藤井二冠が棋聖初防衛　３連勝で最年少記録更新―１８歳、初の九段に

　将棋の藤井聡太棋聖（１８）＝王位と合わせ二冠＝に渡辺明三冠（３７）＝名人、棋王、王将＝が挑戦する第９２期棋聖戦５番勝負の第３局が３日、静岡県沼津市内で指され、後手の藤井二冠が１００手で勝ち、３連勝で初のタイトル防衛を決めた。
　日本将棋連盟によると、１８歳１１カ月でのタイトル防衛は、屋敷伸之九段（４９）が１９９１年に棋聖を防衛した１９歳０カ月の最年少記録を３０年ぶりに更新。さらに、タイトル獲得通算３期となり、規定で九段に昇段した。２００５年の渡辺三冠の２１歳７カ月を大幅に塗り替え、初の十代の九段となった。
　終盤の激しい攻め合いを藤井二冠がぎりぎりで制した。藤井二冠は終局後、「タイトルを防衛して一人前という言葉も将棋界にはあるので、結果は良かった。九段は最高位なので光栄なこと」と話した。３連敗した渡辺三冠は「終盤（の指し手）が分からなかった」と敗戦を振り返った。（2021/07/03-20:41）

Sota Fujii swept the best-of-five Kisei shogi title series with Akira Watanabe on Saturday, becoming the youngest player to defend any of the eight major professional titles for the board game.
   Fujii achieved this at the age of 18 years and 11 months, beating the previous record of 19 years set in 1991 by ninth-dan Nobuyuki Yashiki, now 49, who defended the Kisei title at the time, according to the Japan Shogi Association.
   Fujii was also promoted to ninth-dan, becoming the first teenage player to get the rank. Previously, the youngest player to reach ninth-dan was Watanabe, who rose to the rank in 2005 at 21 years and seven months.
   In Saturday's third match of the Kisei title series, held in the city of Numazu, Shizuoka Prefecture, central Japan, Fujii, who also has the Oi major title, defeated Watanabe with 100 moves. Watanabe has three of the eight major titles--Meijin, Kio and Osho.
   "The result was good because a shogi player can be regarded as being fully competitive only after defending a title," Fujii said.