CHENNAI: J Deepan Chakkravarthy (Railway Sports Promotion Board) outwitted Swapnil Dhopade in the 13th round to win the 55th National Challengers Chess Championship at Ahmedabad on Wednesday. His teammate Dhopade, who had been leading for most of the tournament, had to settle for second spot after faltering in the final round.
Going into the last round in the second spot, Deepan clinched the title, thanks to his victory over Dhopade in a long drawn-out game lasting 72 moves. The victory was achieved because of his passed g pawn in a rook and pawn ending. The Chennaiite played 12 decisive games in 13 rounds, which underlines his fighting spirit. Deepan (10.5) won the tournament by half a point margin, which included 10 wins, two losses and one draw.
Despite suffering setbacks against Mary Ann Gomes in the fourth round and Fenil Shah in the eighth round, Deepan’s ability to keep winning was the key factor in his title triumph. The 30-year-old gained 11.1 rating points, besides qualifying for the National Premier Chess Championship. When queried about Deepan’s victory in the Challengers, India GM Sundararajan Kidambi said: “Just saw the final round game between Dhopade and Deepan.
A typical case of the person needing a draw to win the tournament playing too cautiously and losing out in the end. A brilliant technical display by Deepan, who kept pushing for victory.” Another highlight of the tournament being the clean sweep of podium places by RSPB players. Dhopade came second and Himanshu Sharma, who won on demand against Sriram Jha, took the third spot. Debashis Das, M R Lalith Babu, Abhijit Kunte, S L Narayanan, S Nitin and R R Laxman were the other players to make the cut for National Premier.
Final Placings (Top 10): 1. J Deepan Chakkravarthy (RSPB) 10.5, 2. Swpanil Dhopade (RSPB) 10, 3-9: Himanshu Sharma (RSPB), Debashis Das (Odi), M R Lalith Babu, Abhijit Kunte (both PSPB), S L Narayanan (Ker), S Nitin, R R Laxman (RSPB), 9.5, 10. V R Aravindh Chithambaram (TN) 9.