New Delhi: R Praggnanandhaa secured his first victory of the 46th Chess Olympiad by defeating Dutch No. 1 Anish Giri, helping India’s men register a 3-1 win over the Netherlands in Round 5 in Samarkand, Uzbekistan.
Playing on Board 1, Praggnanandhaa faced Giri in what was one of the key encounters of India’s match against the Netherlands. The Indian grandmaster, playing with the white pieces, gradually built pressure in a long game that began with a Ruy Lopez.
The victory came after Praggnanandhaa had drawn his first three games on Board 1. His selection for the top board had attracted attention when the line-up was announced, with world champion D Gukesh placed on Board 4.
Gukesh also delivered for India, defeating experienced Dutch player Erwin L’Ami on the fourth board. Arjun Erigaisi and Nihal Sarin completed the team’s 3-1 victory with draws against Jorden van Foreest and Loek van Wely, respectively.
The official Round 5 record confirms India’s 3-1 result over the Netherlands, with wins for Praggnanandhaa and Gukesh and draws for Erigaisi and Nihal.
The result left India among the teams with a perfect score after five rounds.
For the Indian women, however, Round 5 brought their first defeat of the tournament. They went down 1.5-2.5 to Poland, with Vaishali Rameshbabu suffering the only loss for India.
Playing white in a London System, Vaishali was beaten by International Master Aleksandra Maltsevskaya after 57 moves. The other three Indian players, Koneru Humpy, Divya Deshmukh and Vantika Agrawal, drew their respective games.
The defeat was particularly notable because Poland had also beaten India at the 2022 and 2024 Chess Olympiads, making it the third consecutive Olympiad meeting in which Poland defeated the Indian women.
India’s men are scheduled to face hosts Uzbekistan in Round 6, while the women will take on the US.
