Chess
Chess Grand Prix Delhi: Humpy, Harika draw in round 2; Vaishali loses
Koneru Humpy and Harika Dronavalli played out a draw each in their respective second round matches even as R Vaishali fell to a loss.
Koneru Humpy is the most experienced Indian chess player at the Candidates 2024. (Photo credit: FIDE)
India's Koneru Humpy and Harika Dronavalli played out a draw each in their respective second round matches at the ongoing FIDE Women's Chess Grand Prix in Delhi even as the young R Vaishali fell to a loss.
Vaishali, who was technically playing her first match of the event after having received a walkover in the first round, was up against Kazakhstan's Bibisara Assaubayeva.
Playing with the white pieces, Vaishali made a couple of inaccuracies to land in an inferior position straight out of the opening. The Indian tried to make amends with some solid moves later, but was under severe time crunch for most part of the game. The match lasted almost four hours with, with the two-time World Blitz champion registering a win.
Koneru Humpy, on the other hand, held IM Polina Shuvalova to a draw with the black pieces. The Indian chose the Queen's Gambit accepted line and was very solid. The two players agreed to shake hands just 19 moves into the game. This was Humpy's second draw in as many games in the tournament.
On contrary, Dronavalli Harika had to battle out in a contest spanning four and a half hours. This was the longest game of the day. Playing with the white pieces against China's Zhu Jiner, the Indian was unable to force for a win. This was the first-ever meeting between the two players.
Harika, too, has two draws in two games so far at the ongoing Women's Chess Grand Prix in Delhi.
