R Praggnanandhaa conquers Javokhir Sindarov, earns first victory at Sinquefield Cup

Indian Grandmaster R Praggnanandhaa crashed through the defences of Javokhir Sindarov in a second-round match to register his first victory of the Sinquefield Cup, the penultimate event of the Grand Chess Tour, here.

The star of the day was Praggnanandhaa all the way as the Indian claimed his point inch-by-inch in the endgame arising out of a queen pawn opening.

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Sindarov, who will be up against world champion D Gukesh later this year for the world crown, chose just an equal endgame that should have been a perfect draw for him.

But then what he possibly did not account for was Praggnanandhaa’s tenacity. It paid off in the end for the Indian, as from what the computer was claiming to be a drawn endgame turned into a winning one in no time. The game lasted as many as 95 moves.

With Praggnanandhaa reaching 1.5 points from his two games, the overnight leader Fabiano Caruana of the United States was the only one to end matters peacefully with a draw against Anish Giri of Holland.

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The Dutchman is known for his deep opening preparation, and he did not disappoint his fans, but Caruana was well armed with his black pieces.

After just one decisive result in the first round, the equation changed dramatically with four decisive results in round two as Levon Aronian of United States showed his class to beat Vincent Keymer of Germany, Wesley So of United States proved superior against Jorden Van Foreest of Holland and Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, the consistent Frenchman, defeated Savian Sameul of United States.

There are five leaders sharing the top spot on 1.5 points apiece with seven rounds still to be played in the 475000 USD prize money tournament.

The three Americans, Caruana, Aronian and Wesley, are up in front alongside Praggnanandhaa and Vachier-Lagrave, and it remains to be seen who is going to call the shots.

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Results Round 2: R Praggnanandhaa (I.5, Ind) beat Javokhir Sindarov (0.5, Uzb); Maxime Vachier-Lagrave (Fra, 1.5) beat Savian Samuels (Usa, 0.5); Levon Aronian (Arm, 1.5) beat Vincent Keymer (Ger, 0.5); Wesley So (Usa, 1.5) beat Jorden Van Foreest (Ned, 0).