46th Chess Olympiad R3: India Scores Double Victory Over Italy and Greece

Nihal Sarin giving autographs after winning his game in the 3rd round | Photo: Michal Walusza

Open Section: India vs. Italy (3-1)

In the open section, it was a smooth day; Gukesh and Nihal scored comfortable wins, while Arjun was looking in a bad position, but he showed great resilience and drew his game. On the top board, Praggnanandhaa got a slight chance against Lorenzo Lodici, but eventually the game ended in a draw.

Board 1: Praggnanandhaa vs. Lorenzo Lodici (0.5-0.5)

On the top board, it was a clash between India No. 1 and Italy No. 1; the position was chaotic, and both sides were pushing. At one point, Pragg had a chance to convert his advantage, but he was not able to do so, and the game ended in a draw.

Solid draw on board 1 | Photo: Rafal Oleksiewicz

Board 2: Moroni Luca Jr vs. Arjun Erigaisi (0.5-0.5)

Arjun salvaged a draw after a chaotic game where his position swung from winning to drawn, to losing, and finally back to a draw. It was a crazy game, but eventually Arjun managed to control his nerves and hold a draw.

Position after 38.Qb4

Arjun had a great position with black, but he played Rb8 and lost a pawn on c7.

Board 3: Nihal Sarin vs. Francesco Sonis (1-0)

Nihal delivered a beautiful win against Francesco Sonis, highlighted by a shocking and highly unusual early kf1 that confused his opponent and set up a strong attack. It was a great attacking display by Nihal.

The Winning Duo | Photo: Himank Ghosh

Nihal played 14.Kf1

Board 4: Brunello Sabino vs. D Gukesh (0-1)

Gukesh showed why he is the world champion and played a brilliant game to defeat Brunello Sabino with black pieces. He kept the pressure on white pieces and eventually won his game smoothly.

Gukesh with his young fan | Photo: Rafal Oleksiewicz

Check out Gukesh meeting his fans, giving the official FIDE Interview, and a small face-off with Javokhir Sindarov!

Replay Round 3 Games

Ranking list after Round 3

Rk.	FED	Team	Group	Games	+	TB1	TB2	TB3	TB4
1	ROU	Romania	A	3	3	6	32	11,5	8
2	FRA	France	A	3	3	6	28	11	8
	POL	Poland	A	3	3	6	28	11	8
4	UZB	Uzbekistan	A	3	3	6	26	10,5	8
	CHN	China	A	3	3	6	26	10,5	8
6	ESP	Spain	A	3	3	6	26	10	8
7	GER	Germany	A	3	3	6	24	10	8
	AZE	Azerbaijan	A	3	3	6	24	10	8
	ARM	Armenia	A	3	3	6	24	10	8

Check the full ranking list here.

In Round 4, the Indian Open team will face Spain.

Pairings for Round 4

No.	FED	Team	Pts.	MP	:	MP	Pts.	Team	FED
1	UZB	Uzbekistan *)	10½	6	:	6	9½	Turkiye	TUR
2	USA	United States of America	8½	6	:	6	9½	Ukraine	UKR
3	ESP	Spain	10	6	:	6	8½	India	IND
4	SRB	Serbia	9	6	:	6	10½	China	CHN
5	GER	Germany	10	6	:	6	11	Poland	POL
6	GRE	Greece	10	6	:	6	8	Netherlands	NED
7	AZE	Azerbaijan	10	6	:	6	10	Czech Republic	CZE
8	ISR	Israel	10	6	:	6	7½	Hungary	HUN
9	FRA	France	11	6	:	6	11½	Romania	ROU
10	ARG	Argentina	10½	6	:	6	10	Armenia	ARM

Details

Women's Section: India vs. Greece (3.5-0.5)

Another dominating win for the Indian team as Koneru Humpy, Vantika Agrawal and Savitha Shri scored wins, and Divya Deshmukh held a solid draw.

India vs. Greece (3.5-0.5) | Photo: Himank Ghosh

Board 1: Koneru Humpy vs. Stavroula Tsolakidou (1-0)

Humpy Won an exciting revenge match against Stavroula Tsolakidou by capitalizing on an advantage in the middlegame and creating a strong attack on Stavroula's king.

Koneru Humpy in action | Photo: Himank Ghosh

Board 2: Avramidou Anastasia vs Divya Deshmukh (0.5-0.5)

Divya played solidly with the black pieces to secure a draw.

Board 3: Vantika Agrawal vs. Ekaterini Pavlidou (1-0)

Vantika kept her perfect streak alive with a brilliant tactical win that included a powerful rook sacrifice against Ekaterini Pavlidou.

Vantika scored a dominating victory | Photo: Michal Waluzsa

White to play: find the best move!

Position after 34...e3

Board 4: Antonia Christodoulaki vs. Savitha Shri (0-1)

Savitha showed great fighting spirit in her Olympiad debut, bouncing back from a difficult position to win her game.