Road to be the Best Chess Player in the World!-Chapter 363: Matchup for the Last Round!

Unlike before, somehow, both Sheva and Bagas were nervous to open the website. After all, this was the final round of the tournament, and while the men’s team was already out of the race to the podium, this was still a nerve-wracking experience, especially for Sheva, who still had a mission to get the country into the top 15 in the final standings.

This pairing would give him an insight into whether the mission was possible or not, and while it was rare for him to do this, the boy prayed that the opponent tomorrow would be an easy one.

’Come on, just give me Cuba or Chile...’ He chanted that over and over inside his heart.

Right now, Indonesia’s men’s team has already gotten 6 wins, 1 draw, and 3 defeats out of 10 rounds, and they are currently at 22nd place in the standings. However, 13 countries had the same record as them, and some whose record was above theirs were only slightly better, either with one draw or one win difference. So, as long as the team could win the last round, the chance to sneak into the top list would definitely be wide open. 𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺

However, Indonesia was not the only one that eyed that top 15 spot. No, the same countries also wanted to improve their position, and most of them were stronger than Indonesia. There were the Czech Republic, Denmark, Egypt, Israel, and so many more that could beat Indonesia in the last round, and that was definitely the last thing that Sheva wanted to happen tomorrow. The best scenario would definitely be the matchup against the other weak teams like Chile or Cuba, but the chance was so slim.

True enough, luck seemed to be on the other side here, as when the website was opened, both boys groaned instantly, knowing that tomorrow would be another long day.

Men’s team: Indonesia VS India 3

Women’s team: Indonesia: VS Ukraine

"Oh, come on!" Sheva groaned, flipping his phone on the bed. "India’s third team?! And their average rating is still 2610? Are you fucking kidding me?! This is so fucking outrageous!" He ranted frustratingly.

Indeed, the opponent that the men’s team would face tomorrow was India’s 3rd team. This was the weakest Indian team in the open section, and some might say that this was the only one that wasn’t blessed by heaven. When the other two teams were competing for the title at the top of the standings, this team was struggling in the middle, suffering three defeats already, including against Peru, a far weaker team than them.

However, even with their bad result, they were still not a weak team. Hell, they were still a far stronger team than Indonesia, with an average rating of 2619. Once again, it was crazy how blessed India was in chess, that even their third team could still be better than 70 percent of the teams that competed in this Olympiad.

So, yeah, playing against them when the team needed to win the most was definitely not the most ideal situation here.

"Tch! In the end, we cannot rely on luck too much, huh?" Sheva clicked his tongue in annoyance. "Let’s see who will be our opponent tomorrow.... Huh?" The boy blinked in surprise when he saw the list of players there.

"What?" Bagas peeked a little, curious.

"Nah, just see a familiar name there." Sheva waved his hand nonchalantly. "Remember, Mr. Gupta? The one who played against Sister Irene in Biel? It ended in a forced draw, right?" He tried to recall the tournament three weeks ago.

"Ah, yeah! I remember that!" Bagas also nodded as his memory flew back to the past. ’He is a solid player, but I don’t think you will have the problem cracking the nuts here." Bagas said confidently. Even though on paper, the rating gap was so vast, on the battlefield, Sheva was like a young warrior who was thirsty for the enemy’s blood. Compared to the seasonal general who only knew how to fight conservatively, Bagas was confident that his best friend could triumph in the last game of the tournament.

"Yeah, I am also confident with my game." Sheva hummed lightly. However, a frown could still be seen on his face, as the boy was worried about something else. "The problem is the other boards... Can they at least avoid defeat tomorrow?" Well, for that, none of them was really confident. Both teenagers just looked at each other before letting out a deep, helpless sigh.

"Let’s just... Pray that they can hold on until the end, okay?" Bagas said weakly, not even believing what he said here.

PING!

Suddenly, the laptop in front of Bagas made a loud ping sound, startling them both. Bagas’s eyes moved quickly to the screen, checking if there was something important coming in. When he opened it up, though, the boy was surprised to see the message there.

"What?" Sheva asked, curious.

"An interview request from Sagar Shah, ChessBase India," Bagas replied shortly. "They want to be the first ones to interview you after the match is over tomorrow." He added.

"Um? Why?" Sheva was taken aback. It wasn’t like he was going to refuse. No, while Sheva was still reserved in front of the camera, the boy had already improved so much and was able to talk freely under the lens. However, he was curious about why ChessBase India had to ask so formally like this. "They usually just ask me directly, so why is this time different?" He wondered confusedly.

For that, Bagas just rolled his eyes exasperatedly. "You really have to learn your value, Bastard." The boy chided. At Sheva’s confusion, he added, "Don’t you think that being the individual gold medalist, the best performer of the tournament, and the only one who has a perfect record since the beginning until the end, is not a big thing? Hell, nah! After the tournament is over, you will be a big shot, and everyone will want to have a piece of you! Sagar Shah just wants to make sure that he gets the first bite, but I can assure you that the interview request will be more tomorrow."

Sheva just stared blankly as if his brain had crashed trying to process the information from Bagas. In the end, he could only blurt out a single word, stupidly.

"What?"