Kharlov emerges sole leader

Top seed Andrei Kharlov of Russia emerged the sole leader after the tenth and penultimate round in the Goodricke International Open chess tournament in Calcutta on Thursday.

Kharlov defeated Dimitri Reinderman of The Netherlands to move to 7.5 points. He is followed by six players, including India's Sandipan Chanda, on seven points.

The highlight of the day's play, however, was Zia-ur Rahman's upset victory over Grandmaster Dibyendu Barua in a game which extended upto four hours.

With Thursday's victory, Rahman completed his second GM norm.

In a Catalan opening, Rahman had two bishops against two knights of Barua which gave him a distinct advantage. Rahman won on time when Barua's flag fell in a hopeless position.

In another important game, top seed Andrei Kharlov equalised with black pieces against Reinderman. He gradually improved his position and won on the 28th move when his opponent blundered a piece.

On the top board, Sandipan Chanda drew with Maxim Sorokin of Argentina in a semi-Slav defence.

Sandipan introduced a new idea in the opening which completely equalised the position from a slightly inferior one. They drew the game when the pawns were exchanges in the centre, giving neither player any chance of going for a win.