Superbet Classic Round 2: Gukesh and Praggnanandhaa hold on for draws

Both Gukesh and Praggnanandhaa drew their games in Round 2 of Superbet Classic in Romania. 

While the former drew his game against Ian Nepomniatchchi, the latter was held by Maxime Vachier-Lagrave.

Evenly contested

Gukesh found himself tackling the fiery attack of Nepo right thought the game. Meanwhile, Pragg kept pushing for an opening but was unable to break Vachier-Lagrave’s defence.

The game began with Nepo using his trump card Ruy Lopez, the same variation which Nepo played against Magnus during the World Championship Match.

The middlegame saw both players manoeuvring for better positions. Around move-30, the position was relatively equal with no significant advantage for either player.

But Nepo kept pushing Gukesh, creating imbalances, mounting tactical attacks and placing Gukesh under clock-pressure.

That said Gukesh didn't lose his focus and stayed determined throughout, giving not an inch away to Nepo.

Nepo finally gave in. Getting no place for infiltration, the players shook hands and agreed to a draw after a marathon 90-move game.

Pragg and the other games

Pragg opened the game with the King’s pawn and Vachier-Lagrave countered with a Silician Defence.

The Sicilian Defence is considered to be one of the most complex openings while defending, giving both the players an equal chance to attack at the right time.

The board looked symmetric, and moves were being repeated but Pragg denied the draw and kept pressing for an advantage.

However, with no breakthrough in sight, the game ended in a draw.

The game was of pure class and precision with Pragg playing with an accuracy of 98.7 and Vachier-Lagrave with the black pieces, scoring 99 on the accuracy charts.

In other games, Fabiano Caruana, despite being in a winning position, blundered and had to settle for a draw against his countryman Wesley So.

The win could have given Caruana the sole lead in the tournament. That said, he currently leads the tournament jointly with Gukesh.

Elsewhere, Alireza Firouza didn’t give any chances to Nodirbek Abdusattarav and cruised past him for a much-needed victory.

The game between Anish Giri and Bogdan-Daniel Deac ended with a draw after the Dutchman pulled off some great defensive moves.

Round-3 pairings

• Gukesh D v/s R Praggnanandhaa
• Nodirbek Abdusattarav v/s Fabiano Caruana
• Anish Giri v/s Ian Nepomniachtchi
• Maxime Vachier Lagrave v/s Alireza Firouza
• Wesley So v/s Bogdan-Daniel Deac