Divya Deshmukh in the Women’s Section and Shomsiddin Vokhidov in Men’s Section are leading after Round 7
The seventh round became a “black day for black” at the Asian Chess Championship (Women’s section). Indeed, in the first ten boards, white pieces emerged victorious in nine (!) games. To be fair, it should be acknowledged that the reasons behind this were, on one hand, the uncompromising attitude of the female chess players and, on the other hand, a series of inexplicable blunders made in positions where there seemed to be no cause for concern. In a slightly worse position, Mari Gomes (India) did everything possible to allow her opponent to easily promote her pawn to a queen.
As a result, Divya Deshmukh (India) took a clear first place with a one-point lead over her competitors. In another intra-team encounter between Mungutul and Munzukh (both representing Mongolia), the black pieces, without much need, weakened the king and achieved a well-deserved checkmate. However, there were also well-played matches. Rufus Hamdamova (Uzbekistan) convincingly defeated the two-time champion of Kazakhstan Meruert Kamalidenova, and this victory allowed the capital chess player to secure a share of second place. Alinasab, an Iranian player, exerted pressure on the position of the white pieces for a long time but played inaccurately in the ensuing time trouble and missed an elegant tactical blow at the end. Alua Nurmanova carried out the final attack confidently and forcefully. Before the last two rounds, Divya Deshmukh is in the lead with 6 points. Alua Nurmanova, Meruert Kamalidenova, Mari Gomes (India), and B. Mungutul (Mongolia) are tied for second to fifth place, each with 5 points. Lia Kurmangaliev and Ksenia Balabaeva have 4.5 points, with the latter managing to save her game thanks to a clever trap into which her opponent Irene Sukandar from Indonesia unexpectedly fell.
In the men’s tournament, Shomsiddin Vokhidov (Uzbekistan) defended his leading position in the game against Arjun Erigaisi (India), but he is closely pursued by Aronyak Ghosh (India) and Tin Jing Chao (Singapore), who achieved victories in the current round. Kazymbek Nogerbek’s game left a positive impression as the talented youngster firmly controlled the situation against Indian player Puranik Abhimanyu, and in the final position, where a draw was agreed upon, he might have even had slightly better chances. The game between Azamat Utegaliyev and Rinat Zhumabayev also resulted in a draw. Alisher Suleimenov’s position against Daneshvar Bardia (Iran) caused concern for a long time, but at a critical moment, his opponent became nervous and failed to find the strongest continuation, after which the player from Pavlodar demonstrated the path to salvation with computer-like precision. A draw! Thus, four of Kazakhstan’s players are currently tied for fourth place and have excellent chances to qualify for the World Cup. Rinat Zhumabayev, Azamat Utegaliyev, Kazymbek Nogerbek, and Alisher Suleimenov each have 4.5 points, trailing the leading trio by just half a point.
Check the results for Men Section, Women Section