Nodirbek emerges sole leader; Carlsen, Narayanan joint second in Tata Steel rapid chess

Uzbekistan's young grandmaster Abdusattorov Nodirbek emerged sole leer in open section of Tata Steel Chess India Rapid tournament here on Wednesday.

Abdusattorov scored 2.5 points out of a possible three, securing victories over talented German Vincent Keymer in round two and India’s R Praggnanandhaa in round three, while drawing his opening game with Daniil Dubov.

Magnus Carlsen, World No 1, h a solid start, drawing his first two games against India’s Praggnanandhaa and Nihal Sarin before finishing day with a win over Vidit Gujrathi, placing him in joint second position with two points.

Carlsen shares this slot with India's S.L. Narayanan, who also logged 2 points with a win against Keymer in round one and two draws against Wesley So and Arjun Erigaisi.

In women’s section, Indian talent Vantika Agrawal stood out, sharing le with Aleksandra Goryachkina and Kateryna Lagno, each scoring two points from three rounds.

Vantika achieved a significant victory over Valentina Gunina in opening round and followed it up with draws against Alexkandra Kosteniuk and Nana Dzagnidze.

Meanwhile, India’s Koneru Humpy, Dronavalli Harika, and Divya Deshmukh each trail leers by half a point after drawing all three games on day one.

With six more rounds remaining in Rapid event, players have ample opportunity to make ir mark before Blitz rounds commence on Saturday.