Tamoji Chakraborty and Amruta Lad top Bank of Baroda chess selection event in Mumbai

Tamoji Chakraborty won the men's title and Amruta Lad finished first among the women at the Mumbai region Bank of Baroda (BoB) selection trial chess tournament, held with the support of the bank's Mumbai region and Ideal Sports Academy.

In the men's section, Vikas Mahadik came second and Aniket Sakpal third. Among the women, Devi Shanti was second and Indira Rane third.

The tournament was played at the BoB sports club in Ballard Pier. In the decisive fifth round of the men's section, Tamoji Chakraborty and Vikas Mahadik met on the first board. The contest was an engrossing one. Mahadik played aggressive moves, but Tamoji answered each one accurately. The game ended in a draw on the 23rd move.

After the draw, both players stood on 4.5 points each. With the points level, Tamoji was placed first and Vikas Mahadik second on the basis of a better average.

On the second board in the men's section, Aniket Sakpal defeated Sanket Sakare, trapping his opponent's king on the 28th move. The win gave him four points and took him to third place.

The women's title was also decided by a draw. The deciding game between Amruta Lad and Devi Shanti ended in a draw after 14 moves. Both players finished on 2.5 points each. On the basis of a better average, Amruta was placed first and Devi Shanti second.

In another game, Indira Rane defeated Navejita Guleri with aggressive moves. She finished third with two points.

The winners were congratulated by Sagar R., assistant general manager of the bank's Mumbai region, sports coordinator Pradeep Surose, Rajababu Gajengi, secretary of the Mumbai City Chess Association, and Shivchhatrapati Award winner Leeladhar Chavan.