The nail-biting win against Stanislav Bogdanovich in the penultimate round marks a turning point in Wang Hao's (left) supreme finish at the 2019 HDBank International Chess Tournament in HCM City.
Despite being the top seed, Wang delivered a slow start and settled for 53rdplace after the first round.
However, he then gradually narrowed the gap with his opponents before brilliantly finishing off direct title contender Stanislav Bogdanovich (Ukraine) within 84 moves in the penultimate round on Tuesday to reign on top of the standings with seven points.
The last-round match this morning saw Wang play out a tie with his compatriot Wen Yang after 11 moves, which was enough to see him lift the overall HDBank crown for the second time, following his first title in 2016, with 7.5 points after nine games, just half a point clear of the four chasers.
As the title winner, Wang walked away with the trophy and US$16,000 in prize money. Meanwhile, Wen Yang and Stanislav Bogdanovich followed in second and third place, respectively, level on seven points.
Nguyen Anh Dung was the most impressive Vietnamese performer, ending up in 11thposition, with 6.5 points (five wins, three draws, one loss).
Vietnam’s no. 2 chess player, Nguyen Ngoc Truong Son, did not live up to expectations, having to settle for 16thplace with just six points after three wins and three draws.
India’s Nandhidhaa was named the best female performer with six points after nine rounds, claiming a cash prize of US$5,000.
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