Candidates 2024: Praggnanandhaa beats Nijat Abasov in round six
India’s R. Praggnanandhaa beat Azerbaijan’s Nijat Abasov in the sixth round of FIDE Candidates 2024 at the Great Hall in Toronto, Canada on Thursday.
Published : Apr 11, 2024 04:24 IST , CHENNAI - 1 MIN READ
India’s R. Praggnanandhaa in action during the sixth round of the Candidates 2024. | Photo Credit: FIDE/Maria Emelianova
India’s R. Praggnanandhaa beat Azerbaijan’s Nijat Abasov in the sixth round of FIDE Candidates 2024 at the Great Hall in Toronto, Canada on Thursday.
He moves to 3.5 points after this win and sits joint second alongside USA’s Fabiano Caruana in the leaderboards.
In a Tarassch Defense game, the 18-year-old displayed impeccable skills and forced his opponent to resign on the 45th move after playing a flawless game.
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Operating with white pieces, Praggnanandhaa gained a significant advantage on move no. 26 when Abasov mistimed his g-file pawn push.
Then the queens were off the board before the Indian erred to nullify his advantage by offering a rook exchange.
The final blow came when Abasov misplaced his king, forcing an exchange of the other rook. Praggnanandhaa had a passer pawn in a file running away before the lowest-ranked player in the eight-man field resigned.