Nihal unseats Parham, Vaishali leads @ Samarkand
GM Nihal Sarin brought down tournament leader GM Parham Maghsoodloo moving into joint lead with 5.5 points after the seventh round of the $ 855,000 FIDE Grand Swiss 2025, Samarkand. The top board result threw the event wide open with GM Bluebaum Matthias joining the Indian speedster in lead. Following the leaders were seven Grandmasters viz., Firouzja, Niemann, Abdusattorov, Maghsoodloo, Giri, Vidit and Abhimanyu Mishra at 5.0 points. Crowded further half a point behind at 4.5 points were 11 GMs including Erigaisi, Praggnanandhaa, Keymer, Nepomniachtchi, Rapport, van Foreest, Mamedyarov among others.
In the women’s section, GMs Vaishali Rameshbabu moved into sole lead with 6/7 score, defeating IM Guo Qi while overnight joint leader GM Lagno Kateryna shared the second spot with 5.5 points after shedding half a point to former women’s world champion Antoaneta Stefanova.
Two time European Champion Matthias Bluebaum‘s big win over second seed Indian GM Erigaisi Arjun propelled the German to the top of the table. Elsewhere, favorites GMs Alireza Firouzja and Nodirbek Abdusattorov improved their position defeating GMs Nodirbek Yakubboev and Tabatabaei M Amin respectively. Prodigy on the rise, 14-year-old GM Yağız Kaan Erdoğmuş tasted his first defeat going down to American GM Hans Moke Niemann in a complicated game. Defending champion GM Vidit Santosh Gujrathi kept himself on track for the Candidates spot stopping giant-killer Frenchman GM Marc’Andria Maurizzi.
GM Nihal Sarin picked up from where he left, repeating his brilliancy this time against tournament leader GM Parham Maghsoodloo. The Slav Defense Exchange Variation game saw huge twists and turns coupled with excitement before settling down in favor of the Indian. Nihal weaved a good bit of middle-game magic seizing the moment, side-stepping subtle repetition offer by Parham. His wizardry started with 28. Ne6 and went right up-to the end. An unforced error from the Iranian 32…Nd7? saw the game tilt in favor of Nihal. After multiple ups and downs Nihal finished the game with a flashy queen and knight checkmate threat.
Things continued to be gloomy for world champion Gukesh Dommaraju who lost his third game in a row, this time against 16-year-old GM Ediz Gürel. The fast paced Caro-Kann Defense game took the players into a double-edged position that offered the Indian bright chances mid-way. A highly promising position that could have brought Gukesh a turn-around victory got squandered giving the Turkish teenager a big win and a scalp of the reigning world champion. For a second consecutive game it was the rook ending that played the spoil sport for Gukesh who now faces fellow Indian Divya Deshmukh in the next round. It will be a critical call for the world champion, whether to stem the tide or go for a mood changing win,
On the distaff side, GMs Vaishali Rameshbabu moved into sole lead with 6.0 points, crushing IM Guo Qi, while overnight joint leader GM Lagno Kateryna shared the second spot with 5.5 points. An electrifying win over the Chinese saw Vaishali execute a fluent king-side attack resulting in an unavoidable checkmate threat. This fine victory immediately after the rest day puts defending champion Vaishali on the driver’s seat with good chances of going for her second Grand Swiss title.
Round eight starts by Friday, 12th September, at 6 AM ET / 12:00 CEST / 3:30 PM IST.
