Shankland, Daneshvar share Sharjah Masters lead

Indian Grandmaster Aravindh Chithambaram’s strong run at the 7th Sharjah Masters International Chess Championship hit a snag in the seventh round.

Taking place under the patronage of His Highness Dr. Sheikh Sultan Bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, Member of the Supreme Council and Ruler of Sharjah, the championship is being organised by the Sharjah Cultural & Chess Club.

298 players from 60 countries are competing in the Sharjah Masters, which carries a total prize purse of $65,000.

A critical mistake late in the game against Iranian opponent Bardiya Daneshvar resulted in a loss, surrendering Aravindh’s lead in the tournament.

Sam Shankland’s victory over American Hans Moke Niemann put him level on points with Daneshvar, pushing Aravindh down to joint third place.

Aravindh had been playing exceptionally well until the crucial blunder, which overturned a seemingly advantageous position.

Defending champion Arjun Erigaisi of India was unable to break through the solid defenses of Iran’s Parham Maghsoodloo and had to settle for a draw.

This result left Erigaisi still half a point behind the leading duo of Daneshwar and Shankland.

UAE national team and Sharjah Cultural & Chess Club’s player Salem Abdulrahman Saleh (rated 2629), drew on the fifth board with Chinese player Yu Yangyi, the tournament’s third seed (rated 2728), his total to 4.5 points.

Iranian Amin Tabatabaei (rated 2707), the winner of the fourth edition of Sharjah Masters champion, drew with his Serbian rival Alexey Sarana (rated 2706).

Six players stand a half point behind the co-leaders: Erigaisi, Tabatabaei, Sarana, Volodar Murzin, Aydin Suleymanli and Aravindh.

Earlier, Najla Al Shamsi, Chairperson of Sharjah Women Culture and Chess Club, began the proceedings of the seventh round of Sharjah Masters International Chess Championship.

The seventh round was also attended by Taryam Matar Taryam, President of the UAE Chess Federation; Imran Abdullah Al Nuaimi, Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Sharjah Cultural & Chess; Engineer Talal Ahmed Al Zaabi; Waheeb Jaafar Al Zarouni, Secretary General of the club; Sultan Ali Al Taher, Head of the Technical Department of the UAE Chess Federation; Rajai Alsusi, Executive Director of the club, and a large number of fans.

Najla Al Shamsi expressed delight after witnessing the seventh round of the tournament.

She praised the professional organization of the competition and the distinguished presence of top chess players from various countries.

Najla Al Shamsi also commended the significant progress made by the Sharjah Cultural & Chess Club in organizing international and global competitions, thanks to the generous support of His Highness Sheikh Dr. Sultan Bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, the Ruler of Sharjah.

She acknowledged the club’s efforts in promoting the game of chess and expanding its base across different parts of the Emirate of Sharjah.

In the Challengers Championsip, India’s Divya Deshmukh achieved a crucial victory over compatriot Antonio Dcunha Viani to grab the lead.