Srinath wins title but Deshpande steals show

K Srinath in action against Soham Datar

Krishnamoorthy Srinath clinched the 13th edition of the MJ’s Trophy Every Sunday Rapid Chess Championship. A consistent performer all through the course of the tournament, Srinath won the title with a score of 6.5 and a Buch score of 41. The first three players were all tied on 6.5 points with the Buch rating being utilised to judge the winner and the subsequent placings. A total of 56 players participated in the 13th edition, of which 32 had international ratings. The tournament was conducted in its usual Swiss League eight-round format with Rajendra Shidore as the Chief Arbiter.

Chinmay Kulkarni, the top-seed of the 13th edition won the runner-up trophy, with a Buch score of 39.5. Soham Datar finished third with a score of 39 Buch. However, the biggest surprise of the edition was Pruthu Deshpande. The young Deshpande downed top-seed Kulkarni in the second round and rounded off his impressive outing with a fourth place finish, with a Buch rating of 42.5. Nikhil Dikshit was placed fifth in the standings with six points and a Buch rating of 37.5.

Nirav Killedar won the under-8 category, while Manas Pandit took home the prize for winning the under-10 category. Soham Shinde and Samyak Karnavat won the under-12 and under-14 categories, respectively. Siddhant Gaikwad won the under-16 age title, while Saloni Sapale won the award for being the best women player. BM Satpute was crowned the best veteran. The 14th edition of the championship will be held on April 20 at Mangalwadi commercial complex hall at Patrakar Nagar.