FIDE Grand Swiss: Sarin joint second after beating Australia’s Temur; Harika among the leaders

D. Gukesh, R. Praggnanandhaa and Arjun Erigaisi, too, maintained their unbeaten run by drawing against higher-rated rivals.

FILE PHOTO: Nihal’s second victory placed him in the joint-second spot at 2.5 points behind leader Alireza Firouzja (3) of France.

Nihal Sarin continued his impressive run in the $425,000 FIDE Grand Swiss by beating Australia’s Temur Kuybovkarov with black pieces in the third round in Riga, Latvia, on Friday.

Nihal’s second victory placed him in the joint-second spot at 2.5 points behind leader Alireza Firouzja (3) of France.

D. Gukesh, R. Praggnanandhaa and Arjun Erigaisi, too, maintained their unbeaten run by drawing against higher-rated rivals.

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P. Harikrishna scored his first victory but B. Adhiban suffered a second straight loss. Surya Shekhar Ganguly and S. P. Sethuraman also lost.

In the women’s section, D. Harika defeated former World champion Antoaneta Stefanova (Bulgaria) for her second victory to be among the nine leaders at 2.5 points.