Chess Candidates 2024: Vidit Gujrathi Stuns Hikaru Nakamura, Gukesh Outplays Praggnanandhaa

Vidit Gujrathi, D Gukesh, Fabiano Caruana and Ian Nepomniachtchi secured victories in the second round of the Chess Candidates.

Toronto (Canada): India's Vidit Gujrathi scripted a shock win over world No. 3 and tournament favourite USA's Hikaru Nakamura in Round 2 of the Candidates with black pieces. Also, with the result, Nakamura’s 47-game unbeaten streak came to an end.

It was the 2022 Candidates tournament when Nakamura last lost a classical game and the defeat was against current reigning world champion Ding Liren. It is also Vidit's first-ever victory against Nakamura in classical chess. In contrast to the all-draw affair on the opening day of the competition, all games in the open section produced results.

Vidit, who hails from Nashik, was full of ideas when he was up against Nakamura. The Indian baited his opponent early in the game sacrificing a pawn and capitalising on the lack of the development on queen side from his opponent. Vidit then pulled off a decisive move with a smart bishop-offer to capture a pawn that damaged his rival's castle.

Nakamura neither captured the bishop nor found the precise continuation. He managed to move his king by queen’s side in the back end of the contest but by then Vidit’s queen, rook and knight were all in position to launch an attack which would have ensured a victory for the Indian. Seeing the inevitable, Nakamura accepted the defeat and shook hands with his opponent.

"It (11… Bxh3) was part of my preparation, but after (Hikaru's) 12.Nc4, I was on my own, Vidit said later, "For the rest of the game, I was thinking and trying to find out moves. Big thanks to my team for giving me such a nice start in the opening.”

In another clash of the day, it was an all-India contest when R Praggnanandhaa and D Gukesh locked horns. The former executed the first ten moves within a span of the first five minutes. On the other hand, Gukesh used a good amount of time thinking and fell behind on the clock pretty early. Although Gukesh was racing against time and was up against a tough challenge from the opponent, he held his nerves and emerged triumphant by the end.

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