Geneva, July 7: Indian Grand Master Pentala Harikrishna started off his Geneva FIDE Grand Prix on a winning note as he beat Russian GM, Alexander Riazantsev in his opening round game here late on Thursday night.
The World No. 22 Indian, playing with black pieces, had to really dig deep against the Russian but eventually managed to tilt the balance in his favour and run away with the game.
“It was a long game and I had better positions from the initial moments, but it was not easy as my opponent defended commendably. Though it was not enough for him as I kept attacking and the hard work paid off eventually,” Harikrishna said after the game which lasted for 84 moves.
The win will fill the Grand Master from Guntur with optimism going further into the tournament and Harikrishna will be eager to maintain his momentum against English Grand Master Michael Adams in his second-round game.
“Even though I have a positive score against him, I know he’s a very strong player and I will hope to put in a good performance and play a good game today as well,” Harikrishna said on the eve of his second match.
