Young Yakubboev wins Qatar Masters 2023 title

Uzbek GM Nodirbek Yakubboev produced a memorable performance when he beat compatriot Nodirbek Abdusattorov in a play-off battle to lift the $120,000 Qatar Masters crown.Earlier Yakubboev beat Indian GM Murali Karthikeyan to end round nine with 7 points. Abdusattorov beat overnight leader Arjun Eirgaisi of India to go into a play-off battle with Yakubboev.After nine days of stiff competition at Lusail Sports Arena, Yakubboev sealed the deal in emphatic fashion in the play-off and bagged the top prize of $25,000."I am lucky to have won the Qatar Masters title and I want to thank everyone who supported me,” Yakubboev said on Friday. "I will try to make more efforts to maintain this level. It was not easy at all to win here in the presence of top players in the world."I want to thank Qatar Chess Association (QCA) for this amazing tournament at Lusail Sports Arena. I am sure the fans got to see thrilling games,” the 21-year-old added.India’s Vaishali Rameshbabu was crowned the women’s champion with 5 points. Vaishali made a GM norm and gained 18 Elo pointsA total of 250 male and female players representing 45 countries featured in the Oct 11-20 tournament that also saw players from 16 Arab countries take part in the championship.Former winner and a five-time world champion Magnus Carlsen, ranked first in the world, ended his participation in Qatar with a draw against Indian GM Abhimanyu Puranik. Carlsen, 32, finished with 6 points (16th spot)Hikaru Nakamura of the US, ranked third in the world, on Friday missed the opportunity to compete for the title after his draw against Indian GM S L Narayanan.Nakamura raised his score to 6.5 points after the final round. Narayanan, who finished third overall, gained 17 Elo points and won $10,000.Dutchman Anish Giri, ranked seventh in the world, drew with Uzbekistan’s Javokhir Sindarov who finished fourth in Qatar.GM Parham Maghsoodloo, seeded seventh in the tournament, defeated Australian Temur Kuybokarov, seeded 26th in the tournament.Maghsoodloo finished in seventh spot in the standings.Mohamed al-Mudahka, President of QCA, said the final day’s proceedings had everything for a chess fan. He said the top seeds in the tournament, Carlsen and Nakamura, managed to win new fans with their exciting chess."We got to see some great games. The level of play was pretty scintillating throughout the tournament,” al-Mudahka said. "We have received wholesome appreciation from FIDE and praise for the kind of tournament we conducted for almost two weeks and this makes us very happy,” al-Mudahka said. "Our goal is to maintain the continuity of the tournament and our efforts are undoubtedly focused on holding the fourth edition next year. We will strive to benefit from the gains of this edition in order to develop the tournament and our players,” al-Mudahka added."I want to thank the Ministry of Sports and Youth for their great support and efforts aimed at making our tournament a huge success at the international level. My thanks also go to our sponsors. Their support is what makes this tournament so popular among players and fans in general,” the QCA president said.Hamad al-Tamimi, Executive Director of QCA, on Friday said the final day’s action lived up to its high billing."We have a new champion. This was expected after the penultimate day’s action,” al-Tamimi said."During the nine days of competitions, the games were full of excitement. Many of the top seeds dropped out of the title race in the penultimate round. I believe that the tournament fulfilled its promises and everyone praised its atmosphere,” he added.Mohamed Nasser al-Sayed, member of the Board of Directors of QCA, said: "Although Magnus Carlsen dropped out of the competition for the title on Thursday, he remained one of the players who managed to make a significant impact here in Qatar. His presence constituted a significant addition and he added great value to the tournament.”Al-Sayed said Nakamura, ranked third in the world, was able to compete until the final day, but he faced extreme difficulties against the top seeds, losing many points as a result of the draws.Al-Sayed said a number of Qatari players featured in the International B Tournament."They got invaluable experience and I am confident they will do well at future events, at home and abroad,” al-Sayed said.Meanwhile Rustum Tolentino of the Philippines was crowned champion of the International B Tournament with 8.5 points.He was followed by India’s Majumder Shrayan (7.5 points) in second spot. Sedrani Ammar of the UAE finished third (7 points).A total of 94 male and female players - ranked under 2,300 points - featured in the International B Tournament.