Mumbai, Aug 9 (IANS): Abhimanyu Puranik won the title as Indian players dominated the Riga Technical University 2021 Rapid Open Chess at Riga in Latvia.

Puranik finished with eight points from nine games in Tournament G section, winning eight games and losing one as a no-draw approach worked spectacularly for him.

SL Narayanan finished third and Aravindh Chithambaram fourth both tied for the second spot with Igor Kovalenko of Latvia on 7.5 points. Kovalenko finished second on tie-breaker.

Arjun Engalsi finished sixth after sharing the fifth spot with three others while NR Visakh came eighth after ending clubbed with seven players on 6.5 points.

In the final round on Sunday, Puranik defeated compatriot Narayanan in a wild game as he had to beat him to ensure he finished clear first and pocketed the first prize of 360 euro. Narayanan was just a half-point behind and a draw could have impacted Puranik's chances.

The 21-year-old from Pune won the ninth round game to finish with eighth point.

Puranik is among a group of 34 Indians that is participating in the Riga Technical University 2021 Classic Chess Tournament, which started on Monday. The main group also includes Nihal Sarin, who with a rating of 2655 is the fifth highest ranked Indian in the FIDE Rankings list for August 2021.