Julius Baer Generation Cup: Arjun vs Carlsen, Praggnanandhaa vs Ivanchuk in opening round

From the 16-player field, eight players will qualify for the knockout phase following a four-day round-robin league. In the league, a win is worth $750 and a draw, $250.

R. Praggnanandhaa will face 53-year-old Vasilly Ivanchuk in the opening round of the $150,000 Julius Baer Generation Cup. | Photo Credit: VELANKANNI RAJ / The Hindu

India No. 2 Arjun Erigaisi will take on World No. 1 Magnus Carlsen and R. Praggnanandhaa meets 53-year-old Vasilly Ivanchuk in the opening round of the $150,000 Julius Baer Generation Cup online rapid chess tournament late on Saturday night.

B. Adhban will return to the $1.6 million Meltwaters Champions Chess Tour and face rising German Vincent Keymar.

Adhiban is a last-minute replacement for S. L. Narayanan, who qualified for this event after winning the recent MPL Indian Chess Tour event. Narayanan had committed to play for Myinvestor Casablanca in the Premier Division of the Spanish Team Championship that began in Linares, Spain, on Friday.

From the 16-player field, eight players will qualify for the knockout phase following a four-day round-robin league. In the league, a win is worth $750 and a draw, $250.

The two finalists will qualify for the season’s final major event scheduled in San Francisco in November.

Currently, Carlsen leads the Tour earnings with $146,000 while Praggnanandhaa is third, with $98,750.

First-round pairings:

Arjun Erigaisi-Magnus Carlsen (Nor); Vassily Ivanchuk (Ukr)-R. Praggnanandhaa; Vincent Keymer (Ger)-B. Adhiban; Ivan Saric (Cro)-Anish Giri (Ned); Jan-Krzysztof Duda (Pol)-Levon Aronian (USA); Boris Gelfand (Isr)-Hans Moke Niemann (USA); Christopher Woojin Yoo (USA)-David Navara (Cze); Radoslaw Wojtaszek (Pol)-Le Quang Liem (Vie).