Budapest/New Delhi. India created history on Sunday when its men’s and women’s teams defeated their respective opponents in the final round of the 45th Chess Olympiad to win gold medals for the first time in the tournament. The Indian men’s team defeated Slovenia 3.5-0.5 in the 11th and final round while the women’s team also defeated Azerbaijan by the same margin.
The Indian men’s team had earlier won bronze medals in the 2014 and 2022 editions of the tournament. The Indian women’s team won the bronze medal in the 2022 edition in Chennai. World Championship Challenger and Grandmaster D Gukesh (18 years), Arjun Erigesi (21 years) and R Praggnanandhaa (19 years) once again performed well in important matches to help India win their first title in the Open category.
In the match against Slovenia, Gukesh performed best in the technical phase against Vladimir Fedoseev with black pieces. Although he got a tough win, the 18-year-old grandmaster adopted a brilliant strategy. Erigesi defeated Jan Subelj playing with black pieces on the third board. If this was not enough, then Praggnanandhaa came into form and won a brilliant victory over Anton Demchenko. After this, Vidit Gujrathi (29 years) played a draw on the fourth board.
Gukesh said, “I am feeling very good, especially seeing the level of our game and our performance as a team.” Chess great and five-time world championship winner Viswanathan Anand was present in the arena to watch the next generation of Indian players rule the world. The Indian men’s team scored 21 out of 22 points. The players only played a 2-2 draw against Uzbekistan.
For the Indian women’s team, D Harika (33 years), like Praggnanandhaa, found form in the final round and showed technical superiority on the first board and won over Gunay Mamadzada. 18-year-old Divya Deshmukh once again outshone her opponent to secure her individual gold medal on the third board. She defeated Govhar Baydulayeva, scoring 9.5 out of 11 points.
After R Vaishali (23 years) drew with Ulviya Talieva, Vantika Agrawal (21 years) came back from a difficult situation and won a brilliant victory over Khanim Balazayeva to ensure the Indian team the gold medal. The women’s team scored a total of 19 points, which left them needing a win in the final round. The gold medal was in the team’s bag as soon as they won against Azerbaijan, as joint-toppers Kazakhstan drew with the USA last night.
Victory in Chess Olympiad is result of amazing game: Anand
Veteran player and five-time world champion Vishwanathan Anand congratulated the Indian men’s and women’s teams for winning gold medals for the first time in the Chess Olympiad, calling it the result of amazing play. The Indian men’s team defeated Slovenia on Sunday in the competition being played in Budapest and secured the first position in the open category for the first time, while the women’s team achieved this feat by defeating Azerbaijan.
Anand posted on Instagram, “Congratulations to the Indian men’s team for winning the Olympiad with one round to spare. Historical performance. Definitely an amazing game.” He added, “Congratulations to D Gukesh and Arjun Erigesi for their individual success.” Congratulating the women’s team, Anand made special mention of Divya Deshmukh and Vantika Agarwal who registered an easy win against Azerbaijan.
Anand said, “Congratulations to the Indian women’s team. The entire team and captain Abhijeet Kunte achieved a great result. Special congratulations to Divya Deshmukh and Vantika Agarwal for their excellent performance.” American Grandmaster Hikaru Nakamura also praised the Indian teams and said that Anand’s legacy is safe. Nakamura posted, “The way the Indian teams dominated the entire competition is commendable. Vishwanathan Anand’s legacy is safe.”
Tania Sachdev said, we had to win the title
Senior Indian women’s team player Tania Sachdev said after winning her first gold medal in the 45th Chess Olympiad on Sunday that she had to win the title. The Indian team of Tania Sachdev, Harika Dronavalli, Vaishali Rameshbabu, Divya Deshmukh and Vantika Agarwal, along with coach Abhijeet Kunte, won the gold medal by defeating Azerbaijan 3.5-0.5 in the final round.
Sachdev told ‘Chess.com’, “I am very overwhelmed right now. I am very proud of my team for what we have done in the open category and the women’s category. When I look back, I feel that this was the moment we were made for.” The Indian women won the bronze medal in the 2022 edition.
Grandmaster Vaishali said, “I still remember last year, we lost in the last round. I could not sleep last night thinking about those things but I am very happy that we played unitedly.” FIDE International Master and GM Sachdev said, “I think last time was very difficult. I am very happy now.” GM Harika said that she finally succeeded in fulfilling her dream after 20 years.
She said, “I came to the Olympiad 20 years ago at the age of 13 with a dream of winning a medal and finally it has come true today.” Harika said, “It has been a roller-coaster ride for me during this tournament and I am happy that the girls performed well. Finally we all came forward as a team and we won the last game.” Divya Deshmukh said that the team will go for lunch after their victory while IM and GM Vantika Agarwal expressed relief at winning.