Road to 2000: My First National Tournament After Covid!!

Hello everyone and welcome back to another Road to 2000 blog. I participated in the 2nd Sheikh Kamal Youth Games on 27 and 28 February, my first national event after 16 March 2020!

The last time I played a national tournament ended 1 day before the lockdown!! The playing venue for both tournaments is the same; so the place was not new. Here are some pictures of Dhaka (which is not really that beautiful city because of too much development)                               

I had very high hopes for this tournament as I am one of the highest-rated U-16 players in Bangladesh. My goal was to win all my matches and to draw against Dhaka.

Format:

There was 8 team playing in the tournament each representing a distinct division. Each team consists of 5 players (4 playing players and 1 substitute). It was a 5 round tournament with a time control of 1 hour with 30-second increments.

I was playing for Rajshahi Division on board 3. My team was pretty strong with a CM on board 2 and a very strong player on board 1. Our team goal was to win the silver medal. The capital city Dhaka was obviously the favorite to win the tournament with an average rating of 2039!!!

Day 1

Round 1

We were paired against the Barisal division with no rated player on their team. So, we were the clear favorite. Let's see what happened in my game:

A perfect start for me and my team. B1, B2 won and B4 drew. So we won by 3.5-0.5. However, we knew it was only the beginning..

Round 2:

This round was very crucial for us, as we were against the Sylhet Division, the second-seeded team in the event. But we were determined to defeat them as well.

We were clearly the favorite on board 2 and 3. But we would have to do miracles to win on board 1 and 4. Let's see how my game went:

One of the best games of my life! I am very proud of finding the g5 idea and creating an attack. Because I and the B2 won, we drew the match by 2-2. Not bad, considering they were a very strong team.

Round 3: 

By now.  I was again very tired and hoping we would not face Dhaka that day. Fortunately, we didn't. However, we faced another very important match, against the 4th-seeded team, Chattogram.

I was again a favorite on my board. Let's see how it went:

Another smooth win! Nothing much to say about the game. My team also won the round as board 2 drew the game and board 1 won his game. So the result was 2.5-1.5 and a win for my team.

Day 2

Round 4:

It was the most important round of the tournament as we were facing Dhaka division, the first-seeded team in the tournament. For the first time in the tournament, I was not the favorite to win, but rather the favorite to lose.

Let's see how this game went:

Wow! A roller coaster match! Both of us were under time pressure pretty much the entire time. Ultimately, I was extremely happy to draw the game. My board 2 also drew the game, However, we lost the round 1-3.

Round 5:

We had already played important matches. So, we knew we won't really face a strong opponent this round.

We ultimately faced Mymensing, the last-seeded team in the tournament with no rated player. We are obviously the favorite to win this round. Let's see how this goes:

I won pretty quickly and crushed my opponent. My team also won the round 3-1. Everyone won the round except board 1.

Results: 

Our team won the silver medal and Dhaka won the first prize. There was no best board prize, otherwise, I would have become the best player on my board (4.5/5). I also won 22.8 rating points. Overall, it was a great experience.

Thanks for reading!