Malmo (Sweden), May 11: Indian Grand Master Harika Dronavalli staved off a strong challenge to eke out a thrilling draw against Ukrainian Grand Master and the highest rated player Pavel Eljanov in her opening round game of the TePe Sigeman & Co Chess tournament at the Hipp theatre here on Wednesday night.
The Guntur lass, the lone Indian player at the prestigious tournament, started with black pieces and had to be at her defensive best from the early stages. “My opponent attacked from the beginning and I countered with a defensive structure to contain the pressure,” Harika said after the match.
However, during the later stage of the game, Harika capitalised on an error made by her higher rated opponent which helped her regain the lost ground. “In a crucial moment, he allowed me to break the Queen side due to slight miscalculation and after that, I got a tactical shot that helped in drawing the game comfortably,” the World No. 10 added.
At the end of first day’s action, Harika moved up a place to fifth on the leaderboard with half a point. She will take on the local Grand Master Nils Grandelius in her second round later in the evening.
