The Hindu : Sport : Parimarjan eludes Kateryna's grasp

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Dec 18, 2006
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Parimarjan eludes Kateryna's grasp

Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI: Better off the blocks, Kateryna Lahno ran into Grandmaster Parimarjan Negi's stubborn defence and eventually settled for a draw in the opening game of their 18-game Amity Grandmasters Challenge at the Russian Centre here on Sunday.

The 37-move deadlock in Sicilian Najdorf was the result after the 16-year-old Ukrainian surprised Parimarjan by adopting a variation quite different to the one she normally plays. Playing black, Parimarjan could do little as Kateryna emerged superior after the opening phase.

Following the ninth move, Parimarjan thought deeply but could not find the best way to stay clear of trouble. However, Kateryna failed to follow the best continuation and allowed the local favourite to claw back.

Choice of moves

Kateryna's choice of moves evened matters as a series of exchanges neutralised the position. Eventually, draw was agreed in an equal endgame involving opposite-colour bishops and four pawns each.

"She was clearly better coming out of the opening," admitted the 13-year-old sounding unhappy with his play. "The position was unclear but I had to defend well to draw. In a way, this result with black pieces is good for me but I should have played better," was how Parimarjan chose to put it.

Kateryna, on her part, said, "I am not sure where I went wrong." Her Russian coach Ruslan Sherbakov declared, "Parimarjan was clearly lost after the opening."

Parimarjan, however, did not agree with this assessment and said, "She had the advantage but I don't think I was lost at any point. I'll have to check out the best replies (on the computer)." No wonder, both players rushed to their laptops to ascertain where exactly they missed the best choice of moves. In the second game on Monday, Negi plays white. The players will play six games each of classical, rapid and blitz time controls during the 10-day event.

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