44th Chess Olympiad 2022 R9: Praggnanandhaa saves the day for India 2

Poland gets the better of Indian Women

World no.10 Shakhriyar Mamedyarov halted D Gukesh's dream run. India 1 Women suffered their first loss against Poland 2.5-1.5. Thus, there are four teams Poland, India 1, Kazakhstan and Georgia are in a four-way lead at 15/18 each. They all have lost one match each. Five teams are chasing them at 14/18 each.

Open: India 2 - Azerbaijan: 2-2

D Gukesh's magnificent winning streak was halted by World no.10, Shakhriyar Mamedyarov. Nihal Sarin drew with Rauf Mamedov. Raunak Sadhwani lost to Nijat Abasov after a blunder in the endgame. Thus, Praggnanandhaa found himself in a must-win situation against Vasif Durarbayli.

Praggnanandhaa - Vasif

White was forced to play the unpleasant 48.Qh1 as that was one of the safe squares left for the queen. In time trouble, it went back and forth. Eventually, Vasif made the final mistake and Praggnanandhaa came out on top.

59...d4 created the opportunity White was looking for. 60.Rg6 Qe7 61.Bd3 Qa3 62.Re6+ and it was all over. The resultant Queen ending is completely winning for White.

India 1 - Brazil: 3-1

Arjun Erigaisi and K Sasikiran scored the key victories for the team to ensure India 1 stay in the medal hunt. Harikrishna and Vidit drew their respective games.

Paraguay - India 3: 1-3

Surya Sekhar Ganguly's tough form continues. He suffered second consecutive and the sole loss of the round against GM Axel Bachmann. Sethuraman S P, Karthikeyan Murali and Abhimanyu Puranik scored a victory each.

Women: Poland - India 1: 2.5-1.5

GM Harika Dronavalli (2517) had a completely winning position against GM Monika Socko (2416).

Harika - Monika

A few moves earlier 21.f5 would have been a good idea for White. However, now 25.g4 is what White needed to play to clear the path for the queen - Qh3, Rxh7 would have been devastating for Black. Now 21.f5 is met with Nxd4. 22.Bxd4 is forced as Black is threatening Nxf5. 22...Qxd4 23.Ng4 Qd2+ 24.Qf2 Qxf2+ 25.Kxf2 gxf5 26.Nf6+ and White's attack fizzles out. Gaining the exchange does not help much as Black has a couple of pawns as a compensation.

Oliwia - Vaishali

Rook and pawn endings are always critical in a practical game. No matter how much one knows the theory, in time trouble and pressure cooker situation, things become less than obvious. Before playing 57...Kg6, Black needed to trade the pawns 57...gxh4 58.gxh4 to make sure she stays in the game. Unfortunately for Black, 57...Kg6 allowed White to push for a win 58.h5+ Kf7 59.f4 gxf4 60.gxf4 f5 now the king comes to action 61. Kd1 and it plays the crucial role in White earning the full point.

India 2 - Switzerland: 4-0

India 2 scored their second whitewash of the event, against Switzerland. WGM Vantika Agrawal, IM Padmini Rout, WGM Mary Ann Gomes and WGM Divya Deshmukh scored comfortable wins.

Estonia - India 3: 1-3

WGM Nandhidhaa P V and WIM Sahithi Varshini scored the wins. IM Eesha Karavade and WIM Vishwa Vasnawala drew their respective games.

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Everyday round starts at 3 p.m. IST from 29th July to 8th August 2022. The final round on 9th August starts 10 a.m. IST. Rest day is on 4th August 2022.

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Round 10 Women pairings

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