Magnus Carlsen comparisons followed as D Gukesh eked out a win from an equal position against China's Wei Yi with an endgame that has drawn high praise from all corners of chess world. (More Sports News)
Gukesh defeated Yi on Wednesday to lead India to a victory against China, setting up the Indian team firmly for the open gold at the ongoing 45th Chess Olympiad in Budapest, Hungary.
The 18-year-old was supposed to face Ding Liren, his opponent at the upcoming World Championship for the title. However, China announced the reigning world champion Liren had been rested for the tie, leading to Yi and Gukesh havinf a face-off. Before Gukesh, R Praggnanandhaa, Arjun Erigaisi and P Harikrishna had all drawn their respective matches against their Chinese opponents. The winner of the Gukesh-Yi match would decide the winner of the India-China encounter.
Like the other Indians, Gukesh too was heading towards a draw before one mistake from Yi set up an endgame for ages which saw the 18-year-old Indian get a win.
Before the Carlsen comparisons followed, the Norwegian had himself taken a look at the game as things had started to gain momentum. He gave an interesting expression too before leaving. As Gukesh eked out an epic 80-move win out of an objectively drawn position, social media was filled with comparisions with Carlsen.
Both Indian men and women have remained unbeaten till now at the Chess Olympiad. With four more rounds left, Indians remain in pole position for gold in both women's and open sections.
