In 45th FIDE Chess Olympiad, India dominated day one at Budapest, Hungary yesterday. India thrashed Morocco with a 4 nil win in round one of the open section, while in the women’s event, India secured a 3.5-0.5 victory over Jamaica.
With D. Gukesh sitting out the first round, R. Praggnanandhaa took the top board for India’s opening match against Morocco and gave the team an early lead by defeating Tissir Mohamed. Shortly after, Vidit Gujrathi claimed victory over Ouakhir Mehdi Pierre, followed by Pentala Harikrishna, who won against Moayad Anas with the black pieces. World no. 4 Arjun Erigaisi completed the sweep by defeating Elbilia Jacques, securing a dominant 4-0 win for India.
In the women’s event, Vaishali won on the top board against Adani Clarke, Tania Sachdev defeated Gabriella Watson on the fourth board, and Divya Deshmukh beat Rachel Miller. Vantika Agarwal was held to a draw by Raehanna Brown, rounding out the match.
The 12-day biennial event features over 1,800 players, with 193 teams competing in the open section and 181 in the women’s section. India, the host of the previous edition, won bronze medals in both categories.
