Harikrishna holds Jakovenko to finish fourth in FIDE GP

Indian chess Grand Master Pentala Harikrishna played out a hard-fought draw against Dmitry Jakovenko of Russia in the final round of the FIDE Grand Prix here in Geneva.

The World No. 22, playing with white pieces, on Saturday started off on an aggressive note, determined to finish the tournament on a winning note but had to settle for a draw as the Russian had other plans.

The game, which went on for 115 moves, saw the players settling to share the point as time was running out.

"I had a few chances to win but my opponent defended really well to prevent the loss and lead the game towards a draw," the Guntur player said.

As the tournament culminated after the ninth round, Harikrishna finished tied fourth on the leaderboard, courtesy six draws, two wins and just one loss.

"Had I won, I would have finished tied second. I finished as tied fourth, for which I am happy as my game quality was far better than the previous Grand Prix," Harikrishna said.

"I missed some chances in games against Mamedyarov and Adams, but a good performance overall," he added.

By finishing fourth, Harikrishna gained 60 Grand Prix points along with a handsome amount of 9,000 euros ($10,320).

--IANS

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