D Gukesh is making waves on the chessboard, yโall! ๐ The 18-year-old Grandmaster took down Fabiano Caruana, one of the world’s top chess players, pushing India closer to securing their first-ever gold medal in the Open Section of the Chess Olympiad! ๐ ๐ฅ
Epic Showdown in Budapest โ๏ธ
In a nerve-wracking match on September 21, Gukesh flexed his chess mastery, securing a crucial win for Team India ๐ฎ๐ณ. He outmaneuvered Caruana using the Catalan opening, snatching a pawn and setting up Indiaโs road to victory. The squad is now two points ahead of other top contenders like China, USA, and Uzbekistan in the standings. Theyโre THIS close to clinching that gold! ๐ฑโจ
HISTORY CREATED !!!
— Kriti Singh (@kritiitweets) September 22, 2024
INDIA clinches First-ever Open Gold at Chess Olympiad 2024 ๐ฅ
Big Congratulations to our Chess Wizards:
– D Gukesh
– Arjun Erigaisi
– Vidit Gujrathi
– Praggnanandhaa
– Pentala Harikrishna #ChessOlympiad2024 pic.twitter.com/w6bFBXOzkv
Team India Dominates the Board ๐ฅ
Indiaโs Arjun Erigaisi and Vidit Gujrathi also came through with key wins. Arjun beat Leinier Dominguez Perez while Vidit held his own against Levon Aronian. Unfortunately, Praggnanandhaa took an L against Wesley So, but India still came out on top as a team! ๐ช
Hereโs the scorecard from the intense India vs USA clash:
- D Gukesh ๐ Fabiano Caruana โ WIN โ
- Arjun Erigaisi ๐ Leinier Dominguez Perez โ WIN โ
- Vidit Gujrathi ๐ Levon Aronian โ DRAW ๐ค
- R Praggnanandhaa ๐ Wesley So โ LOSS โ
India is now sitting pretty at the top with 17 points, two ahead of their closest competition! ๐คฉ
๐ฎ๐ณ Arjun Erigaisi beats Jan Subelj ๐ธ๐ฎ
— International Chess Federation (@FIDE_chess) September 22, 2024
This was the crucial first result of the match, giving India the lead. Gukesh D and Praggnanandhaa R followed up with victories, making history as India secured their first-ever #ChessOlympiad gold medal! ๐ฎ๐ณ๐ โ๏ธ
๐น Final moments of Arjunโฆ pic.twitter.com/JTGFuulY5V
๐ฎ๐ณ India wins the 45th FIDE #ChessOlympiad! ๐ โ๏ธ
— International Chess Federation (@FIDE_chess) September 22, 2024
Congratulations to Gukesh D, Praggnanandhaa R, Arjun Erigaisi, Vidit Gujrathi, Pentala Harikrishna and Srinath Narayanan (Captain)! ๐ ๐
Gukesh D beats Vladimir Fedoseev, and Arjun Erigaisi prevails against Jan Subelj; Indiaโฆ pic.twitter.com/jOGrjwsyJc
The Chess Olympiad Dream Team ๐ฅ
This win wasnโt just about one matchโitโs the result of Team Indiaโs entire squad firing on all cylinders! With a star-studded lineup of players like:“““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““`
- D Gukesh (who’s also gunning for the World Championship later this year ๐ฎ)
- Arjun Erigaisi
- R Praggnanandhaa
- Vidit Gujrathi
- Hari Krishna
Theyโve been dominating all tournament long! And if that wasnโt enough, Arjun Erigaisi is on track to join chess legends by crossing the 2800 Elo rating mark (joining Viswanathan Anand in that elite club ๐). If he keeps slaying the board, heโll become the 16th player EVER to hit that milestone!
Whatโs Next? ๐
With one more round to go, India is on the brink of Olympiad gold. If they clinch this, itโll be a historic first for the nation in the Open Section of the Chess Olympiad! The teamโs been in beast mode all tournament long, and now, theyโre ready to bring home the gold. ๐ฅ๐ช
Chess fans, itโs time to celebrate because India is taking the world by storm with this legendary run! ๐โ๏ธ
Stay tuned, because history is about to be made!