World Women's Team Chess Championship: Tania Sachdev, Bhakti Kulkarni win as India beat Armenia

Sitges: The Indian team posted a second straight win in Pool A of the FIDE World Women’s Team Chess Championship by beating Armenia 2.5-1.5 in the third round on Tuesday. The Indians had defeated Spain 2.5-1.5 in the second round late on Monday to notch up the first win after being held to a 2-2 draw in the opener against Azerbaijan. With the win in round three, India moved up to the second spot on 7 board points and 5 match points behind the formidable Russia (11 board points, 6 match points). In the match against Armenia, Tania Sachdev and Bhakti Kulkarni notched up the important wins to set up the victory. D Harika had settled for a draw against Elina Danielian while the talented, young R Vaishali went down to Lilit Mkrtchian. Sachdev, an experienced player, got the better of Anna M Sargsyan in 40 moves in a Goglidze Attack game. Kulkarni contributed a vital point by taming Susanna Gaboyan in a 30-move affair. Vaishali, who had won her matches in the first two rounds, suffered a reverse at the hands of Mkrtchian in a 30-move English Variation game. In other third round matches, Russia outclassed Azerbaijan 3.5-0.5 and host Spain edged past France 2.5-1.5. Earlier in the second round, Vaishali had scored the only win for India, beating Sabrina Vega Gutierrez while the others including the No.1 player Harika, Bhakti Kulkarni and Mary Ann Gomes drew against their respective opponents. While Harika shared honours with Matnadze, Kulkarni and Gomes drew against Maria Eizaguerri Floris and Marta Garcia Martin respectively.