Chess Olympiad, Round 7: India pips England 2.5-1.5 in open event, women crush Germany 3.5-0.5

R. Praggnanandhaa gave India a crucial point on the top board with a win over Nikita Vitiugov. | Photo Credit: FIDE/FLICKR

India returned to winning ways in Round 7 of the FIDE Chess Olympiad on Wednesday, beating England 2.5-1.5 in the Open section after its loss to Uzbekistan in the previous round.

R. Praggnanandhaa gave India a crucial point on the top board with a win over Nikita Vitiugov, while Gukesh also scored a full point on Board 4. Arjun Erigaisi drew with veteran Michael Adams.

Nihal Sarin, however, suffered his second successive defeat, losing to Luke McShane. Nihal was forced into a long rook endgame in which McShane gradually improved his king position and kept up the pressure. With fewer active options and his position becoming increasingly difficult to defend, Nihal eventually went down.

India’s women, meanwhile, continued their strong run with a 3.5-0.5 victory over Germany. Koneru Humpy, Divya Deshmukh and Savitha Shri won their games, while R. Vaishali drew with Elisabeth Paehtz to complete a dominant round.

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Both Indian teams have now responded well to setbacks earlier in the competition. The women suffered their first defeat in Round 5, going down to Poland, before beating the USA 3-1 in Round 6. The Open team then lost to the host, Uzbekistan in Round 6.

After Tuesday’s rest day, however, both sides returned strongly, with the Open team overcoming England and the women producing a dominant win against Germany as the Olympiad entered its second half.