Bangladesh Premier League 2022 R1: Harsha Bharathakoti slays the infallible Arjun Erigaisi
Defending champion Bangladesh Police won their first match with a minimum margin 2.5-1.5 over Manha's Castle at Golden Jubilee of Independence Premier Division Chess League 2021-22. Harsha Bharathakoti answered the perennial question of who will beat Arjun Erigaisi for the first time in Classical chess in 2022. The new National Senior Open champion is riding high on his momentum since summer 2021. The last time Arjun lost a Classical game was against Abhimanyu Puranik at Sitges on 22nd December. Harsha ended his 24-game unbeaten streak in 2022. Round 2 starts today at 3:30 p.m. IST. Photo: Bangladesh Chess Federation
Aronyak Ghosh beats Himanshu Sharma
IM Aronyak Ghosh of Leonine Chess Club scored a nice victory over GM Himanshu Sharma of Titas Club. Only two matches ended in draws. There was no whitewash in the first round. Only five out of 24 games were drawn. The competition is much stronger this year as the teams seem to be more balanced.
Titas Club - Leonine Chess Club: 2-2
Titas Club had four decisive games against Leonine Chess Club. IM Nubairshah Shaikh and CM Saiful Islam Chowdhury won their respective games for TC. IM Srijit Paul and IM Aronyak Ghosh scored victories for LCC.
Himanshu - Aronyak
19.Rd1 allowed Black to gain positional advantage and avoid having an isolated queen's pawn on d5. 19...dxe4 20.Bxe4 Nd4 21.Nxd4 Qxd4 22.Bg2 Bb7 and Black is doing much better. Although White got an opportunity to equalize a few moves later, he was unable to find it and dropped a pawn. Aronyak converted his extra pawn advantage into a win comfortably.
Bangladesh Police - Manha's Castle: 2.5-1.5
Bangladesh Police has fielded the strongest team once again. However, the managed to beat Manha's Castle by minimum margin thanks to Harsha Bharathakoti's win over Arjun Erigaisi. Leon Luke Mendonca also scored a valuable draw over Bangladesh's legend, GM Ziaur Rahman.
Harsha - Arjun
White has everything focused on Black's kingside. 25...Rg7 would have kept the position defended. However, 25...e5 is the break one would hope for to disintegrate Black's position. While 26.Qh6 is said to be better by the computer, Harsha went for the humane 26.fxe5 Nxg5 and now White has the fancy 27.Qxg5. If Black accepts the queen sacrifice 27...fxg5, it will be over soon after 28.exd6+. The position liquidated into a winning rook ending for White, one which Harsha converted with ease.
KM Shahidullah, Vice President of Bangladesh Chess Federation, Syed Shahab Uddin Shamim, General Secretary, Dr. Shoeib Reaz Alam. Additional DIG of Bangladesh Police and Joint Secretary of Bangladesh Chess Federation, Masudur Rahman Mallik Dipu, Joint Secretary, Moniruzzaman Palash, Executive Member, IO FA WCM NI Mahmuda Hoque Chowdhury Moly and Sajal Mahmud were present at the inauguration ceremony.
Replay Round 1 games
There is one round every day starting at 3 p.m. BST (2:30 p.m. IST) from 10th to 20th March 2022, except the second and ninth round which starts at 4 p.m. BST (3:30 p.m. IST). The tournament is taking place at Asia Hotel & Resort, Dhaka, Bangladesh.
Round 1 results
| No. | Team | Team | Res. | : | Res. |
| 1 | Rupali Bank Krira Parisad | SAIF Sporting Club | 1½ | : | 2½ |
| 2 | Uttara Central Chess Club | Bangladesh Navy | 2 | : | 2 |
| 3 | Titas Club | Leonine Chess Club | 2 | : | 2 |
| 4 | Shahin Chess Club | Janata Bank Officer Welfare Society | 3 | : | 1 |
| 5 | Bangladesh Police | Manha's Castle | 2½ | : | 1½ |
| 6 | Sheikh Russel Chess Club | Bangladesh Biman | 1½ | : | 2½ |
Round 2 pairings
| No. | Team | Team | Res. | : | Res. |
| 1 | SAIF Sporting Club | Bangladesh Biman | : | ||
| 2 | Manha's Castle | Sheikh Russel Chess Club | : | ||
| 3 | Janata Bank Officer Welfare Society | Bangladesh Police | : | ||
| 4 | Leonine Chess Club | Shahin Chess Club | : | ||
| 5 | Bangladesh Navy | Titas Club | : | ||
| 6 | Rupali Bank Krira Parisad | Uttara Central Chess Club | : |
