Superbet Classic 2024, Round 1: Gukesh defeats Bogdan-Daniel Deac; Praggnanandhaa settles for a draw
The second leg of the Grand Chess Tour 2024, The Superbet Classic Romania, started on June 26, Wednesday, in Bucharest. Indian Grandmaster Gukesh D started the competition on a winning note.
Notably, it was Gukesh’s first classical game since winning the FIDE Candidates. He defeated local lad, wildcard Grandmaster Bogdan-Daniel Deac in the first round of the Superbet Chess Classic Romania.
It’s worth noting that the Tour is using a new time control this year for its classical competitions - 120 minutes for the whole game, with a 30-second increment per move.
Interestingly, Gukesh secured a win in the first round, but it wasn’t smooth as his opponent moved strongly and kept up with the Indian GM’s level of play for a long time. The 22-year-old Romanian player was close to winning for a brief moment.
As the game went beyond move 30, the clock started to play a role. In the middlegame, Gukesh incorrectly captured his opponent’s knight. Though it gave Deac a chance to gain a substantial advantage, he missed it, and Gukesh ultimately made it big on his material benefit.
In the other game, Indian Grandmaster Praggnanandhaa R settled for a draw against 19-year-old Grandmaster Nodirbek Abdusattorov from Uzbekistan.
Superbet Chess Classic competition will have one round played each day from June 26 to July 5, 2024. It will be a 10-player round-robin tournament.
Superbet Classic 2024: Round 1 Results
Fabiano Caruana - Alireza Firouzja 1-0
Praggnanandhaa R - Nodirbek Abdusattorov ½ - ½
Ian Nepomniachtchi - Maxime Vachier Lagrave ½ - ½
Gukesh D - Bogdan-Daniel Deac 1-0
Anish Giri - Wesley So ½ - ½
Superbet Classic 2024: Standings after Round 1
1. Fabiano Caruana - 1 Point
1. Gukesh D - 1 Point
3. Ian Nepomniachtchi - 0.5
3. Wesley So - 0.5
3. Nodirbek Abdusattorov - 0.5
3. Anish Giri - 0.5
3. Maxime Vachier-Lagrave - 0.5
3. Praggnanandhaa R - 0.5
9. Alireza Firouzja - 0
9. Bogdan-Daniel Deac - 0
Superbet Classic 2024: Round 2 Pairings
Fabiano Caruana vs Wesley So
Bogdan-Daniel Deac vs Anish Giri
Ian Nepomniachtchi vs Gukesh D
Praggnanandhaa R vs Maxime Vachier-Lagrave
Alireza Firouzja vs Nodirbek Abdusattorov