World Rapid 2024 Day 2: Arjun Erigaisi, Harika and Humpy in the lead
Magnus Carlsen (NOR) played three games on the second of World Rapid 2024 before he withdrew. He was on the verge of a loss against GM Daniel Dardha (BEL) in the seventh round. However, the Belgium missed his chance and allowed the World no.1 to salvage a draw for the third time in a lost position at this event. Volodar Murzin, Jan-Krzysztof Duda (POL), Arjun Erigaisi and Alexander Grischuk are the four players in the lead 7/9 each. Arjun defeated Ray Robson (USA) and Shant Sargsyan (ARM), drew with Murzin and Duda. Arjun will face the three-time World Blitz champion, Grischuk in Round 10. Wenjun Ju (CHN), Harika Dronavalli and Koneru Humpy are in a three-way lead 6.5/8. Humpy will start the final day of the event with a clash against Wenjun. Round 10 Open and Round 9 Women starts today at 2 p.m. local time, next day 12:30 a.m. IST. Photo: FIDE/Michal Walusza
Magnus withdraws, a new World Champion will be crowned
The withdrawal of the defending champion, Magnus Carlsen means one thing is guaranteed. A new champion will be crowned. That could very well be one of the four leaders, Arjun Erigaisi. To learn all about what transpired with the now former World Rapid champion's withdrawal, read our earlier report here.
Round 6: Arjun Erigaisi scores a hat-trick
After, GM Pranav Venkatesh (2497), GM Arjun Erigaisi (2694) and GM Diptayan Ghosh (2455) became the next two Indians to score a hat-trick of wins at this event.
Robson - Arjun
Arjun was determined to start the day with a win. Even though computer does not like the move 14...Nc2+ and evaluates it as White having the decisive advantage after 15.Kd2 Nxa1 and after a few moves Black sacrificed the queen, well it was more of an exchange for two rooks.
Black had no choice but to go for 19...Qxe6 20.Rxe6 Bxe6 21.Qd4 c5 sacrificing the pawn to gain activity by rapidly developing his pieces. 22.Qxc5 Rd8 23.Ke2 Nh6 Black has managed to accomplish what he set out to do 24.Qc7+ Rd7 25.Qf4 Bf5 a multipurpose move - forcing the bishop trade, saving f6 and also bringing the knight back in action.
Rasmus - Pranav
GM Rasmus Svane (GER, 2629) decided to get rid of the f4-knight to delay the impending doom on the kingside 25.gxf4 bxc3 26.f5 b5 27.Qxc3 bxc4 28.Rxa8 Rxa8 29.Qxc4 Nh5 and Black went on to convert his advantage into a win quite comfortably.
42...Qa6+ is a nice finish as the checkmate is inevitable irrespective of whether White captures the queen or not.
Round 7: Dardha misses against Carlsen
GM Daniel Dardha (BEL, 2554) became the third player to miss a win against the World no.1, GM Magnus Carlsen (NOR, 2838).
Dardha - Carlsen
Carlsen blundered 40...R6d7?? Dardha correctly found 41.Qxh5 Qc4 42.Kg1?? just evaporated his chances. 42.Rf2 Qxe4+ 43.Kh2 would have handed Carlsen his second loss of the event. This turned out to be the second last game by the defending champion as he withdrew from the event after his eighth round game.
Naroditsky - Abdusattorov
GM Daniel Naroditsky (USA, 2638) persevered a difficult position against the former World Rapid champion, GM Nodirbek Abdusattorov (UZB, 2740). 26.Qxf5 gxf5 27.Rad1 Kf7 28.f3 Bc5+ 29.Be3 Bxe3+ 30.Rxe3 the game eventually liquidated into a rook vs knight endgame where Black had an extra pawn and also split passed pawns.
42...Kxc5 would have been fine for Black 43.Rg7 h5. Instead, 42...f3?? 43.Kf2+- Kd4 44.c6 Nd5 45.Rg4+ Kc3 46.Rc4+ Kb2 47.Rd4 and it's over. White won the game in the next few moves.
Arjun Erigaisi saved a tough endgame against one of his coleaders, GM Volodar Murzin (2588).
GM Pranav Venkatesh (2497) made a short work of GM Karen Grigoryan (ARM, 2622) in 23 moves.
GM Raunak Sadhwani (2591) won the All-Indian clash against GM Diptayan Ghosh (2455).
Vantika - Humpy
IM Vantika Agrawal (2352) misplayed in an advantageous position against GM Koneru Humpy (2431). It is well-known that knights become more vulnerable when they protect each other. 38.Ndb5?? did just that Qc5 pinning both c3-knight and e3-pawn. 39.Qf2 Rxe3 and White cannot avoid losing both knights for a rook. Humpy utilized her queen and rook well against her opponent's vulnerable king.
GM Koneru Humpy (2431) punished WGM Turmunkh Munkhzul (MGL, 2333) for making a positional mistake to reduce the gap with the sole leader, GM Wenjun Ju (CHN).
