Gukesh takes on Vincent Keymer in round 5 of the Tata Steel chess tournament at Wijk Aan Zee. (PHOTO: Tata Steel chess tournament via Lennart Ootes)
After an almighty grind of over six hours, Gukesh defeated Vincent Keymer in the fifth round of the Tata Steel chess tournament in Wijk aan Zee on Wednesday. The win makes Gukesh the new India no 1 (and the world no 4) in the live ratings, which are updated in real-time.
Keymer was part of Team Gukesh last month as the Indian became the youngest world champion in the history of chess by defeating Ding Liren. At the World Championship in Singapore, Gukesh’s strategy was to tire out his opponent Ding by extending matches as long as possible. That seemed to be the strategy employed by Keymer in the game on Wednesday against Gukesh.
The German grandmaster was in an inferior position on the board from the middle game itself, with Gukesh a pawn up, but rather than resigning, he kept playing on until the 72nd move, where Gukesh’s victory was inevitable. When the resignation did come, Keymer’s clock was whittled down to mere seconds and he was pawn up but Gukesh had an additional bishop on the board.
There were times in the middle game when both players were significantly low on time and Keymer made some moves with barely seconds on his clock.
How Gukesh beat Vincent Keymer
Keymer, in fact, is one of the two seconds of Team Gukesh competing at the Tata Steel event this year. Gukesh will take on his other second from the World Championship, Pentala Harikrishna, in Round 7 (Saturday).
Harikrishna and Keymer had played a role in Gukesh becoming the youngest world champion in history by beating Ding Liren in Singapore last month.
Earlier on in the tournament Gukesh was asked if the clashes against his seconds would be ‘special games’. The 18-year-old had said: “Once I get to the board, in general I don’t really care about the opponent, whether it’s a good friend or anyone. It will be business as usual. We have developed a close bond over the year. I’m glad they’re playing in this tournament.”
Pragg stays unbeaten
Praggnanandhaa managed to stay unbeaten at the Tata Steel chess tournament in Wijk aan Zee heading into the first rest day of the event after playing out a 40-move draw against Dutch grandmaster Max Warmerdam in the fifth round of the year’s first super elite invitational tournament.
After five rounds in the tournament nicknamed the Wimbledon of Chess, Pragg is second in the standings, after he was overtaken by Nodirbek Abdusattarov on Wednesday.
After a quiet year on the board in 2024, the Tata Steel event has seen a resurgent Praggnanandhaa. He has defeated three of his compatriots, including good friend Arjun Erigaisi, veteran Pentala Harikrishna and Leon Luke Mendonca, at Wijk aan Zee while holding Abdusattarov to a draw.
On Wednesday, Pragg had black pieces in a game where there was little to separate him from his Dutch rival and the game fizzled out.
Draws galore
It was a day when all the other Indian players in the masters section were held to draws. In the battle of two Indians, India’s top-rated grandmaster Arjun Erigaisi was held to a draw by India No 11 Leon Luke Mendonca.
Both players have been winless at the Tata Steel chess tournament this year with both having three defeats against their name and two draws so far at Wijk aan Zee. At the end of the fifth round, Erigaisi and Mendonca find themselves rooted to the bottom of the masters standings at one point each.
Erigaisi was a pawn down from as early as the 10th move against Mendonca. But despite holding an advantage on the board, Mendonca could not convert before the game ended in a draw on the 30th move.
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