Odisha boy Prachurya Kumar Pradhan finished runner-up for the second successive year in the All-India Fide Rated Chess Tournament for the Blind, which concluded at Hyderabad from yesterday. He was held to a draw in the last round by Karnataka`s Krishna Udupa, who emerged champion with eight points. In the nine-round tournament Prachurya scored 7.5 points, winning seven games and losing one.
Odisha players put up good performance in the five-day championship with Shuvendu Patra and Soundarya Kumar Pradhan, younger brother of Prachurya, occupying the fourth and sixth positions respectively with seven points each.
Soundarya, who won the title in this tournament last year, has qualified to represent India in the forthcoming World Team Championship for the Blind to be held at Spain in June and the World Junior Championship for the Blind, scheduled to take place at Serbia in August.
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PHOTO: Prachurya Pradhan (R) receives the runner-up trophy in Hyderabad on May 18, 2013.