Zagreb: World champion D Gukesh made good use of the white pieces to beat Dutch Grandmaster Anish Giri in the final game of the day and rise to joint second place after the second day of the Zagreb leg of the Grand Chess Tour.
Iran-born French Grandmaster Alireza Firouzja sits at the top of the standings after extending his lead to a commanding three points.
With 10 points from a possible 12, Firouzja is well ahead of his nearest rivals, Germany’s Vincent Keymer, France’s Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, Romania’s Bogdan-Daniel Deac and Gukesh, who are tied on seven points.
Half a point further behind are India’s R Praggnanandhaa, Giri and Uzbekistan’s Nodirbek Abdusattorov, while Croatia’s Ivan Saric and Dutchman Jorden van Foreest are at the bottom of the standings with two points apiece.
Gukesh made the most of his opportunities against Giri in a Ruy Lopez Exchange Variation.
The Dutch Grandmaster found himself out of his preparation as Gukesh launched an attack against his king and never looked back. After winning the exchange, the youngest-ever world champion made no mistake in converting his advantage and wrapping up a fine victory.Agencies
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