Round 7 Results (Open): Nihal Sarin (5.5) beat Maghsoodloo Parham (5.0), Erigaisi Arjun (4.5) lost to Bluebaum Matthias (5.5), Giri Anish (5.0) drew with Abhimanyu Mishra (5.0), Firouzja Alireza (5.0) beat Yakubboev Nodirbek (4.0), Theodorou Nikolas (4.5) drew with Keymer Vincent (4.5), Abdusattorov Nodirbek (5.0) beat Tabatabaei M Amin (4.0), Vidit Santosh Gujrathi (5.0) beat Maurizzi MarcAndria (4.0), Gurel Ediz (4.0) beat Gukesh Dommaraju (3.0)
Round 7 Results (Women): Stefanova Antoaneta (5.0) drew with Lagno Kateryna (5.5), Vaishali Rameshbabu (6.0) beat Guo Qi (4.5), Assaubayeva Bibisara (5.0) beat Bulmaga Irina (4.0), Muzychuk Mariya (5.0) beat Khamdamova Afruza (4.0), Tsolakidou Stavroula (4.5) drew with Girya Olga (4.5), Song Yuxin (5.0) beat Fataliyeva Ulviyya (4.0), Kosteniuk Alexandra (4.0) drew with Dronavalli Harika (4.0), Omonova Umida (2.5) lost to Vantika Agrawal (3.5)
Nihal Sarin (2693) – Maghsoodloo Parham (2692) 1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. cxd5 cxd5 5. Bf4 Nc6 6. e3 Bf5 7. Nf3 e6 8. Qb3 Bb4 9. Ne5 Qb6 10. f3 O-O 11. Nxc6 bxc6 12. Kf2 Nd7 13. Na4 Qa5 14. Bc7 Qxc7 15. Qxb4 e5 16. Rc1 Rfe8 17. Be2 Re6 18. dxe5 Rae8 19. Qf4 Bg6 20. Rhd1 Nxe5 21. Nc5 R6e7 22. Rc3 h5 23. Rd4 a5 24. a4 Qa7 25. h3 Qb6 26. Rd2 Qa7 27. Qd4 Rb8 28. Ne6 Qb7 29. Nf4 Rbe8 30. b3 h4 31. Qc5 Qb8 32. Qxa5 Nd7 33. Rxc6 Rxe3 34. Nxg6 Qg3+ 35. Kf1 Nf6 36. Rxf6 gxf6 37. Nxh4 Rxb3 38. Nf5 Qf4 39. Qxd5 Rb1+ 40. Kf2 Re5 41. Qd8+ Kh7
42. Qxf6 1-0
Erigaisi Arjun (2771) – Bluebaum Matthias (2671) 1. c4 e6 2. g3 d5 3. Bg2 Nf6 4. d4 Be7 5. Nf3 O-O 6. O-O dxc4 7. Qc2 c6 8. Qxc4 b5 9. Qd3 Nbd7 10. Be3 Nd5 11. Bd2 Bb7 12. Nc3 b4 13. Ne4 Qb6 14. Qc2 c5 15. Nfg5 g6 16. dxc5 Nxc5 17. Nxc5 Qxc5 18. Qb3 Rac8 19. Rac1 Qb5 20. Rxc8 Rxc8 21. Qf3 Qe8 22. Qe4 Rc7 23. Qh4 h5 24. Qd4 Qd8 25. h4 Rd7 26. Qxa7 Ba8 27. Nxe6 fxe6 28. Qa4 Nb6 29. Qc2 Kf7 30. Bh6 Bxg2 31. Kxg2 Qa8+ 32. Kg1 Qxa2 33. Qc6 Qa5 34. Bg5 Qc5 35. Qf3+ Qf5 36. Qc6 Qc5 37. Qf3+ Kg7 38. Be3 Qd6 39. g4 Nc4 40. gxh5 Nxe3 41. fxe3 Bxh4 42. Kg2 Qd5 43. e4 Qxh5 44. Qf8+ Kh7 45. Rf7+ Rxf7 46. Qxf7+ Kh6 47. Qf8+ Kg5 48. Qc5+ Kg4 49. Qe3 Qe5 50. Qf3+ Kg5 51. Kh3
51…Qf4 0-1
Vidit Santosh Gujrathi (2712) – Maurizzi MarcAndria (2610) 1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Be7 4. cxd5 exd5 5. Bf4 Nf6 6. e3 Bf5 7. Qb3 Nc6 8. g4 Bd7 9. h3 O-O 10. Nge2 Na5 11. Qc2 c5 12. dxc5 Bxc5 13. Bg2 Rc8 14. O-O Be6 15. Rad1 Qe8 16. Qb1 Nc4 17. b3 Nb6 18. Bg5 d4 19. exd4 Be7 20. Bxb7 Rc7 21. Bg2 Nfd5 22. Bxe7 Qxe7 23. Qd3 Rfc8 24. Rc1 g6 25. Nxd5 Bxd5 26. Rxc7 Rxc7 27. Nc3 Bxg2 28. Kxg2 h5 29. Qf3 hxg4 30. hxg4 Qb4 31. Ne4 Nd5 32. Rd1 Qe7 33. Nc5 Qg5 34. Re1 Nf4+ 35. Kf1 Qh6 36. b4 g5 37. Re8+ Kg7 38. a3 Qh7 39. Re5 Qb1+ 40. Re1 Qh7 41. d5 Qh6 42. Re8 Qf6 43. Qe4 Ng6 44. Qd3 Rc8 45. Re4 Nf4 46. Qd4 Rh8 47. Ke1 Rh1+ 48. Kd2 Nxd5
49. Re5 1-0
Photo Courtesy: Michal Walusza / FIDE (International Chess Federation)
Official Site: https://grandswiss2025.fide.com/
