Chess Olympiad: Nihal, Gukesh help India beat Italy; women keep winning

Nihal Sarin posted his third straight win, but Arjun Erigaisi had to survive a scare, as India beat Italy 3-1 in the third round of the Chess Olympiad at Samarkand. World champion D. Gukesh scored a win on the fourth board on Friday.

Arjun’s was one of the day’s last games to finish, as he drew with Luca Moroni in 64 moves. Before that, Gukesh had beaten Sabino Brunello and Nihal defeated Francesco Sonis. On the top board, Praggnanandhaa split the point with Lorenzo Lodici.

The defending champion thus has won all its three matches.

The Indian women, who also were crowned champions at the Budapest Olympiad two years ago, once again played more impressively than their male counterparts. They made short work of Greece 3.5-0.5.