The Indian PSPB team (Petroleum Sports Promotion Board) won the 2014 Asian Club Champions League undefeated with 13 match points in the team tournament held last week in Al Ain, United Arab Emirates. The PSPB team won the top prize of $10,000 in the event sponsored by Abu Dhabi Sports Council, Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority and Etihad Airways.

The PSPB team of GMs S.P. Sethuraman, Krishnan Sasikiran, Abhijit Kunte, Babu Lalith and Deep Sengupta beat host Al Ain 3:1 in the final round. The Indian team had beaten all other teams with the exception of the Tagaytay Chess Club of the Philippines who held the Indians to a draw in an earlier round.
Tagaytay edged Kazakhstan Tokkata 2.5-1.5.in the final round to place second with 11 match points. Team Captain IA Ilann Perez decided not to field top board player IM Rolando Nolte in order to give two top scorers, IM Kim Yap and IM Emmanuel Senador, the white pieces. Surprisingly FM Haridas Pascua made short work of GM Anuar Ismagambetov on board 2. Yap beat GM Petr Kostenko on board 1 to take a 2-0 lead and eventually IM Emmanuel Senador drew with GM Pavel Kotsur to beat the Kazaks even as FM M.J. Turqueza bowed to GM Khusnutdinov Rustam. Tagaytay won $6,000 while the Kazaks finished in third place with 10 match points for the $4,000 prize.

China’s Shanghai Chess Club drew with Communication Sports Club of Iraq 2:2 to clinch fourth place. GM Zhou Jianchao defeated IM Saad, A. I. Sarsam on board 1 but IM Noah Al-Ali evened the score by beating IM Lou Yiping. WGM Zhang Xiaowen and Zhang Hong drew with FM Ahmed Ali Layth Ahmed and Ehab Mazin Elias, respectively. Shanghai Chess Club finished with 7 match points followed by Al Ain Chess Club with 5 match points.

Australian Western Sydney placed sixth by tie break over the Iraq team. Sydney drew with Bangladesh Navy Chess Club 2-2. IM Max Illingworth and Karl Zeleco of Australia upset their respective opponents, GM Hossain Enamul and FM Ahmed Sk. Nasir. FM Rahman Md Taibur and FM Islam Kh. Aminul evened the score by beating IM Gary Lane and IM Leonid Sandler, respectively.

Visit the official site at http://www.ac2014.asianchess.com/ for games download and photos.




Asian Chess Federation president Sheikh Sultan bin Khalifah Al Nahyan awards the winner’s trophy in the Asian Club Champions League to the Indian PSPB team. From left are ACF General Secretary Hisham Al Taher, GM’s Aghijeet Kunte, Lalith Babu, S. Sethuraman, Krishnan Sasikiran, Deep Sengupta and ACF Treasurer Mehrdad Pahlevanzadeh.



Awards for gold medalists, from left, Technical Committee chairman Tariq Al Taher, Asian Chess Federation General Secretary Hisham Al Taher, CM Abdulla Kashwani Faisal on board 3, IM Kim Steven Yap on Board 2, Asian Chess Federation president Sheikh Sultan bin Khalifah Al Nahyan, GM Salem Abdulrahman on Board 1, GM Rustam Khusnutdinov on Board 4 and FM Kh. Aminul Islam on Board 5, and Asian Chess Federation Treasurer Mehrdad Pahlevanzadeh.

Final standings: