Rajesh Oza of Maharashtra shocked his statemate and defending champion Swapnil Shah in the 13th and final round of the GTL Limited National A Chess Championship for the Blind and became the new national champion at the Andheri Sports Complex in Mumbai on Wednesday. Pune's Oza, who garnered 10.5 points was declared the winner and along with Darshan Patel of Gujarat and Maharashtra's Shirish Patil (10) and Madan Bagayatkar (9.5) will represent India at the Individual World Championship for the Visually Impaired to be held at Istanbul in November.
Bagayatkar and his statemate Gaurav Gadodia were tied at 9.5 points each but the former prevailed in the tie-break. Oza, who needed only a draw to be among the top four, maintained a strong attack right from the word go with white pieces which proved to be an advantage.
He did not allow Swapnil's pieces to develop. With both players fighting hard till the end, Swapnil ventured into dangerous territory and Oza capitalised to take the crown. Bureau Report