Indian GM Arjun Erigaisi wins Tata Steel Challengers event with a round to spare

Indian Grandmaster Arjun Erigaisi won the Tata Steel Challengers event with a round to spare after a draw with Thai Dai Van Nguyen of Czech Republic in the 12th and penultimate round.

Indian Grandmaster Arjun Erigaisi won the Tata Steel Challengers event with a round to spare.

Champion with a round to spare, Arjun Erigaisi (10.5 points) finished off in style by winning the 13th and final round against Marc Andria Maurizzi (France) to claim the honours in the Challengers sections of the Tata Steel Masters at Wijk aan Zee, near Amsterdam, on Sunday.

For the better part, the game appeared to be headed for a draw but Maurizzi let Arjun in with a chance. Later, in a completely winning position, Arjun blundered with his final rook-move, But fortunately for him, Maurizzi immediately counter-blundered his rook and resigned.

The final round results had no bearing on the title-race of the Masters section, too, where Magnus Carlsen (9.5) was sure of the title on Saturday since he was to receive a free point from Daniil Dubov who withdrew due to Covid.

Congrats to Arjun on such a smooth and strong performance! He has been with us in WACa and we are so proud to see him win two Tata Steel events in two continents!! Well done . https://t.co/e2qlLZ0AUd

— Viswanathan Anand (@vishy64theking) January 29, 2022

Arjun’s title also qualifies him to play in next year’s Masters section. He ensured the title following his 12th round draw with eventual runner-up Nguyen Thai Dai Van (Czech Republic) that gave him an unsurpassable 1.5 point lead.  Surya Shekhar Ganguly (6) finished ninth.

Carlsen, winner over Fabiano Caruana in the 12th round, finished at 9.5 points - 1.5 points clear of Shakhriyar Mamedyarov (Aze) and Richard Rapport (Hun).

Vidit Gujrathi (6) lost the final round to Sergey Karjakin and finished 10th. Praggnanandhaa (5.5), who received a point from Dubov on Saturday, stunned Andrey Esipenko (Rus), ended up 12th in the 14-man field.

13th round:

Masters (Indians unless stated): Sergey Karjakin (Rus) bt Vidit Gujrathi; R. Praggnanandhaa bt Andrey Esipenko (Rus);  Magnus Carlsen (Nor) received a walkover from Daniil Dubov (Rus); Shakhriyar
Mamedyarov (Aze) drew with Fabiano Caruana (USA); Richard Rapport (Hun) drew with Anish Giri (Ned); Jorden van Foreest (Ned) bt Sam Shankland (USA); Nils Grandelius (Swe) drew with Jan-Krzysztof Duda (Pol).

Final placings: 1. Carlsen (9.5 points), 2-3. Mamedyarov, Rapport (8 each), 4. Giri (7.5), 5-6. Karjakin, Foreest (7 each), 7-8. Esipenko, Caruana (6.5), 9-10. Duda, Vidit (6 each), 11-12. Shankland,
Praggnanandhaa (5.5 each), 13. Gradelius (4.5) and Dubov (3.5).