Doha, October 19 (QNA) - Tomorrow, Friday, marks the conclusion of the third edition of the Qatar Masters International Open Chess Championship, featuring a lineup of some of the world's top chess champions. The event will wrap up with the ninth and final round at the Lusail Sports Hall.
The tournament, which follows the Swiss system format consisting of 9 rounds with a time control of 90 minutes for each game + 30 seconds increment has drawn 250 players representing 45 countries, including 62 grandmasters from 16 Arab nations. The total prize fund for the Qatar Masters International Open Championship is $120,000.
In the eighth round, Qatar's International Grandmaster Hussein Aziz, who is ranked 141st in the tournament, faced Vietnam's Jia Hai Pan, ranked 100th. Although Aziz lost this match, he put on a strong performance, accumulating 3 points and occupying the 139th position in the standings.
In the previous round, Aziz faced Azerbaijan's Fuad Gasanov, ranked 34th in the tournament, and he defeated the Indian player Gavi Mahendra earlier. He also drew in the fifth round against India's Mohan Kushagra. In the fourth round, he drew against China's Song Yuxin and triumphed over India's Aayush Bhattacherjee in the third round.
On the other hand, Magnus Carlsen from Norway, the world's top-ranked player, returned to winning ways after defeating Gregory Kaidanov. Despite his victory, Carlsen withdrew from the competition and the title race. Carlsen now has 5 points, placing him in 12th position as the eighth round concludes.
Hikaru Nakamura from the United States, ranked third globally and second in the tournament, managed to secure a win against the 27th-ranked Indian player, Pranav Iyengar. Nakamura now has 6 points, holding the fourth position and maintaining his chances of winning the title.
The ninth and final round will take place tomorrow Friday. (QNA)