India vs. China summit starts tomorrow

India and China will face off in a Scheveningen Match on four boards at the Radisson Blu Hotel in Banjara Hills, Hyderabad from March 1-10.

Hyderabad

Hyderabad is the capital and largest city of the South Indian state of Telangana. It was ruled by the Qutub Shahis, Mughals and the Nizams which shaped up its history. Tourism-related fairs are held regularly in the city. It is the fourth most populous city in India, just behind Mumbai, Delhi and Bangalore with more than six million inhabitants.

Hyderabad is rather hot, while Beijing is oscillating between -6 and 7 degrees, the tournament site will be between 22 and 31!

The global icon of Hydebarad, and one of the most recognizable structures of India.
Built in 1591, the Charminar is a monument and mosque. Photo from Wikimedia.

The Buddha in Lake Hussain Sagar - only 10 km away from
the Radisson Blu, where the tournament will be held. Photo from Wikimedia.

Summit

China has played friendly international matches with Russia and the United States in the past, but it is the first time the Asian giants will face on the chess board in an exclusive Indo-China Summit match.

The Indians are fielding basically with their Olympic team. Photo from the 2014 Olympiad.

India finished third at the Tromso Olympiad at Norway winning its maiden bronze medal, but in the same tournament China won its first gold medal! A clash between the continental giants is likely to provide plenty of entertainment on all days.

This 32-game match spread over eight rounds will see each Indian player take on his Chinese counterpart twice, once with the white pieces and once with the black pieces.

Ding Liren arriving to the airport

and immediately greeted with his bindi

The teams are as follows:

The two teams are very even in rating, even though China fields to 2700s, India is higher rated by around 50 points on boards three and four. The match will depend on whether Sasikirian and Adhiban crack against Ding Liren and Wei Yi, two of the players that made China the winner in Tromso.

The Indian team is fielding the same line-up they used in Tromso, where they obtained a fabulous bronze medal, with the exception of not fielding Parimarjan Negi (their first board in Tromso) who is currently studying at the University of Stanford in California.

Wei Yi will be playing his first event as a 2700

India and China are major rivals in chess. In the 2012 Asian Nations Cup held at Zaozhuang, China, the local team won the title but the clash against India was entertaining. There was blood on all four boards. India won both of its white boards and China reciprocated for a 2-2 score.

China is known as a powerhouse not only in women events, but also its very fierce ability in team events fueled by the strong comradery of their players. It is not a secret that this was the key to their success in Tromso as they openly admitted in several interviews after the event.

This Indo-China Summit will help India test its potential in handling stronger opponents in the team events. International Arbiter R. Anantharam will be the chief arbiter in this All India Chess Federation funded tournament.

Both India and China will also face each other next in the World Team Championship to be held in Yerevan, Armenia this April. Therefore, this duel will offer the sides ample exposure in trying various team options and preparing for the strong European teams there.

Everything is set for the games to begin

The games will be brodcasted live from the official website: http://indiachinasummit.aicf.in/ as well as, per usual, on www.playchess.com

Information by Aarvin Aaron and pictures from the All India Chess Federation Facebook page.

Links Official tournament site The games will be broadcast live on the official web site and on the chess server Playchess.com. If you are not a member you can download a free Playchess client there and get immediate access. You can also use ChessBase 13 or any of our Fritz compatible chess programs.