Arjun Erigaisi and Vincent Keymer Begin Chennai Grandmasters Tournament with Wins
Chennai: Indian ace Arjun Erigaisi started his campaign in the Masters section of the Chennai Grandmasters chess tournament with a solid victory over American Awonder Liang on Thursday. German Grandmaster Vincent Keymer claimed the only other win in the Masters event’s opening day, defeating India’s Nihal Sarin.
Arjun Erigaisi Dominates in Opening Game
Playing with white pieces, the 21-year-old Arjun gained an early advantage and systematically dismantled Liang’s defence. The American faltered in the middle game before resigning after his 49th move.
“It’s nice to start with a win,” Arjun said post-match. “But a good start doesn’t always mean a good finish — I’ve started well before and not finished strongly.”
Vincent Keymer Outplays Nihal Sarin
Keymer and Nihal’s clash was intense, with the German maintaining the upper hand for much of the game. The 20-year-old capitalised on Nihal’s time trouble and sealed the win after the 51st move.
“I think I was completely winning, then messed it up even with 20 minutes against zero. I avoided time pressure, but ironically lost my edge by not pressing further,” Keymer reflected.
Mixed Results for Other Masters Matches
Vidit Gujrathi salvaged a draw from a tough position against Dutch GM Jorden van Foreest. The all-Indian encounter between V. Pranav and Karthikeyan Murali ended in a 44-move draw, while Anish Giri shared the point with American Ray Robson.
In the Challengers category, M. Pranesh defeated Aryan Chopra, Leon Luke Mendonca beat G.B. Harshavardhan, and Diptayan Ghosh overcame D. Harika. Other games ended in draws.
Results — First Round:
Masters:
- Arjun Erigaisi bt Awonder Liang (USA)
- V. Pranav drew Karthikeyan Murali
- Vincent Keymer (GER) bt Nihal Sarin
- Vidit Gujrathi drew Jorden van Foreest (NED)
- Anish Giri (NED) drew Ray Robson (USA)
Challengers:
- Leon Mendonca bt G.B. Harshavardhan
- Abhimanyu Puranik drew B. Adhiban
- R. Vaishali drew Pa. Iniyan
- D. Harika lost to Diptayan Ghosh
- M. Pranesh bt Aryan Chopra
Second Round Pairings:
Masters:
- Karthikeyan vs Liang
- van Foreest vs Arjun
- Robson vs Vidit
- Nihal vs Giri
- Pranav vs Keymer
Challengers:
- Harshavardhan vs Aryan
- Diptayan vs Pranesh
- Iniyan vs Harika
- Adhiban vs Vaishali
- Mendonca vs Abhimanyu
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