All India Masters Chess: Soham beats higher ranked Shardul

Youngster Soham Sudarshan Sahamate secured a hard-fought victory over Shardul Kadam Aditya in a 60-move classical encounter at the All India Chess Masters – Season 4.

Youngster Soham Sudarshan Sahamate defeated Shardul Kadam Aditya in a hard-fought second round classical encounter at the All India Chess Masters – Season 4 here on Sunday.

Playing with the white pieces, Soham handled the game confidently from the opening and gradually built pressure in the middlegame through active coordination of his pieces.

The game remained balanced for a long duration, but the turning point came during the middlegame transition when Soham seized the initiative and forced his opponent into a difficult defensive position.

The youngster maintained excellent composure in the endgame and converted his advantage accurately after an intense 60-move battle.

In some of the other games, Shreyansh Somaiya beat Naina Choksi while Reyaansh Venkat overcame Vardaan Agrawal to remain among the leaders.

Gaurang Bhandari won against Mayan S Jha and Kush Ajay Agarwal defeated Shravya Gavand in another notable encounter.