Siblings rule

The last big tournament on our shores as last year drew to a close was the fourth national junior chess championship that the Malaysian Chess Federation organised at the Wilayah Complex, Kuala Lumpur in late December. The championship was divided into the boys’ and girls’ events and both were completely dominated by a trio of siblings.

First off, Mohd Nabil bin Azman Hisham demonstrated why he is possibly among today’s most promising youngsters when he pulled off a power display of skills in the boys’ event. Anyone scoring eight points from his fellow peers in a national tournament of this level simply cannot be taken of lightly.

Save for a blip in the sixth round when he lost to his closest rival, Roshan Singh, and hence had to be contented with a momentary share of the lead, Mohd Nabil practically led all the way from the start till the finish.

A strong spurt in the first half of the event – during which time the opponents he beat included Amier Hamzah, Ong Wei Bin and Mark Siew – was followed by an equally strong finish against Aron Teh, Low Jun Jian and Yee Jian Yang in the second half.

At the end of the tournament, Mohd Nabil finished with a clear 1½ points more than the three joint runners-up, Roshan Singh, Aron Teh and Teh Wee Zhun.

Of the trio that finished behind the champion, Roshan’s results were perhaps remarkable. Not only was he the only player to have inflicted a loss on the winner, Roshan was also the only participant in the 54-player field not to suffer any loss. His play was solid, comprising four wins but the five draws he made in this tournament did not do his overall chances any good. More tellingly, he could have pulled clear of the jam had his last three games not ended in consecutive draws.

As for Mohd Nabil’s two sisters who played in the girls’ event, it had been quite expected that they would make this event their own. I would believe that among the present batch of junior players in the country, the two sisters are the strongest players we have.

Nur Nabila binti Azman Hisham, being the older of the two, also came across as the stronger player. In this event, she also finished with eight points from nine games but unlike her brother, she was unbeaten throughout.

She started off with three wins, then a draw followed with her sister before he reeled off another two wins, followed by a second draw with Nur Sabrina Aliya before she closed off the event with two final wins. Her wins came from games with Ee Sun Xin, Anis Fariha, Camilia Johari, Goh Xin Yen, Nur Farihah, Zainoor Ikmal Maisarah and Nur Faqihah.

Nur Najiha binti Azman Hisham did not do badly either as she was just half a point behind her elder sister. She was also unbeaten throughout the tournament but there was just one draw too many for her, against Camilia Johari and Anis Fariha.

Up Next

InSoFar chess

The InSoFar Chess Academy will hold its first event of the year at the Datuk Arthur Tan Chess Centre, Wilayah Complex, Jalan Munshi Abdullah, Kuala Lumpur on Jan 29. Players can choose to play in any one of three sections – the rapid open, the junior scholarship open and the adult scholarship open – which will all be run off together.

Seven Swiss rounds with a 25-minute time control. Entry fees: RM20 (rapid open), RM50 ( junior scholarship open and adult scholarship open). To register, please send your full name and age by text message to Mat Zaki Yeop (017.2032051). Entries are limited to the first 64 players only.

Rakan Muda JB

The Rakan Muda Johor Bahru, Johor Chess Academy, Johor Bahru Chess Association and the Southerncity Giant hypermarket  are the joint organisers of this year’s seventh Johor Bahru junior tournament on Feb 19. Venue will be the concourse area of the hypermarket in Johor Bahru. Seven-round Swiss event with 25 minutes time control.

Entry fees: RM15 (players under 17 years old) and RM13 (players under 12 years old). Closing date is Feb 17. Details available from Narayanan Krishnan (013.7717525, jb_chess_association@yahoo.com).