Olympiad: How Nihal saved India's day amid Gukesh's historic drop in rating points
Gukesh slipped below 2700 after a draw with Indonesia’s Satria Duta Cahaya, his first such drop since 2022. With three boards drawn, Nihal Sarin rescued India with a dramatic win over Arif Abdul Hafiz, featuring a bold rook sacrifice. India won 2.5-1.5. The women’s team beat Finland 3.5-0.5 and will face Greece next. The men's team will take on Italy.
The 2024 Chess Olympiad brought mixed results for India, with some players excelling while others struggled. Board 1 champion Dommaraju Gukesh started strong, winning an individual gold and boosting his confidence, but then found himself below the 2700 rating threshold after a draw with Satria Duta Cahaya on Round 2. Gukesh's loss came despite playing against a much lower-rated opponent, as he fell behind after 40 moves and ultimately had to force a draw via perpetual check.
This marked Gukesh's first drop below 2700 since 2022. In contrast, Nihal Sarin came to India's rescue by defeating Indonesia's Arif Abdul Hafiz, preventing a large slip in India's overall rating. Nihal, playing white in a Sicilian Defense, launched a kingside attack but faced strong counterplay. However, a bold rook sacrifice at move 28 turned the tide, allowing Nihal to force a draw by exposing the black king.
With three of India's four boards ending in draws, Nihal's win was crucial in securing a 2.5-1.5 win for India, keeping their unbeaten record intact.
Written by urgent.news from Times of India's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
