Indian Grandmaster Aravindh Chithambaram made sure he stayed in front with an easy draw against Sam Shankland of the USA in the sixth round of the Sharjah Masters Chess tournament in Sharjah on Monday.
With five points in his kitty from six games, Chithambaram is just two points shy of joining the ever-growing Indian club of 2700 rated chess players considered elite in the chess world.
With three rounds remaining in one of the strongest open tournaments in the world, the top-seeded Erigaisi Arjun made a statement with a thumping victory over Daniil Yuffa of Russia.
As many as six players – Bardiya Denshvar and Amin Tabatabaei of Iran, the American duo of Hans Moke Neimann and Shankland, Alexey Sarana of Serbia and Arjun -- share the second spot on 4.5 points apiece.
Shreyas Royal of England inched towards another Grandmaster norm, holding Abhimanyu Puranik to a creditable draw.
For Aravindh, the opening was not a problem as black, as Shankland was not too optimistic against the Indian.
The London system equalized quickly, and Shankland did not show optimism as white. The game ended in a quick draw once the players exchanged the queens.
Arjun was the star performer, eking out a fine win with black pieces against Daniil Yuffa of Russia.
Playing the black side of a Queen pawn opening, Arjun was under some pressure in the middle game but came up with a piece sacrifice that netted him three pawns in return.
The Indian did not give a second chance and romped home after 42 moves.
