Praggnanandhaa leads Indian charge at Las Vegas Freestyle chess; Gukesh opts out

advertisement

Las Vegas (USA), July 16: R Praggnanandhaa found himself clubbed with Magnus Carlsen in the same group, while Arjun Erigaisi and Vidit Gujrathi were bunched together in the other pool of the 16-player Freestyle chess tournament to be held here.

Advertisement

World number one Magnus Carlsen will yet again start as the favourite for the title in this edition that saw a lot of pre-event activities including participation of NBA players. The tournament-proper starts late on Wednesday.

The event carries a total prize pool of USD 750,000 with 200,000 reserved for the winner. Each group has eight players in the line up and the top four will advance to the next stage while the bottom half will play against each other.

Advertisement

World champion D Gukesh is going to give the event a miss as he will be playing the main event of the Grandmaster tour in about a month’s time.

The 19-year-old Praggnanandhaa will start his campaign against Nodirbek Abdusattorov of Uzbekistan, a player who was struggling at the previous edition of Grand Chess tour in Zagreb, Croatia.

Carlsen will play the winner of the first edition, Vincent Keymer of Germany, in his opening round.

American Hans Niemann will make his first appearance in the Freestyle chess tournament and take on Erigaisi in the opener.

Gujrathi will take on Fabiano Caruana of United States. For the first time, a woman player, Bibisara Assaubuyeva of Kazakhstan, has been included in the lineup to compete against the world elite.

advertisement

Freestyle chess is a new name given to Fischer random chess or chess 960 where the position of the pieces is randomly changed at the start of the game.

With little theory in the books, the version is gaining popularity as tame draws out of the openings have vanished and there are usually a lot of fighting games right from the beginning. (PTI)

Hot this week

Pay hike of Assam ministers, MLAs likely as 3-member panel submits report

Full report likely by Oct 30 Guwahati Sept 25: There...

Meghalaya Biological Park Inaugurated After 25 Years: A New Chapter in Conservation and Education

Shillong, Nov 28: Though it took nearly 25 years...

ANSAM rejects Kuki’s separate administration demand, says bifurcation not acceptable

Guwahati, Sept 8: Rejecting the separate administration demand of...

Meghalaya man missing in Bangkok

Shillong, Jan 10: A 57-year-old Meghalaya resident, Mr. Treactchell...

Meghalaya’s historic fiber paves the way for eco-friendly products and sustainable livelihoods

By Roopak Goswami Shillong, Oct 25: From making earbuds to...

Three convicted in 2017 POCSO case

Shillong, Aug 28: The Ri Bhoi District Special Judge...

Bailout package to ADCs not a blank cheque: Govt  

ADCs have to implement reform measures to avail financial...

Congress seeks disqualification of four Meghalaya MLAs who joined NPP

Shillong, Aug 28: The opposition Congress on Thursday filed...

‘Khyndailad set for new look’

Shillong, Aug 28: Tourism minister Paul Lyngdoh on Thursday...

Paul warns of backlash if outside tourists cabs barred  

‘Will taxi association take responsibility if Meghalayans are stopped...

17 killed in Pak floods

Lahore, Aug 28: At least 17 people have died...

65 lakh voters deleted from Bihar’s electoral rolls were poor people, claims Rahul

Sitamarhi/Motihari, Aug 28: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday...
spot_img

Related Articles

Popular Categories