Date:08/11/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/11/08/stories/2008110851532100.htm

Sport - Chess

Khamparia holds Karthikeyan

Principal Correspondent

TADEPALLIGUDEM: Tamil Nadu’s Karthikeyan, despite a draw against Madhya Pradesh’s Akshat Khamparia, continued to lead the pack with six points after seven rounds in the 38th National junior and 23rd National girls’ chess championship at the Sasi Institute of Technology and Engineering, here on Friday.

Andhra Pradesh’s M.R. Lalith Babu, Orissa’s Anwesh Upadhyaya, Tamil Nadu’s T. Abhay and V.A.V. Rajesh share the second spot with 5.5 points each.

There was no stopping Maharashtra’s Sowmya Swaminathan (7 points), who went on to register her seven consecutive win defeating Orissa’s Padmini Rout in 28 moves. Tamil Nadu’s P. Uthra is in the second place with 5.5 points.

FIDE-master Khamparia, playing white in Nimzo 4-move BG Variation, launched the onslaught in the middle game, which Karthikeyan defended deftly with a closed pawn structure.

Karthikeyan resorted to counter-attack on the 18th move. With major pieces getting traded, both agreed for a draw after 29 moves.

In a game which saw both Lalith Babu and Adhiban making a series of dubious moves, Adhiban resigned on the 42nd move.

Sowmya, playing white, sacrificed her pawn in the 13th move and took the initiative by attacking her rival’s king side, forcing Padmini to resign.

Important results: Seventh round: Boys: Akshat Khamparia (MP) 5 drew with P. Karthikeyan (TN) 6; M.R. Lalith Babu (AP) 5.5 bt B. Adhiban (TN) 5; Shyam Sundar (TN) 5 drew with R. Arun Karthik (TN) 5; T. Abhay (TN) 5.5 bt Shyam Nikil (TN) 4.5; Anvesh Upadhyaya (Ori) 5.5 bt Vishnu Prasanna (TN) 4.5; D. Das (Ori) 5 drew with K. Priyadharshan (TN) 5; R. Premnath (TN) 4.5 lost to V.A.V. Rajesh (TN) 5.5; S.P. Sethuraman (TN) 5 bt Dusthageeer Ibrahim (TN) 4; N. Srinath (TN) 5 bt C.R.G. Krishna (AP) 4; Y. Sandeep (AP) lost to Swapnil Dhopade (Mah) 5; R. Eswar (AP) 4 lost to S. Nitin (TN) 5; Rahul Sangma (Del) 4.5 drew with Abhilash Reddy (AP) 4.5; Vedprakash (Bih) 4 lost to Navin Kanna (TN) 5; Sagar Shah (Mah) 4.5 drew with Fenil Shah (Guj) 4.5. Girls: Soumya Swaminathan (Mah) 7 bt Padmini Rout (Ori) 5; P. Uthra (TN) 5.5 bt R. Preethi (TN) 4.5; Devangi Patankar (Mah) drew with Ch. Divyasri (AP) 5; Kiran Manisha Mohanty (Ori) 5 bt S. Harini (TN) 4; Tejaswini Reddy (AP) 5 bt Ch. Savetha (TN) 4; Mithali Madhukar (Mah) 5 bt P.K. Jayashree (TN) 3.5; N. Raghavi (TN) 4.5 bt A. Akshaya (TN) 3.5; Hinduja Reddy (AP) 3.5 lost to J. Saranya (TN) 4.5; R. Karthikeyini (TN) 3.5 lost to Sai Nirupama (AP) 4.5; Aparajita (Ori) 4.5 bt N. Hema Priya (TN) 3.5; Satya Priya (TN) 4.5 bt Krushna Mishra (Ori) 3.5; Sree Lakshmi (AP) 4.5 lost K. Nidhisha (Ori) 3.5; R. Visalatchi (TN) 4 bt Priyamvada (AP) 3; R. Salini (AP) 3.5 drew with Shristi Gautam (Bih) 3.5.