Round 8: Arjun joins the lead, Duda ends Naroditsky's dream run
GM Arjun Erigaisi defeated GM Shant Sargsyan (ARM, 2601) to join the three-way lead 6.5/8 with GM Jan-Krzysztof Duda (POL, 2740) and GM Alexander Grischuk (2675).
Duda - Naroditsky
A simple 35...Qf6 retreat would have sufficed. Instead, Black captured the b3-pawn laced with poison 35...Qxb3?? 36.Qa1+ and no matter what Black plays, it all ends up with the same result.
Arjun Erigaisi scored a nice clinical victory over GM Shant Sargsyan (ARM, 2601).
GM Harika Dronavalli (2416) won a long overstretched battle against GM Tingjie Lei (CHN, 2518).
Koneru Humpy seized her opportunity in an already advantageous endgame against GM Nino Batsiashvili (GEO, 2333) to join the lead 6.5/8.
Round 9: Arjun draws with Duda, maintains his lead
World no.4 Arjun Erigaisi had a well contested draw against FIDE World Cup 2021 winner, Jan-Krzysztof Duda (POL).
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Round 9 Open results
Round 8 Women results
| Bo. | No. | White | Rtg | Pts. | Result | Pts. | Black | Rtg | No. | PGN | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | GM | Ju, Wenjun | 2536 | 6 | ½ - ½ | 5½ | GM | Lagno, Kateryna | 2433 | 8 | PGN | ||
| 2 | 12 | GM | Dronavalli, Harika | 2416 | 5½ | 1 - 0 | 5½ | GM | Lei, Tingjie | 2518 | 2 | PGN | ||
| 3 | 4 | GM | Kosteniuk, Alexandra | 2486 | 5½ | ½ - ½ | 5½ | IM | Yip, Carissa | 2389 | 19 | PGN | ||
| 4 | 34 | GM | Batsiashvili, Nino | 2333 | 5½ | 0 - 1 | 5½ | GM | Koneru, Humpy | 2431 | 10 | PGN | ||
| 5 | 15 | GM | Paehtz, Elisabeth | 2406 | 5 | 1 - 0 | 5 | GM | Zhu, Jiner | 2449 | 5 | PGN | ||
| 6 | 83 | WIM | Khamdamova, Afruza | 2188 | 5 | ½ - ½ | 5 | IM | Assaubayeva, Bibisara | 2444 | 6 | PGN | ||
| 7 | 23 | IM | Tsolakidou, Stavroula | 2381 | 5 | 1 - 0 | 4½ | IM | Bulmaga, Irina | 2378 | 24 | PGN | ||
| 8 | 3 | GM | Tan, Zhongyi | 2502 | 4½ | 1 - 0 | 4½ | GM | Zhu, Chen | 2330 | 36 | PGN | ||
| 9 | 13 | IM | Lee, Alice | 2415 | 4½ | 0 - 1 | 4½ | IM | Sukandar, Irine Kharisma | 2354 | 30 | PGN | ||
| 10 | 35 | WGM | Munkhzul, Turmunkh | 2333 | 4½ | 1 - 0 | 4½ | GM | Muzychuk, Anna | 2408 | 14 | PGN |
Standings after Round 9 Open
| Rk. | SNo | Name | FED | Rtg | Pts. | TB1 | TB2 | TB3 | Rp | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 59 | GM | Murzin, Volodar | FID | 2588 | 7 | 48,5 | 53 | 2702 | 2885 | |
| 2 | 10 | GM | Duda, Jan-Krzysztof | POL | 2740 | 7 | 46,5 | 51,5 | 2594 | 2799 | |
| 3 | 16 | GM | Erigaisi, Arjun | IND | 2694 | 7 | 44,5 | 47,5 | 2607 | 2814 | |
| 4 | 20 | GM | Grischuk, Alexander | FID | 2675 | 7 | 43,5 | 47,5 | 2539 | 2744 | |
| 5 | 45 | GM | Sevian, Samuel | USA | 2614 | 6,5 | 48,5 | 51,5 | 2662 | 2793 | |
| 6 | 14 | GM | Dominguez Perez, Leinier | USA | 2699 | 6,5 | 46,5 | 51 | 2619 | 2771 | |
| 7 | 9 | GM | Abdusattorov, Nodirbek | UZB | 2740 | 6,5 | 45,5 | 49,5 | 2607 | 2761 | |
| 8 | 13 | GM | Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar | AZE | 2711 | 6,5 | 44,5 | 49 | 2581 | 2737 | |
| 9 | 24 | GM | Sindarov, Javokhir | UZB | 2655 | 6,5 | 44,5 | 48,5 | 2582 | 2713 | |
| 34 | GM | Naroditsky, Daniel | USA | 2638 | 6,5 | 44,5 | 48,5 | 2582 | 2713 | ||
