PANAJI
The 38th National Under-13 Chess Championship 2025 continued to deliver thrilling encounters as the fifth round concluded with joint leaders in both the Open and Girls’ sections, keeping the title race wide open.
In the Open Section, three players—CM Madhvendra Pratap Sharma, Badole Shaunak, and Shubh Atha—maintained a perfect score of 5 points each, sharing the top spot.
On the top board, CM Madhvendra Pratap Sharma (2187) showcased his positional prowess by defeating Samuel Stephen Noble S (1981) of Andhra Pradesh in the Four Knights Opening.
Board two saw Aahil Patra (1912) of West Bengal hold Arush A (2105) of Kerala to a draw in the French Defense.
On board three, Badole Shaunak (2086) of Maharashtra triumphed over Daniel Ajish (1859) of Kerala in the Sicilian Dragon.
Shubh Atha (1881) of Gujarat outclassed Parambrata Sarkar (2020) of West Bengal in the English Opening on board four.
Meanwhile, Aadithya R (1799) of Andhra Pradesh and Paarshva Parmar (1992) of Rajasthan drew their game in the Colle Opening.
Goan players also made their presence felt. Maxwell Raposo (1806) notched up an impressive win over Souparno Bhattacharyya (1657) of West Bengal, while Aaryavrat Rasiket Naik Desai (1758) held higher-rated Dharsh M (1944) of Tamil Nadu to a well-fought draw. Vihaan Tari (1698), however, lost a closely contested game against Aditya Shardul Kadam (1911) of Maharashtra.
In the Girls’ Section, WCM Pratitee Bordoloi (2035) of Karnataka and Sravyasree Bheemarasetty (1978) of Andhra Pradesh are now joint leaders with 5 points apiece.
Bordoloi prevailed over Sasi Hasini Chintala (1845) of Telangana in the Sicilian French Variation, while Sravyasree showcased sharp tactical play to defeat Tanishka Ramasubramanian (1566) of Haryana in the Sicilian Alapin.
On board three, WCM Modipalli Deekshitha (1934) of Telangana was held to a draw by Mysha Perwez (1815) of Maharashtra in the King’s Indian Attack.
Among Goa's representatives in the Girls’ Section, Diya Digamber Sawal (1586) went down to Rajanya Mondal (1732) of West Bengal. Bhumica Bal (1539) of West Bengal beat Asmi Amit Terse (1407), and Tanisha Khandelwal (1518) of Telangana defeated Aaradhya Rane.
