FILIPINO Grandmaster Wesley So (ELO 2719) will play Cuban GM Leinier Dominguez (2754) in today’s eighth round hoping to nail a much needed win to bolster his title chances in the tough category A of the ongoing 76th Tata Steel Tournament Masters in Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam.
Both So and Dominguez are coming from a one-day break after scoring draws against separate foes in the previous round.
So, the country’s top player, split the point with GM Sergey Karjakin of Russia (2756) after 51 moves of Queens Indian Defense to tally 4.0 points along with Dominguez and GM Fabiano Caruana of Italy (2782).
Dominguez for his part, drew with GM Arkadij Naiditsch of Germany (2737) after 91 moves of King’s Indian Defense while Caruana halved the point with GM Anish Giri of the Netherlands (2737) after 43 moves of Vienna Game.
Giri and Karjakin, both has 4.5 points, good for a share of second and third spots.
Meanwhile, top seed GM Levon Aronian (2803) of Armenia settled for a draw with GM Boris Gelfand of Israel (2777) after 41 moves of Queens Gambit Declined to remain on top with 5.5 points.
Today, Aronian will face Giri while Karjakin will test the mettle of Gelfand in the 8th round of the 12-player, round robin tournament exclusive for players with an average Elo rating of 2743.