Chennai Grandmasters Chess: Keymer held to second straight draw by Vidit but retains lead

Chennai, Aug 11 (PTI) Germany's Vincent Keymer maintained his grip on the top of the Chennai Grandmasters Chess points table despite being held to his second consecutive draw, this time by India's Vidit Gujrathi in Round 5 here on Monday.

The result kept Keymer a point clear of nearest rival Arjun Erigaisi of India, who was also held to a draw by compatriot Pranav V.

Erigaisi and Keymer will play each other in a clash between the table toppers on day 6, with the latter starting with whites.

In the Masters section, Jorden van Foreest scored the only decisive result of the day, defeating American GM Ray Robson to go level on points with the latter at 2.0 apiece.

Indian GM Nihal Sarin drew with Awonder Liang, while Anish Giri split the point with Murali Karthikeyan in a balanced.

The Challengers section saw a remarkable sweep for the black pieces on the top boards, with leader GM Abhimanyu Puranik defeating GM Harika Dronavalli to extend his lead to a commanding full point..

IM Harshavardhan GB scored a win with black over GM Vaishali Rameshbabu, while GM Leon Luke Mendonca held GM Pranesh M to a draw to remain in joint second. GM Iniyan Pa also split the point with GM Diptayan Ghosh.

Now in its third year, the Chennai Grandmasters Chess features two elite 10-player round-robin sections -- Masters and Challengers -- across nine rounds in 10 days..

With a Rs 1 crore prize pool, the Masters winner earns Rs 25 lakh, the Challengers winner will pocket Rs 7 lakh and a coveted 2026 Masters berth. The event also offers FIDE circuit points, with the Masters champion securing 24.5 toward 2026 Candidates qualification.

Masters: Round 5 Results: Anish Giri (½) drew Murali Karthikeyan (½); Vidit Gujrathi (½) drew Vincent Keymer (½); Arjun Erigaisi (½) drew Pranav V (½); Liang Awonder (½) drew Nihal Sarin; Jorden van Foreest (1) def. Ray Robson (0)..

Challengers: Round 5 Results: Vaishali Rameshbabu (0) lost to Harshavardhan GB (1); Harika Dronavalli (0) lost to Abhimanyu Puranik (1); M Pranesh (½) drew Leon Luke Mendonca (½); Aryan Chopra (½) drew Adhiban B (½); Diptayan Ghosh (½) drew Pa Iniyan (½.

Masters Standings after Day 5:.

1. Vincent Keymer – 4.

2. Arjun Erigaisi –3 .

3-6. Anish Giri, Vidit Gujrathi, Murali Karthikeyan, Awonder Liang – 2..

7-10. Nihal Sarin, Pranav V, Ray Robson, Jorden van Foreest – .

Challengers Standings after Day 5.

1. Abhimanyu Puranik – 4..

2-4. Pranesh M, Diptayan Ghosh, Leon Luke Mendonca – 3..

5. Iniyan Pa – .

6. Adhiban Baskaran – 2..

7-8. Aryan Chopra, Harshavardhan GB – 1..

9. Vaishali Rameshbabu – .

10. Harika Dronavalli – 0.5. PTI PDS PDS KHS