Kunte outplays Lanka Ravi

By Raghunandan Gokhale

MUMBAI, MAY 28. Grandmaster Abhijit Kunte (8.5) of Petroleum Sports Control Board regained his winning touch today when he outplayed his team-mate IM Lanka Ravi (4) in the 11th round of the Reliance Industries Ltd.-sponsored 37th National A chess championship being organised by the Maharashtra Chess Association.

Abhijit has once again outdistanced the field by a full point as his nearest rival top seeded GM Dibyendu Barua (7.5) of TISCO was held to a draw by IM K.Murugan (5) of Neyveli Lignite Corporation. GM Sasikiran (7) of PSCB was also forced to share a point by IM V.Sarvanan (4.5) in a fighting game.

After two successive losses, a rest day on Saturday must have helped teenager S.Kidambi (4.5) regain his composer as he scored an emphatic win over Sriram Jha (4) in Semi Slav Defence.

Abhijit opted for King's Indian Attack against the Caro Kann Defence adopted by Lanka Ravi. The Grandmaster took advantage of Ravi's indifferent handling of the Black side and posted his pieces effectively in the centre. Ravi's own pawns on a5,c5 and e5 restricted the movements of Black pieces. Ravi tried to defend the weaknesses on the Queen's wing by huddling his own pieces there.

Abhijit soon realised that Ravi had set up a solid wall of defence on the Queen's wing. He suddenly switched his attention towards the inadequately defended Black King. The Pune GM doubled his Rooks on the `f' file and broke through with a powerful thrust. Ravi tried to stem the tide by offering a pawn but the White pieces broke through the King side and Ravi had to surrender the game.

Ganguly disappoints

Former World under-12 runner-up Suryasekhar Ganguly (5.5) messed up a winning position and squandered a golden opportunity to score his fifth consecutive win. After outplaying his GNCA team mate Neelotpal Das with a masterly handling of White side of French Defence, one would have expected the young National `B' chess champion to outwit out-of- form Neelotpal.

Ganguly had total command of the board in the end game but he failed to judge Neelotpal's desperation. Neelotpal gave up a pawn and activated his pieces. With his King,Rook and Knight sitting at the most effective squares, Neelotpal had no trouble forcing a draw. GM Pravin Thipsay gave a Grandmasterly display of perfect opening and middle game against 14 year old P.Harikrishna.

Pravin selected Bobby Fischer's line from Black in symmetrical English Opening. He gave a magnificent exhibition of Queen side attack to reach a nearly winning position. However his usual nemesis-the Clock- stood in the way. The Grandmaster from Mumbai blew all the dominance during time trouble and drifted into a minus position. He had to fight hard in the end to salvage it from total ruin.

Hegde's maiden victory

IM Ravi Hegde, the oldest participant in the championship recorded his first victory of the championship after blowing winning positions against Atanu Lahiri and Abhijit Kunte. And what a brilliant exhibition of technical mastery it was! Sandipan Chanda tried to trap Ravi's Queen in the Accelerated Dragon defence where Hegde was Black. When 43-year- old Ravi countered effectively, 17-year-old Sandipan went for a position where apparently the White Rooks dominated Hegde's pieces.

The Union Bank Officer from Banglore was in his elements today. He blunted Sandipan's activity. It was a fascinating duel of wits in which the experienced Master came on top with a unblemished handling of difficult endgame.

S.Kidambi started the tournament with a win over Barua in the third round. Thereafter he was struggling. He found his touch today after Saturday's rest and put it across Sriram Jha in an enterprising game full of attack and counter-attack. It was Jha's seventh Semi Slav in this tournament. The former National Junior champion from Chennai gambited a pawn for attack.

With relentless attacking sorties, he won a piece and soon the game in the end. GM Barua obtained a position of his liking but offered a draw to IM Murugan as the former was suffering from cold and fever. Dr.R.V.Sohoni diagnosed the illness as throat infection and prescribed medicines for the GM. It is doubtful whether the GM will go all out for a win in the next few rounds.

IM V.Sarvanan's rock solid defence was too much for GM S.Sasikiran who, the experts felt must have missed some promising line in the middle game. Sarvanan's King's Indian Defence thus withstood Sasi's Classical system and peace was signed after 44 moves.

The results: Atanu Lahiri (LIC)3 drew with Vishal Sareen (LIC) 5; D.V.Prasad (IOC) 5.5 drew with T.S.Ravi (IOC) 6; Dibyendu Barua (TISCO) 7.5 drew with K.Murugan (NLC) 5; Abhijit Kunte (IOC) 8.5 bt Ravi (ONGC) 4; Sandipan Chanda (GNCA) 4.5 lost to Ravi Hegde (UBI) 4.5; S.S.Ganguly (GNCA) 5.5 drew with Neelotpal Das (GNCA) 4; P.Harikrishna (WIPRO) 5.5 drew with Pravin Thipsay (UBI) 5.5; K.Sasikiran (ONGC) 7 drew with V.Saravanan (BPCL) 4.5; S.Kidambi (TN) 4.5 bt Shriram Jha (LIC) 4; G.B.Prakash (Ind.Bank) 5 Bye.

The moves: White A.Kunte-Black Lanka Ravi. 1. e4 c6 2. d3 d5 3. Nd2 e5 4. Ngf3 Nd7 5. g3 Ngf6 6. Bg2 Bd6 7. O-O O-O 8. b3 Re8 9. Bb2 Qc7 10. Re1 d4 11. c3 dxc3 12. Bxc3 c5 13. Rc1 Qd8 14. Nc4 Bc7 15.a4 a5 16. Qd2 Ra6 17. Qb2 Qe7 18. Ne3 Rc6 19. Nf5 Qd8 20. Nd2 g6 21. Ne3 Nf8 22. Ndc4 N6d7 23. Nd5 b6 24. f4 f6 25. Rf1 Bb8 26. Rf2 Bb7 27. Rcf1 exf4 28. gxf4 f5 29. Bh8 Ne6 30. exf5 gxf5 31. Bf6 Qc8 32. Bf3 Nd4 33. Rg2+ Kf8 34. Bxd4 cxd4 35. Qxd4. Ravi resigned.

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