14-year-old Nihal Sarin finishes second in Al Sayyah International Blitz event in Dubai

14-year-old Nihal Sarin finishes second in Al Sayyah International Blitz event in Dubai

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Nihal Sarin has finished second in Al Sayyah International Blitz event in Dubai as he scored 7.5 points from a possible 9 to finish behind Russian GM Vladimir Fedoseev. Nihar, who achieved his maiden GM norm at the TV2 Fagernes International last year, is the twelfth youngest GM in chess history.

Nihal Sarin, the 14-year-old Indian Chess Grandmaster with a live rating of 2572, is the twelfth youngest chess Grandmaster in chess history. He was the 2010 World U-10 champion, winning the title ahead of several talented peers in Durban, South Africa, and also won a silver at the U-12 championship in Porto Carras, Greece, in 2015. In the 2016 edition of the tournament held in Batumi, Georgia, Nihal scored 8.5/11and tied for the second spot with three others but had to settle for the fourth place on tiebreak. In December 2017, he played for India Green, helping the country secure a Silver medal and also a Gold medal on board three.

Nihal Sarin celebrated his newly acquired Grandmaster status by winning the second spot in the 1st Al Sayyah International Blitz in Dubai. The 14-year-old scored 7.5 out of possible nine to take the clear second spot, winning seven of the nine games. His only loss came against eventual champion Vladimir Fedoseev of Russia. 

Sarin, who had earned his third and final GM norm in Abu Dhabi earlier this week, started with five straight wins before Fedoseev halted his trail in the sixth. However, the Indian made a strong comeback by winning the next two rounds and was tied on top spot going into the final round as the Russian suffered a surprise reversal against GM Alexandr Fier in the penultimate round. 

Fier, however, paved the way for Fedoseev’s title charge by holding Sarin in the final round while the Russian went on to beat Egypt’s GM Adly Ahmed with white.

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