NEW DELHI: The third spherical of the Tata Metal Chess Event 2025 delivered its fair proportion of pleasure as R Praggnanandhaa, enjoying with the white items in opposition to India’s No. 1, Arjun Erigaisi, emerged because the star performer of the day.
The match turned gripping when Arjun opted to seize Pragg’s queen with Qxd1 on the eighth transfer, prompting Pragg to reply with Rxd1. Because the complexity of the sport eased, Arjun managed to carry his floor in opposition to Pragg’s aggressive play. Nevertheless, a misstep on his 51st transfer (Ne3) proved expensive.
The decisive second got here on the 56th transfer when Arjun blundered once more with Rxd3, leaving him no alternative however to resign by the sixtieth transfer in what turned out to be the longest sport of the spherical.
Having amassed consecutive wins within the 87th version of Wijk aan Zee, Praggnanandhaa now leads the desk with a commendable rating of two.5/3.
With India’s illustration on the match hitting a historic excessive as 5 gamers compete on this prestigious occasion hosted within the Netherlands, going through compatriots as rivals is not a rarity.
Whereas Praggnanandhaa cemented his place on the prime, one other Indian, Leon Luke Mendonca, bounced again after two consecutive defeats within the opening rounds. Battling sickness, Leon delivered a valiant efficiency in opposition to veteran Pentala Harikrishna.
Regardless of visiting a physician in Wijk aan Zee on Monday for his well being issues, Leon confirmed no indicators of fatigue on the chessboard. The 18-year-old started aggressively, taking over an opponent practically twenty years his senior.
The balanced sport reached a impasse, culminating in a draw on the forty fourth transfer with queens nonetheless on the board. It was Leon’s first level within the match, a optimistic signal for the reigning Challengers champion. For Harikrishna, the draw signified restoration after his demoralizing defeat to Pragg on Sunday.
Elsewhere, D Gukesh settled for a fast draw in opposition to World No. 2 Fabiano Caruana, who had the white items. Gukesh performed cautiously, manoeuvring his pawns with out overcommitting. When Gukesh hinted at a draw with Be2 on the twenty second transfer, Caruana, barely on the backfoot, acknowledged. Consequently, the World No. 2 confirmed a threefold repetition.
The draw, nevertheless, mirrored Gukesh’s modified method from the World Championships video games (the place he would by no means conform to attracts), presumably influenced by a busy schedule.
Having attended the AICF (All Indian Chess Federation) felicitation ceremony, obtained the celebrated Main Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award, and travelled to the Netherlands simply hours earlier than his opening-round sport, Gukesh might need opted to preserve power.
Given Caruana’s standing because the match’s prime seed, the draw appeared a wise choice regardless of Gukesh holding a slight benefit at that second within the sport.
In different video games, defending Masters champion Yi Wei agreed to a draw in opposition to Germany’s Vincent Keymer, who had beforehand delivered a crushing victory over Leon Mendonca within the opening spherical. Dutch No. 1 Anish Giri additionally secured a draw in opposition to Vladimir Fedoseev, sustaining his regular efficiency.
ALSO SEE: Tata Metal Chess 2025 Schedule
Whereas the Masters part averted main surprises, the Challengers part instructed a unique story. Each Indian gamers, Rameshbabu Vaishali and Divya Deshmukh, suffered defeats to Kazybek Nogerbek and Aydin Suleymanli, respectively.
On the brighter facet, 14-year-old Lu Miaoyi claimed her second win of the match, whereas 12-year-old Faustino Oro of Argentina earned his first victory at Wijk aan Zee, a lot to the delight of the spectators.
Tata Metal Chess Event 2025: Spherical 3
- Masters standings: Praggnanandhaa (2.5), Gukesh (2), Caruana (2), Keymer (2), Wei (1.5), Fedoseev (1.5), Abdusattorov (1.5), Sarana (1.5), Harikrishna (1.5), Warmerdam (1), Van Foreest (1), Giri (1), Mendonca (0.5), Erigaisi (0.5).
- Challengers standings: Lu (2.5), L’Ami (2.5), Nguyen (2.5), Suleymanli (2.0), Gurel (2.0), Bok (1.5), Nogerbek (1.5), Svane (1.5), Vaishali (1.5), Yakubboev (1.5), Oro (1.0), Deshmukh (0.5), Pijpers (0.5), Bulmaga (0).
