Gukesh to take on Anish Giri in Tata Steel opener

WIJK AAN ZEE: World champion D Gukesh will take on local star Anish Giri in the opening round of the 87th Tata Steel Chess tournament here on Saturday, marking his first competitive outing since claiming the coveted crown last month.

Giri, the 2023 winner, holds the reputation of being a tough cookie thanks to his impeccable theoretical knowledge and research that has been the Dutchman's forte for many years now.

However, 18-year-old Gukesh, who likes to go with a no-draw approach in every game he plays, is in great form and can look forward to a solid campaign after the World Championship triumph over Chinese Ding Liren in Singapore.

Gukesh received India's highest sporting honour, the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna, in Delhi this morning from President Droupadi Murmu and left for the Dutch city immediately after the ceremony.

The five-player Indian contingent will see an all-Indian duel as early as round one as Arjun Erigaisi will face last-minute-replacement Pentala Harikrishna in the opener.

Arjun, known for his ability to complicate any position, will have an arduous task against Harikrishna who is super-solid with white pieces. Interestingly, Harikrishna came in the mix of things as another Indian Vidit Gujrathi withdrew due to personal reasons.

The most interesting battle of the first round is likely to be between R Praggnanandhaa who takes on Nodirbek Abdusattorov of Uzbekistan.

Praggnanandhaa did not have a great 2024 and would like to make amends by starting the year on a positive note.

The fifth Indian in the fray made it to the elite group after winning the challengers in 2024. Leon Luke Mendonca may not have the credentials of other four compatriots in fray but the youngster is certainly the dark horse, who can put anyone in a difficulty position on his day.

Mendonca will take on German Vincent Keymer, who is fast improving and must have gained a lot while working for Gukesh during the world championship.

In the other lineups for the first round, defending champion Wei Yi of China will meet top seed and world number two Fabiano Caruana of United States, Dutch Max Warmerdam will face Alexey Sarana of Serbia and Slovenian Vladimir Fedoseev will be up against another local hopeful Jorden van Foreest.

In the challengers' section, Grandmaster R Vaishali will face the youngest International Master of the World Oro Faustino of Argentina. The 11-year-old will be competing in his first major classical event after some of his recent triumphs took him to a rating of 2447 points.

Vaishali, as black, is hardly ever intimidated by younger players as she carved a niche for herself as a youngster too. The elder sister of Praggnanandhaa starts as a favourite and is likely to go all the way to start her year with a victory.

The only other Indian in the Challengers event is Divya Deshmukh and she faces one of the pre-event favourites Nodirbek Yakubboev of Uzbekistan. Divya is known to do her best in crunch situations and it remains to be seen how she handles the higher ranked players this year.

Pairings round 1

Masters:

D Gukesh (Ind) vs Anish Giri (Ned); P Harikrishna (Ind) vs Arjun Erigaisi (Ind); Leon Luke Mendonca (Ind) vs Vincent Keymer (Ger); R Praggnanandhaa (Ind) vs Nodirbek Abdusattorov (Uzb); Wei Yi (Chn) vs Fabiano Caruana (Usa); Max Warmerdam (Ned) vs Alexey Sarana (Srb); Jorden van Foreest (Ned) vs Vladimir Fedoseev (Slo).

Challengers:

Divya Deshmukh (Ind) vs Nodirbek Yakubboev (Uzb); Oro Faustino (Arg) vs R Vaishali (Ind); Nguyen Thai van Dam (Cze) vs Arthur Pijpers (Ned); Aydin Sulemanli (Aze) vs Benjamin Bok (Ned); Ediz Gurez (Tur) vs Irina Bulmaga (Rom); Erwin L'Ami (Ned) vs Frederic Svane (Ger); Mioyi Lu (Chn) vs Nodirbek Kazybek (Kaz).