Sengupta maintains lead

By Manuel Aaron

OROPESA (SPAIN) OCT. 19. Deep Sengupta continued to win and lead in the World under-12 boys chess championship at the end of the seventh round of the World Youth Chess Festival organised in Oropesa, Spain by the Spanish Chess Federation. Deep won his seventh round game in style. Four more rounds remain.

Koneru Humpy did not strain herself and was content to draw with Nana Dzagnidze who had won the World u-12 girls title last year. Humpy is now in joint lead with Nataliya Hygorenko of Ukraine. They have six points each. In the same category, Eesha Karavade is in joint second place with 5.5 points. She defeated Olga Vasiliev of Israel last night.

Deep Sengupta is fast becoming the symbol of India's surging ascendancy in children's chess. He beat Valentine Iotov of Bulgaria in a sparkling game. Deep went for the Maroczy Bind against the Bulgarian's Sicilian Defence and very quickly achieved a glorious attacking position. Controlling the centre and almost all sections of the board, he forced Iotov to concede a weak d5 square which he exploited to the hilt.

He contrived a double attack with his queen on the f7 and b6 pawns to the surprise of Iotov and won a pawn. Playing very clever chess he forced the exchange of queens with the threat of winning more pawns. His opponent gave up in the resultant ending on the 47th move.

Akshayraj Kore suffered a tragic loss at the hands of Hungary's Laszlo Gonda. He had a good position from his Alapin Sicilian. But in the middle-game he made a premature swap of his fianchettoed bishop for a knight and his advantage evaporated. Gonda made draw offers three times during the game. In an equal queen and rook middle-game, Kore made a grievous blunder on the 43rd move which cost him his key pawn. Two moves later he gave up.

lSeventh round Indian results: Girls: Maria Ignacz (Hun) lost to Harika 5.5 ;

Louisa Livschitz (USA) lost to V.K.Sindhu 4.5; Iswarya Shobana 3.5 lost to Sandra Djukic (Yug); Yulduz Hamrakulova (Uzb) bt Kruttika Nadig 3.5; Nana Dzagnidze (Geo) 5.5 drew with K.Humpy 6; Eesha Karavade 5.5 bt Olga Vasiliev (Isr); Tania Sachdev 4 bt Batchimeg Tuvshintugs (Mgl); Sarah Brethauer (Ger) bt Nabeela Farheen 2; Shraddha Samani 4 lost to Elena Partac (Moldova); J.E.Kavitha 3 bt Reinette Van der Merwe (South Africa); Dasari Sai Srinivas 4.5 drew with Ildar Hairroline (Rus); M.Abhinav 4.5 bt Omri Ben Yair (Isr); Deep Sengupta 6.5 bt Valentine Iotov (Bul); Abhijeet Gupta 5 drew with Alexander Fier (Bra); Akshayraj Kore 5 lost to Laszlo Gonda (Hun); Kadir Guseinov (Aze) drew with P.Harikrishna 5; Alvino Encinas (Spa) lost to Saptarshi Roy 4; Hector Wakefield (Wls) drew with Himanshu Kumar 2; Joseph Lentini (Can) lost to Yashpal Singh Sonwani 4; P.Mageshchandran 4 bt Harald Borchgrevink (Nor).

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