By IANS
New Delhi : The growing strength of Indian chess received another boost when Abhijit Kunte and G.N. Gopal qualified for the upcoming World Cup of Chess by finishing in top 10 of the Asian Chess Championship in Cebu City, Philippines.
Apart from world champion Viswanathan Anand, Krishnan Sasikiran and Pentala Harikrishna have earned their berths on the basis of their world rankings.
In the latest rankings, Harikrishna is 43rd and Sasikiran 46th, making it a total of six Indians in the 128-player field.
Last month, four-time national champion Surya Sekhar Ganguly won the Asian Zone 3.2 chess championship in Dhaka and booked a World Cup berth. Ganguly beat Gopal in rapid play-off 2-0.
The World Cup starts Nov 24 at Khanty Mansiysk, Russia.
In Cebu, Kunte stunned top-seeded Chinese Ni Hua in just 31 moves to head a six-way tie for the third spot with 7.5 points. Gopal, who had narrowly missed qualifying at Dhaka, drew with another Chinese GM Yu Shaoteng in 22 moves to occupy the ninth spot in the premier championship.
China’s Zhang Pengxiang took the title ahead of compatriot Wang Hao due to superior tiebreak score after the duo were tied at eight points.