Nepomniachtchi emerges as top contender on first rest day, Indians still in the hunt

The battle might have just started in the Candidates chess tournament here, but the Indian trio of R Praggnanandhaa, D Gukesh and Vidit Gujrathi are literally sitting on the burner, trying to find their way to the next World Championship match.The Indians were never the favourites in the entire scheme of things but yet, Gukesh has withstood the early storm and so has Praggnanandhaa.

The battle might have just started in the Candidates chess tournament here, but the Indian trio of R Praggnanandhaa, D Gukesh and Vidit Gujrathi are literally sitting on the burner, trying to find their way to the next World Championship match.

The Indians were never the favourites in the entire scheme of things but yet, Gukesh has withstood the early storm and so has Praggnanandhaa. The same cannot be said about Gujrathi, who was the favourite amongst the Indians just a week. With four rounds done out 14, there are 10 more games still to play for in the ongoing Candidates chess tournament. Things have been going well for the Indians but not in the purest way possible.

Ian Nepomniachtchi of Russia, who has to play under the FIDE flag due to sanctions against his country, is sitting firmly at the top of the table on three points out of a possible four and he could not have hoped for a better start to his campaign.

With victories against Gujrathi and Firouza Alireza of France and two draws, the Russian got a heads-up to what could possibly be a third attempt to fight for the crown of being a world champion. Historically, no one has ever won the candidates three times in a row.

On his toes, for now, are pre-tournament favourites Fabiano Caruana of the United States and Gukesh on 2.5 points each. If any one had asked Gukesh about his start in the tournament, he would probably have settled for 2.5 out of four but then it is hard to imagine that a certain Nepomniachtchi would be ahead of him. However, the Indian stalwart is close and has shown steely nerves especially when he beat Praggnanandhaa out of a no man's land kind of position. His chances depend on whether or not he collapses after a bad day.

One person who gives a knee-jerk reaction to bad result is the 18-year old Praggnanandhaa. Bouncing back from a bad loss against Gukesh, Praggnanandhaa has earned the respect he deserves at the highest level and his chances will depend on his acumen to deal with any position that arrives on board.

Caruana still remains a feared contender given his history and pedigree. However, one cannot rule out the fact that he has not had a dominating start despite being the hot favourite and top seed.

Nakamura, who is also an ardent streamer, does not seem as focused as others but still a couple of good games can see him bouncing back in the scheme of things. For Gujrathi, the road might be tough but as everyone saw in the FIDE Grand Swiss, the Indian has too much fire power to come back roaring.

Pairings round 5: Firouza Alireza (FRA, 1.5) vs Hikaru Nakamura (USA); D Gukesh (IND) vs Nijat Abasov (AZE); Vidit Gujrathi (IND) vs Fabiano Caruana (USA); R Praggnanandhaa (IND) vs Ian Nepomniachtchi (FIDE).

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