, you hit. Chances are high that the more accomplished the player, the greater the probability to succeed.
That turned out to be the case in the open section of Tata Steel Chess India. After the first nine rounds in the blitz segment, Wesley So was leading with seven points. He is the highest-rated player in the field. No. 2 Arjun Erigaisi was half-a-point behind. The final nine rounds will be played on Sunday.
Things didn’t go according to ratings in the women’s section, where Carissa Yip of the USA was leading with six points. She is the sixth seed. R Vaishali was in a pack of three on 5.5 points, with Stavroula Tsolakidou of Greece and Russia’s Aleksandra Goryachkina.
So halts Arjun march
Following his strong finish in the rapid competition, Arjun came out guns blazing. He posted five straight wins, including one against Viswanathan Anand. But he lost to So in the sixth round, drew the seventh and suffered another setback in the eighth against R Praggnanandhaa. A win against Vidit Gujrathi in the last round brought him back.
So started with a loss against Nihal Sarin, who won the rapid title a day earlier. He won the second but there was a draw in the third. After that, So posted five straight wins before splitting the point with Praggnanandhaa in the last round.
So was watching the game between Arjun and Vidit after completing his day. This game saw nervy moments. Vidit accidentally dropped a piece and pressed the clock before putting the piece properly back in place. He was given a warning for that.
Pragg posts significant win
Praggnanandhaa won two games, drew four and lost three. It continues to be an indifferent Kolkata trip for the Chennai star, who has been travelling non-stop since last January. Crucially, he handed Arjun a defeat, which pegged the latter back.
He had an ordinary outing in rapid, where he finished with a 50 per cent score. Things didn’t change for the better even as the format did. The only Indian to have qualified for the open section of the Candidates was in sixth position with four points.
Late wins help Vaishali move up
Vaishali was languishing near the bottom of the table after six rounds. Her tally was 2.5 points. Praggnanandhaa’s elder sister finished the day with three straight wins to move up the table. Rapid champion Kateryna Lagno was one of her victims.
No headway for Divya yet
Divya Deshmukh had an up-and-down first nine rounds. The World Cup winner started with a win before suffering three consecutive losses. She won the next two, but dropped the point in the seventh. A win and a draw in the last two games gave her an even score for the day.
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