Kolkata: It’s unfair to anticipate an upset in a event that options Magnus Carlsen. However he certain didn’t waltz previous the competitors. The defeat to Arjun Erigaisi on Saturday should have pricked his delight, whereas Wesley So saved up the stress all through the second and closing day of blitz by successful six of the final eight video games and ending on 11.5 factors. However Carlsen, who began the second half of the blitz occasion with a half-point lead, completed with 13 factors to finish a sweep on the Tata Metal Chess India right here on Sunday.
The Open Speedy and Blitz Chess winner Magnus Carlsen (R), girls’s blitz winner Russian Kateryna Lagno (L) and ladies’s speedy champion Russian Aleksandra Goryachkina with their trophies on the TATA Metal Chess India Match in Kolkata. (Samir Jana/HT)
5 consecutive attracts in opposition to R Praggnanandhaa, So, Nodirbek Abdusattorov, Vincent Keymer and Nihal Sarin had eaten into Carlsen’s lead, making the previous couple of rounds a riveting watch. A possibility emerged for Erigaisi to overhaul Carlsen, however he faltered and misplaced three consecutive video games, paving the way in which for Carlsen to seal the title.
“It was a really, really nervy day. I was lucky that Wesley was the one who went on a big streak because he couldn’t realistically catch me,” stated Carlsen after the win. “Overall, the tournament win is good, the score was not great but very decent, so I’m happy.”
American So was runner-up, adopted by Erigaisi. Carlsen successful the blitz was roughly a foregone conclusion, however Viswanathan Anand identified that he wasn’t as dominating as anticipated. “The interesting thing for me was he dominated the rapid even more than blitz. Blitz is his favourite format but full credit to Arjun who really pushed him yesterday but also overtook him (for a while),” stated Anand.
“In a sense you have to laud his courage for being the only one to push Carlsen. If you look at the final standings it’s a pity because it doesn’t show how close and exciting it was for two rounds.”
Among the many Indians, the spotlight of the blitz part was the way in which Erigaisi displayed his expertise. “I would say that Prag didn’t manage to fight for first place at any point but he was the most stable throughout,” stated Anand. “In terms of actually fighting for first place, Arjun was closer than Prag.”
Within the girls’s part, three-time world blitz champion Kateryna Lagno dominated with a powerful 11.5 factors to emerge the champion. Valentina Gunina closed in on Lagno with 5 rounds to go and gained their last-round encounter to make sure second place, whereas Aleksandra Goryachkina took third, sharing prize cash with Vantika Agrawal, regardless of at one level going 11 video games with out a win.
Remaining Standings, blitz:
Open part: Magnus Carlsen (13); Wesly So (11.5); Arjun Erigaisi (10.5); R Praggnanandhaa (9.5); Vidit Gujrathi (9); Daniil Dubov (9); Nodirbek Abdusattorov (8); Nihal Sarin (7); SL Narayanan (6.5); Vincent Keymer (6).
Ladies’s part: Kateryna Lagno (11.5); Valentina Gunina (11); Aleksandra Goryachkina (9.5); Vantika Agrawal (9.5); Alexandra Kosteniuk (9); Koneru Humpy (9); Harika Dronavalli (8.5); R Vaishali (8) Divya Deshmukh (7.5); Nana Dzagnidze (6.5).