| 11 | 18 | GM | Giri, Anish | NED | 2678 | 6,5 | 44,5 | 48 | 2622 | 2772 | |
| 12 | 75 | GM | Lazavik, Denis | FID | 2553 | 6,5 | 44,5 | 47,5 | 2613 | 2736 | |
| 13 | 5 | GM | Nepomniachtchi, Ian | FID | 2758 | 6,5 | 41,5 | 46 | 2556 | 2707 | |
| 14 | 31 | GM | Esipenko, Andrey | FID | 2642 | 6,5 | 39,5 | 43 | 2558 | 2710 | |
| 15 | 58 | GM | Sadhwani, Raunak | IND | 2591 | 6 | 48 | 51 | 2657 | 2753 | |
| 16 | 116 | GM | Jacobson, Brandon | USA | 2459 | 6 | 47 | 52 | 2646 | 2765 | |
| 17 | 8 | GM | Nakamura, Hikaru | USA | 2755 | 6 | 45 | 49 | 2588 | 2653 | |
| 18 | 15 | GM | Yu, Yangyi | CHN | 2698 | 6 | 44,5 | 48,5 | 2572 | 2688 | |
| 19 | 6 | GM | Aronian, Levon | USA | 2757 | 6 | 44,5 | 48 | 2603 | 2718 | |
| 20 | 36 | GM | Deac, Bogdan-Daniel | ROU | 2635 | 6 | 44 | 47,5 | 2608 | 2714 |
Standings after Round 8 Women
| Rk. | SNo | Name | FED | RtgI | Pts. | TB1 | TB2 | TB3 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | GM | Ju, Wenjun | CHN | 2536 | 6,5 | 36,5 | 40,5 | 2406 | |
| 2 | 12 | GM | Dronavalli, Harika | IND | 2416 | 6,5 | 31,5 | 35 | 2326 | |
| 3 | 10 | GM | Koneru, Humpy | IND | 2431 | 6,5 | 31,5 | 34,5 | 2302 | |
| 4 | 8 | GM | Lagno, Kateryna | FID | 2433 | 6 | 35,5 | 39,5 | 2376 | |
| 5 | 19 | IM | Yip, Carissa | USA | 2389 | 6 | 32,5 | 35,5 | 2344 | |
| 6 | 4 | GM | Kosteniuk, Alexandra | SUI | 2486 | 6 | 32 | 35 | 2335 | |
| 7 | 15 | GM | Paehtz, Elisabeth | GER | 2406 | 6 | 32 | 35 | 2325 | |
| 8 | 23 | IM | Tsolakidou, Stavroula | GRE | 2381 | 6 | 30 | 33,5 | 2290 | |
| 9 | 3 | GM | Tan, Zhongyi | CHN | 2502 | 5,5 | 36,5 | 41 | 2369 | |
| 10 | 2 | GM | Lei, Tingjie | CHN | 2518 | 5,5 | 35,5 | 39,5 | 2302 | |
| 11 | 34 | GM | Batsiashvili, Nino | GEO | 2333 | 5,5 | 35,5 | 39 | 2364 | |
| 12 | 6 | IM | Assaubayeva, Bibisara | KAZ | 2444 | 5,5 | 33,5 | 36,5 | 2300 | |
| 13 | 35 | WGM | Munkhzul, Turmunkh | MGL | 2333 | 5,5 | 33,5 | 36 | 2316 | |
| 14 | 30 | IM | Sukandar, Irine Kharisma | INA | 2354 | 5,5 | 33 | 36 | 2386 | |
| 15 | 83 | WIM | Khamdamova, Afruza | UZB | 2188 | 5,5 | 32 | 34,5 | 2402 |
Round 10 Open pairings
Round 9 Women pairings
| Bo. | No. | White | Rtg | Pts. | Result | Pts. | Black | Rtg | No. | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 10 | GM | Koneru, Humpy | 2431 | 6½ | 6½ | GM | Ju, Wenjun | 2536 | 1 | |||
| 2 | 15 | GM | Paehtz, Elisabeth | 2406 | 6 | 6½ | GM | Dronavalli, Harika | 2416 | 12 | |||
| 3 | 8 | GM | Lagno, Kateryna | 2433 | 6 | 6 | GM | Kosteniuk, Alexandra | 2486 | 4 | |||
| 4 | 19 | IM | Yip, Carissa | 2389 | 6 | 6 | IM | Tsolakidou, Stavroula | 2381 | 23 | |||
| 5 | 2 | GM | Lei, Tingjie | 2518 | 5½ | 5½ | GM | Batsiashvili, Nino | 2333 | 34 | |||
| 6 | 33 | IM | Garifullina, Leya | 2336 | 5½ | 5½ | GM | Tan, Zhongyi | 2502 | 3 | |||
| 7 | 6 | IM | Assaubayeva, Bibisara | 2444 | 5½ | 5½ | WGM | Munkhzul, Turmunkh | 2333 | 35 | |||
| 8 | 30 | IM | Sukandar, Irine Kharisma | 2354 | 5½ | 5½ | IM | Bodnaruk, Anastasia | 2302 | 46 | |||
| 9 | 5 | GM | Zhu, Jiner | 2449 | 5 | 5½ | WIM | Khamdamova, Afruza | 2188 | 83 | |||
| 10 | 22 | GM | Krush, Irina | 2382 | 5 | 5 | GM | Zhao, Xue | 2433 | 9 |
