India edges out Ukraine to reach semis

The blitz tie-break saw India outclass its opponent 5-1, thanks to wins for Adhiban, Harika, Sarin, and R Vaishali. India’s top woman player Koneru Humpy drew her game against Iulija Osmak while Vidit Gujrathi, playing on the top board instead of rested skipper Viswanathan Anand, shared the honors with veteran Vasyl Ivanchuk.

In the blitz tie-break, Adhiban broke the resistance of Kirill Shevchenko in 36 moves in a Larsen Indian variation game. The Ukraine player had held his own in the two regular games, drawing against P Harikrishna and beating Vidit. Ukraine bounced back after losing the first round 2-4 by trumping India 3.5-2.5 in the second to force the blitz tie-breaks.

In the second round, R Praggnanandhaa, playing in place of Sarin, posted the first win for India, beating Platon Galperin with white pieces.