The jubilation of round six turned into dejection in round seven of the 2024 Candidates Tournament for the Indian contingent, as only a day after what was the most rewarding round, D Gukesh and R Vaishali succumbed to defeats, whilst R Praggnanandhaa, Vidit Gujrathi and Koneru Humpy could only secure draws.
Gukesh, the youngest participant in this edition’s Candidates Tournament, saw his unbeaten streak of six games reach its conclusion as he was defeated by Alireza Firouzja. In a game of Queen’s Pawn, against a misfiring Alireza who had not won any of the games in the first six rounds, Gukesh was once in an advantageous position. What worked against him, however, was the time pressure, allowing the French-Iranian Grandmaster to launch a retaliation and ultimately secure full points.
The bigger surprise, although, was Vidit Gujrathi being held to a draw by the lowest-seeded player in the open section, Nijat Abasov. Coming into this battle after beating Firouzja fairly comfortably, Vidit found himself in a better position on multiple occasions, but staunch defence from the Azerbaijani GM did not allow him what would have been a third victory in this competition.
The game between R Praggnanandhaa and Fabiano Caruana saw both players being calculative and meticulous in their approach, wherein the 18-year-old from India had opted for the French defence against King’s Pawn opening. With neither having an advantage after 40 moves, a draw was the only plausible conclusion.
In the women’s section, R Vaishali had a decent start against the defending Candidates champion Lei Tingjie, who opted for the Giuoco Piano. However, she could not keep up with the Chinese player’s middle game and endgame, suffering her third defeat in the tournament.
The highly experienced Koneru Humpy’s wait for a victory was further extended as, facing Ukraine’s Anna Muzychuk, who was at the bottom of the standings prior to this round, the three-time Asian Games medallist played out a draw.
Elsewhere, Ian Nepomniachtchi did extend his unbeaten streak as he drew against Hikaru Nakamura. Whilst Nepomniachtchi remains the favourite to win the open section, the outright favourite from the women’s section, Tan Zhongyi also remained unbeaten, drawing against Aleksandra Goryachkina. Kateryna Lagno and Nurgyul Salimova’s battle resulted in a draw as well.
2024 Candidates Tournament Round 7 Results:
Hikaru Nakamura drew against Ian Nepomniachtchi
Fabiano Caruana drew against R Praggnanandhaa
Nijat Abasov drew against Vidit Gujrathi
Alireza Firouzja won against D Gukesh
Kateryna Lagno drew against Nurgyul Salimova
Aleksandra Goryachkina drew against Tan Zhongyi
Anna Muzychuk drew against Koneru Humpy
Lei Tingjie won against R Vaishali
(Players mentioned on the right played with black pieces)
Gukesh Slips from First Place, Tied on Points with Praggnanandhaa
With his first defeat of the competition, Gukesh has now been dethroned from the first position of the standings, with Ian Nepomniachtchi currently being the sole occupant of the prized place. The Russian has 4.5 points as compared to the Indian’s 4.
Alongside Gukesh, Fabiano Caruana and Praggnanandhaa also have 4 points, albeit they are separated by the Sonneborn-Berger score, which keeps Gukesh in second place and Praggnanandhaa in fourth, with the American separating the two Indians.
With 3.5 points, Vidit Gujrathi is tied on points with Hikaru Nakamura, but placed beneath the five-time US Champion based on the Sonneborn-Berger score. Vidit is currently sixth in the standings.
In the women’s section, Vaishali and Koneru Humpy are both tied on 2.5 points, alongside Anna Muzychuk. A healthier Sonnerborn-Berger score keeps Humpy in sixth place and Vaishali at the bottom of the table.
Vidit Gujrathi vs D Gukesh in Round 8
Currently stationed at exactly the halfway stage, the tournament will have a rest day before the eighth round, where Vidit Gujrathi and D Gukesh will engage in a battle. Whilst the latter would want to close the gap on Nepomniachtchi, the former would want to climb up the standings. Praggnanandhaa, meanwhile, will be facing Firouzja, with Humpy and Vaishali standing in each other’s way.
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