Meusa wins Sasha Cells CARICOM Chess tournament

Jul 08, 2009 Sports

Wendell Meusa made it three in a row after capturing the senior top prize in the Sasha Cells chess tournament which concluded on Caricom Day at the Kei-Shar’s Sports Club.

Top performers from back left: Shiv Nandalall, Wendell Meusa, Rashad Hussain, Taffin Khan and Carlos Griffith. The lone female at centre is Miranda Ramnarine.

Muesa ended the tournament on seven points, with his only loss being to Shiv Nandalall.

National Junior Champion Taffin Khan took second position, while Shiv Nandalall was third.

In the much anticipated match up between Meusa and Taffin Khan, Khan got himself in early trouble after giving away a rook, and as a consequence, Meusa took full advantage and secured the win.

In some other games of the day, Omar Shariff defeated David Khan, while Irshad Mohamed held veteran player Errol Tiwari to a draw. In the final round of the day Omar Shariff got the better of Learie Webster, while Errol Tiwari defeated David Khan.

The final points standing: Wendell Meusa 7, Taffin Khan 6, Shiv Nandalall 5 ½, Learie Webster 5, Errol Tiwari and Haatram Parbat 4 each, Irshad Mohamed, Brian Thompson and Omar Shariff 3 ½ apiece, David Khan 3, Ryan Singh 2 and Alex Joseph 1.

In the junior category, Rashad Hussain played undefeated to win this category securing five wins and three draws to finish with 6 ½ points.

Carlos Griffith, the president of the Dolphin High School Chess Club took the second position based on the tie-breaker, while Sham Khan took third.

The final points standing: Rashad Hussain 6 ½, Carlos Griffith, Sham Khan and Saeed Ali 5 ½, Aslam Hussain 5, Khalid Gajraj and Devendra Singh 4 ½ apiece, Sheriffa Ali and Irshad Ishmael 4 each and Alexander Brassington and Clive Bender with 3 ½.

In the beginners’ category Miranda Ramnarine took top honours while her elder sister Mandy Ramnarine took the second position.

The seniors received trophies and cash prizes, while the top junior received a trophy and chess book (The Complete Book of Chess Strategy by Jeremy Silman), the second-placed junior received a trophy and a tournament size chess set.

President of the Guyana Chess Federation Errol Tiwari took time out to thank the sponsor, Sasha Cells.