World champion GM D Gukesh finished tied sixth as Levon Aronian of USA convincingly won the St. Louis Rapid and Blitz that concluded in St Louis.
Indian Grandmaster R Praggnanandhaa bounced back from a poor start in the rapid section to climb to second place in the overall standings at the end of the first half of the blitz section in the Superbet Rapid & Blitz tournament.
Asian chess: Srija Seshadri in joint lead
Superbet Classic: Praggnanadhaa beats Wesley; in sole lead
Grand Chess Tour: Teenaged GM Gukesh defeats idol Anand in Rapid segment
D Gukesh held reigning world champion Ding Liren of China to a draw in a highly anticipated contest
Indian GM Aravindh Chithambaram did not see any change in his fortunes in the blitz section and had to be content with a tie for seventh place in his maiden outing in the GCT.
With nine rounds still to come in the blitz event, Wei Yi has amassed 20.5 points with seven wins on the first day of blitz. Ending the day with 7.5 out of a possible nine, Yi, seems like a man possessed and unless a hurricane hits him, is poised to win the first leg of the Grand Chess Tour.
In the sixth round Gukesh survived another scare before steering the game to a draw with Firouzja.
The years of sacrifice and hard work is finally paying dividends. The iconic Vellamal School, which is the alma mater of World champion Gukesh, now has another international player of repute to boast about. After all, Aravindh is Gukesh's senior.
The mood shifted the moment someone said, 'Akshay sir is outside.' And there he was, not in a tailored suit under dramatic lighting, but in casual, loose-fitting shirt and track pants, and sneakers, smiling like a college kid. Mayur Sanap reports from the Wheel Of Fortune set.
Gukesh is currently sharing the 8th spot on 1.5 points along with Abdusattorov and Duda.
Winning three and drawing the remaining six games, Firouzja remained undefeated throughout the event.
Young Indian Grandmaster R Praggnanandhaa on Friday called for a robust financial backing for chess, debunking the common concept that players require minimal monetary support to train and excel in the sport.
World Champion D Gukesh began his campaign at the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam tour with a mixed bag of results, including three draws and a lone loss, signaling that he is adapting to the new format.
World champion D Gukesh was held to a draw by the lone wild card Samuel Sevian, while fellow Indian R Praggnanandhaa also split the point with Nodirbek Abdusattorov.
Grandmaster Vidit Gujrathi and Dr Nidhi Kataria's wedding was a spectacular blend of tradition, glamour, and chess royalty.
R Praggnanandhaa scored a fluent victory over Frenchman Alireza Firouzja to claim the joint lead after the seventh round of the Sinquefield Cup.
Aravindh Chithambaram had a good second day as he beat former World champion Veselin Topalov of Bulgaria and drew the last two games to find himself on the sole third spot in the Superbet Rapid and Blitz chess tournament.
Caruana kept his slender half point lead going in to the final round in the 10-player round-robin tournament, a part of the Grand Chess tour.
Superbet Classic: Praggnanandhaa in joint lead with three others
Gukesh had an exciting match against Nepomniachtchi out of a Catalan opening game on Tuesday.
D Gukesh played out a draw with tournament leader and top seed Fabiano Caruana
Like Gukesh, Aronian was just able to draw two games and lost one.
D Gukesh and R Praggnanadhaa played out their eighth draw in as many games at the Sinquefield Cup.
Five-time world champion Viswanathan Anand failed to press hard with his white pieces and had to settle for a draw with Michael Adams of England in the first round of the London Chess Classic that got underway in London.
Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa won the Superbet Chess Classic after defeating Maxime Vachier-Lagrave with white pieces in the final Blitz play-off game on Friday.
World champion D Gukesh finished last after losing to Iranian-French Grandmaster Alireza Firouzja in the second game of their seventh place play-off match at the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam.
Indian chess icon Viswanathan Anand placed with nine points from seven rounds of Rapid (involving two mini-matches) and 14 rounds of Blitz.
The Gashimov Memorial tournament this year is being played as a rapid and blitz chess tournament.
World Championship challenger Gukesh Dommaraju played out a hard-fought draw with Ian Nepomniachtchi of Russia.
Carlsen accuses FIDE chief of broken promises.
D Gukesh did not last long against Fabiano Caruana in a must-win tie with the American winning in a mere 18 moves.
Reigning world chess champion D Gukesh has stated that he is open to competing in all formats of chess, including the newly popular freestyle format, but believes that classical chess, with its rich history, will always hold the greatest significance. Despite concerns of a potential split in the sport between supporters of freestyle and classical chess, Gukesh sees no reason for division, highlighting the excitement of freestyle while acknowledging the importance of the traditional format's legacy.
The Chennai-based Anand is making his maiden appearance on the Magnus Carlsen Chess Tour.
Indian Grandmaster Aravindh Chithambaram finished joint first with 11 points after the end of the rapid section of the Superbet Rapid and Blitz tournament, a part of the Grand Chess Tour.
Viswanathan Anand trumped former World champion Garry Kasparov in the much-awaited contest of the Croatia Grand Chess Tour in Zagreb on Saturday.
Praggnanandhaa draws with Aronian, shares top spot at Superbet Classic
Caruana became the sole leader and also got back to number two in live world rankings.
World Champion D Gukesh's quest for a victory continued as Hikaru Nakamura defeated him in the tie-breaker of the 5-8 place play-off at the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam.
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