Chithambaram wins but Gukesh draws

Prague: Indian Grandmaster Aravindh Chithambaram defeated Netherland’s Jorden van Foreest but world champion D Gukesh’s winless run continued as he played out a draw yet again, this time against Vincent Keymer of Germany in the eighth and penultimate round of the Prague International chess festival here.

Uzbekistan’s Nodirbek Abdusattorov leapfrogged to the pole position following a victory over local favourite David Navara.

With 5.5 points in his kitty, Abdusattorov enjoys a half point lead over van Foreest with just one round remaining. After winning the Tata Steel Masters earlier in February, this could well be the second super-event win for the young Uzbek. Navara is the lone player on 4.5 points occupying the third spot while Aravindh moved to joint fourth spot on four points with Keymer and Parham Maghsoodloo of Iran.

Nodirbek Yakubboev of Uzbekistan, Hans Moke Niemann of the United States and David Anton Guijarro of Spain are next in the standings on 3.5 points, a point clear of last placed Gukesh. It was a lot of drama in the final stages of the day as Abdusattorov and Chithambaram both won from potential easy draws.