IMAGE: D Gukesh in action against Divya Deshmukh in the eighth round of the FIDE Grand Swiss in Samarkand, Uzbekistan. Photographs: Michal Walusza/FIDE
World champion D Gukesh and Women’s World Cup winner Divya Deshmukh played out an intense 103-move draw after a gruelling six-hour battle, in the eighth round of the FIDE Grand Swiss in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, on Friday.
Gukesh, who came into the match on the back of three consecutive losses, struggled as he missed chances as he was held to a draw with white by Divya.
The Open section saw a flurry of draw on Friday as eight of the top ten boards ended in draws.
India’s Nihal Sarin played out a swift draw against Matthias Bluebaum in just 21 moves as the two players maintained their joint lead with six points each.
Vincent Keymer was the only winner among the top boards as he outclassed India’s Vidit Gujrathi to join a group of eight players who trail the leaders by half a point.
In the women’s event, Bibisara Assaubayeva handed Vaishali Rameshbabu her first loss in the FIDE Grand Swiss.
While Kateryna Lagno cruised past Mariya Muzychuk to jump into the lead with 6.5 points, Vaishali and Assaubayeva are joint second along with Yuxin Song.
