JOIN USIt turned out to be a triple Indian treat as GM P Harikrishna had little difficulty in obtaining the required draw against Maxim Rodshtein of Israel while Parimarjan Negi made it to the next round after an injury to his opponent Vladimir Akopian of Armenia.
This is the first time ever that three Indians made it to the second round of the World Chess Cup which is a part of the next world championship cycle. Both Harikrishna and Abhijeet won with an identical 1.5-0.5 margin to secure their places in the round of 64 in the 128-player knock-out event.
The first round eventually produced two big upsets as Peter Leko of Hungary was shown the exit door by talented American Samuel Shankland while Wang Yue of China met his nemesis in Alexander Fier of Brazil. Most of the other top board matches went on expected lines. Having drawn the first game against Mamedov in the two-games mini-match from a position of strength, Abhijeet was not feeling too well but yet went to the game with a resolve. After a mere 13 moves, the Azerbaijani was not happy with the outcome of a French defense with white pieces and proposed the draw which was turned down by Abhijeet after a prolonged thought. As it happened, Mamedov missed the thread in the middle game and Abhijeet meticulously converted in to a full point.