A Rollercoaster Ride
The Game between Alireza and Gukesh was no less than a rollercoaster ride. Under time pressure, both players made many mistakes. Alireza got an advantage in the middlegame, but it slipped away, and the same thing kept happening throughout the game. The player who made the last mistake was Gukesh, and Alireza eventually clinched the game to score his 2nd win in a row.
Alireza Firouzja vs. D Gukesh (1-0)
This game was a classic example of how even top players can crumble under time pressure. The game started with the Ruy Lopez, and Alireza showed some great ideas throughout the game.
White to play and win
Under time pressure, Gukesh played 58...h5, and it turned out to be a big mistake as Alireza's king was close to the pawns and the black king was far.
Replay Round 2 Games
Round 2 Results
Bo. | No. | Rtg |
| White | Result | Black |
| Rtg | No. | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 8 | 2730 | GM | ½ - ½ | GM | 2717 | 5 | |||||
2 | 6 | 2749 | GM | 1 - 0 | GM | 2717 | 4 | |||||
3 | 7 | 2710 | GM | ½ - ½ | GM | 2666 | 3 | |||||
4 | 1 | 2766 | GM | ½ - ½ | GM | 2757 | 2 |
Round 3 Pairings
Bo. | No. | Rtg |
| White | Result | Black |
| Rtg | No. | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 2 | 2757 | GM | GM | 2730 | 8 | ||||||
2 | 3 | 2666 | GM | GM | 2766 | 1 | ||||||
3 | 4 | 2717 | GM | GM | 2710 | 7 | ||||||
4 | 5 | 2717 | GM | GM | 2749 | 6 |
Photo Gallery: Here
Video Gallery: Here
Lineup
Tournament Format & Details
Format: 8-Player Single Round-Robin (7 rounds of classical chess).
Time Control: 90 minutes for the entire game, with a 30-second increment starting from move 1.
Venue: The Westin Chennai Velachery.
Prize Fund: ₹75,00,000.
Prizes
With massive FIDE Circuit points on the line for the next Candidates cycle and a grand prize pool of ₹75,00,000,
Venue: The Westin Chennai Velachery
Previous winners
Winner | Runner-up | Year |
|---|---|---|
GM Vincent Keymer | GM Anish Giri | 2025 |
GM Aravindh Chithambaram | GM Levon Aronian | 2024 |
GM Gukesh Dommaraju | GM Arjun Erigaisi | 2023 |
