Taffin Khan/Saeed Ali assume lead in Trophy Stall Chess tourney

Former junior chess champion Taffin Khan amassed 3 points, the same amount as Brian Thompson when the battle for honours commenced in the Trophy Stall Chess Tournament at the Keishar’s Sports Club last Saturday morning. However, Khan has assumed the lead after three rounds of play by dint of the tiebreaker system.
National chess champion, Wendell Meusa finished the day in the third position after amassing 2 1/2 points while Carlos Allicock, Chino Chung, Shiv Nandalall and Errol Tiwari finished the day on two points apiece. Tournament Director, Irshad Mohamed closed the day on 1 1/2 points while Loris Nathoo, Ryan Singh, Michael Perreira and Nowrattan Persaud occupied the cellar position on one apiece.
Khan faced Shiv Nandalall in the first round and placed him under early pressure from the onset. Thereafter, Nandalall found the going rough and was unable to recover. Khan went on to defeat Chino Chung and Irshad Mohamed in round three and four respectively.
In the meantime, Brian Thompson played the game of his life to upset Loris Nathoo, while Carlos Allicock checked Errol Tiwari’s advancement. Irshad Mohamed and Wendell Meusa then battled to a draw before Khan defeated Chung. Nandlall was also in the winning row with a decisive victory over Dennis Dillon. Other round three action included Thompson’s defeat over Allicock, Muesa’s victory over Nathoo and Nandalall’s triumph over Perreira. Nowrattan Persaud then got the better of Ryan Singh; Tiwari defeated Dillon while Persaud won from Alex Joseph.
In the junior category, Saeed Ali is ahead by dint of the tiebreaker system after amassing 3 1/2 points from four games. Rashad Hussain and Raan Motilall are the other two players on 3 1/2 points each. Sham Khan and Daniel DaSilva are on 2 1/2 points each while several players are bundled together on two points each. They are Stanley Ming Jr., Ashwant Satamand, Mandy Ramnarine, Miranda Ramnarine, Vaughn Moses, Ganesh Persaud and Denzel Dillon. The seven other contestants have one point apiece.
The seniors would continue their championships with the fourth round today at the same venue, starting at 17:45hrs. They would then resume activities on Thursday when the final round gets underway.
The juniors will conclude the final three rounds this Sunday at the same venue from 10:00 hours. Trophy Stall of the Bourda Market and City Mall is the exclusive sponsor of the tournament.