Astana chess club team
Astana team aims for the Top 3, while Airports Authority of India confidently leads the competition
The third round of the Asian Club Chess Champions League has concluded, proving to be a true test for all participants. The tournament, which began on June 18, brought together the best chess club players from six Asian countries.
The highlight of the day was the thrilling battle between the team Ugra and the «Ugra Chess Academy». A real storm erupted on every board—tension mounted, and after a hard-fought struggle, the match ended with three draws and one victory for the youth team.
«The game was very tough from the start because Olga is a strong opponent. I gained a good position early on, but my opponent equalized, complicating the game. Toward the end, in mutual time trouble, Olga started to gain an advantage but missed her chance, resulting in a draw», said junior chess player Savva Vetokhin.
There weren’t any surprises in matches between the CPRF chess club and players from China. The players from the Hangzhou team in China fought very hard for a win but ultimately lost to the Russian players. The CPRF team captain noted that all of the players are eagerly awaiting a game against India, which will determine the tournament winner.
“We’re absolutely focused on the game against India. This match will be the centerpiece and decide the champion. Currently, we’re trailing them slightly. We play to win—and we won’t settle for less”, quoted CPRF team captain Igor Yagupov.
Uzbekistan Chess Club team
Team Astana players have got essential advantage thanks to their well-executed openings. However, Uzbekistan refused to back down. In the end of tensed fight both teams got their second victory. It is worth noting that chess is rapidly gaining popularity in these neighboring countries, and probably in three or four years, we may see their players among the leaders of international tournaments.
“We correctly predicted the openings in all four matches, and there were no issues with them. We lost some time on the first board. After our defeat against India, we dropped to the middle of the tournament table, but in the upcoming matches, we plan to break into the top three”, —shared the plans of Astana’s captain, Erzhan Shakenov.
The competition between the chess players of India and Mongolia was lengthy and exhausting. Despite the fact that the Mongolian team suffered three defeats, there was intense competition on the second board, which turned out to be the longest in the tournament. The Mongolian players fought hard but ultimately agreed to a draw.
At the end of the tournament, the leader of the Asian Champions League remains the Indian team, followed by CPRF and the youth team. The fourth place is occupied by the Kazakhstan chess players, with Ugra, the Hangzhou team (China), and the Uzbekistan Chess Club trailing behind. The Mongolian team is at the bottom of the table. The competition ahead promises to be even more exciting!
Nikolay Stepanenko, Deputy Chief Arbiter of the Asian Champions League, noted: “Today is the last day that Russian teams will play against each other, and starting tomorrow, our chess players will face foreign opponents. This is where the real battles for the trophies will begin”.
Visit chess-results.com for round by round results and standings. Follow live broadcast on Lichess.
You can follow the tournament in the official community of the Ugra Chess Academy on the social network ‘VKontakte’ (https://vk.com/chessugra). The tournament is being commented on by international grandmaster Sergey Shipov.
Source: Ugra Chess Academy