Chennai GMs: Keymer held to a draw, again

chennai: 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 R Vaishali, while GM Leon Luke Mendonca held GM Pranesh M to a draw. agencies