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Everything still to fight for
Praggnanandhaa took the sole lead in round 9 of the Polgar Challenge on Friday, when Nodirbek Abdusattorov — the then shared leader — lost to Leon Luke Mendonca. The Indian prodigy has remained alone atop the standings ever since, but that does not mean everything is decided in the first event of the Julius Baer Challengers Tour. To the contrary, we can expect a very exciting final day, as four players stand well within range to catch the leader with four rounds to go.
Abdusattorov has perhaps shown the steadiest hand. The Uzbek grandmaster is in sole second place a half point behind Pragg despite having failed to convert a winning position on Friday against Mendonca. If there are no significant changes in the standings table, Abdusattorov will get a chance to leapfrog Pragg in their last-round encounter, when the Uzbek will play with the white pieces.