Gukesh turns tables; Carlsen bangs one after Indian triumphs in Norway Chess showdown
Stavanger, Jun 2 (PTI): World champion D Gukesh got his revenge on Magnus Carlsen as he pounced on a blunder by the world no.1 to defeat him for the first time in a classical game, leaving the Norwegian superstar so frustrated that he banged his fist on the board after Round 6 of Norway Chess Tournament here.
The win on Sunday propelled 19-year-old Gukesh to third position with 8.5 points and he is just one point shy of joint leaders Carlsen and American Grandmaster Fabiano Caruana.
"There wasn't much I could do. It was just clearly lost (his position)...luckily he (Carlsen) got into a time scramble," the reticent Chennai-lad said after the eagerly-watched contest.
"First Classical win over Magnus, not the way I expected (or) wanted it to be but I will take it. I was just trying to make moves (today) which kind of were tricky for him," he explained.
"...99 out of 100 times I would lose… just a lucky day," Gukesh later told the tournament broadcasters.
Five-time world champion Carlsen seemed to have the upper-hand almost throughout the four-hour-long contest but a critical mistake allowed Gukesh to turn the tables on the Norwegian and secure a remarkable win.
Carlsen realised his mistake but by then it was too late. The Norwegian superstar vented his frustration by banging his fist on the table, causing the chess board to be dishevelled.
Disbelief and frustration was writ large on his face as he shook hands with Gukesh before placing all the pieces back on the board and walking away patting the winner on the back.
Gukesh was calm personified amid all this. He closed his eyes for a moment after the rather tense handshake with a clearly upset Carlsen.
The victory had come after a crushing Round 1 loss to iconic player which had cast a shadow on whether Gukesh would be able to overcome Carlsen's challenge in the reverse game.
Arjun Erigaisi, following an Armageddon tie-break win against China's Wei Yi, is tied fourth with Hikaru Nakamura on 7.5 points in a tournament where virtually all the six players have a chance of winning the prestigious title.
Gukesh turns it all around and WINS his first classical game against Magnus Carlsen!https://t.co/7Aid1cvNlK#NorwayChess pic.twitter.com/KMpRadXJq0
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KKR land Green for record-breaking Rs 25.20 crore; Shaw, Sarfaraz go unsold
Abu Dhabi (PTI): Kolkata Knight Riders splurged a record-breaking Rs 25.20 to land top Australian all-rounder Cameron Green even as Indian stars Prithvi Shaw and Sarfaraz Khan went unsold in the Indian Premier League players' auction here on Tuesday.
Green surpassed compatriot Mitchell Starc (Rs 24.75 crore) to become the most expensive overseas player at an IPL auction. This was after Kolkata Knight Riders and Chennai Super Kings were involved in an intense bidding war for him before the latter emerged winner.
KKR also went after Venkatesh Iyer before pulling out of the race against Royal Challengers Bengaluru, who fetched the services of the India all-rounder for Rs 7 crore.
As far as Green is concerned, his salary for the season would still be Rs 18 crore (USD 1.9 million) as the rest of the amount will go towards the BCCI's player development programme as per the rules of the auction for foreign players.
Green, who previously turned up for Mumbai Indians and Royal Challengers Bengaluru, has so far played 29 matches in the IPL to aggregate 707 runs and take 16 wickets.
Shaw, however, went unsold despite his fine run of form in the domestic circuit lately, and so was the case with Sarfaraz, who smashed a 22-ball 73 in a Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy match for Mumbai on Tuesday.
Big-hitting South African batter David Miller was bought by Delhi Capitals for his base price of Rs 2 crore, but New Zealand swashbuckler Devon Conway, whose base price was also Rs 2 crore, went unsold in the auction.
Seasoned South African opener Quinton de Kock returned to his old base Mumbai Indians for a base price of Rs 1 crore.
A total of 359 players -- 246 Indians and 113 overseas players -- are part of the mini auction pool with the 10 franchises bidding to fill up a maximum of 77 slots, including 31 reserved for foreign players.
