Chandran, Kasturi finish second

Chennai, November 19: P Mahesh Chandran of Tamil Nadu (7.5 points) finished second, defeating compatriot RR Laxman in a complicated game i...

Chennai, November 19: P Mahesh Chandran of Tamil Nadu (7.5 points) finished second, defeating compatriot RR Laxman in a complicated game in the ninth and final round of the Indian Oil-Servo National under-18 chess championship at Ambedkar Auditorium, Avadi, here on Sunday. Himanshu Sharma (Haryana), who had already clinched the crown on Saturday, made a quiet draw with Arghyadip Das (GNCA) to end the tournament with eight points which included seven victories and two draws. Determined and joyous Himanshu when queried about his victory, said: “I didn’t expect to win the tournament. I just wanted to give my best. I’m happy to win my maiden National title.”Himanshu’s feat should do well for Haryana chess which only has a few quality players.

Laxman’s provocative opening play in the Pirc Defence with Mahesh Chandran turned the game into head-spinning complications. Mahesh missed a key move in the middlegame and reached a rook versus bishop ending with a slight pull. Mahesh was finding it difficult to convert the advantage when Laxman gave in easily.

Except for his game with Arghyadip, Mahesh’s performance was stable but it was not enough for retaining his title.

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M Kasturi (TN) ended the tournament in style, outplaying teammate Nabeela Farheen from the black side of Sicilian Pelikan. The Madurai girl came second with seven points in the girls section. Her spurt at the finish was impressive and dashing.

JE Kavitha (TN) despite having the crown in her bag looked motivated for her final round game with Amruta Mokal (VCA). Mokal’s position looked okay in the middlegame from the C3 Sicilian but she made a few false steps which gave Kavitha a chance for unleashing a Kingside attack. The 17-year-old showed sound judgment and accurate calculation to conjure up a pretty finish with a double bishop sacrifice on the 31st and 32nd move.

Kavitha felt satisfied with her play. She also felt, her endgame play has improved.

Final Placings
Boys: 1. Himanshu Sharma (Har-8); 2. P Mahesh Chandran (TN-7.5); 3. Arghyadip Das (GNCA-6.5); 4. Prathamesh Mokal (Mah-6); 5. Soumya Ranjan Mishra (Ori-6); 6. MR Venkatesh (TN-6); 7. JM Utarid (Kar-6); 8. Ram S Krishnan (Capa-6); 9. R Siddharth (TN-6); 10. Pradip Ghosh (WB-6).

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Girls: 1. JE Kavitha (TN-8); 2. M Kasturi (TN-7); 3. Y Prathiba (TN-6.5); 4. N Sandhya (Ker-6); 5. H Nilavoli (TN-6); 6. Nabeela Farheen (TN-5.5); 7. Amruta S Mokal (VCA-5.5); 8. Baisakhi Das (WB-5.5); 9. CV Rajalakshmi (CCI-5); 10. Anuradha Beniwal (Har-5).

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