In another key result, the 22-year-old GM Awonder Liang of the United States defeated 18-year-old GM Pranav V in a much-anticipated \u201cwonderkid\u201d battle, moving level on points with Arjun and adding fresh intrigue to the chase for the title.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Now in its third year, the Chennai Grandmasters 2025 is India\u2019s strongest classical chess event and features two elite 10-player round-robin sections\u2014Masters and Challengers\u2014across nine rounds in ten days. With a \u20b91 crore prize pool, the Masters winner earns \u20b925 lakh, the Challengers winner \u20b97 lakh, and a coveted 2026 Masters berth. The event also offers FIDE Circuit points, with the Masters champion securing 24.5 points toward 2026 Candidates qualification.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Unbeaten so far, Keymer opened with the Queen\u2019s Pawn, quickly transposing into a Queen\u2019s Gambit by move two, while Arjun responded with the Slav Defense. The German seized the early momentum, but Arjun clawed his way back, ensuring the pace-setter didn\u2019t turn into a runaway leader. Elsewhere in the Masters, Vidit Gujrathi and Anish Giri settled for a draw, while Jorden van Foreest bounced back with a win as Black against Nihal Sarin. Karthikeyan Murali, too, held Ray Robson to a draw. <\/p>\r\n\r\n
In the Challengers, M Pranesh halted leader Abhimanyu Puranik\u2019s unbeaten run, turning what had looked like a one-man march into a tight three-way fight for the title. The victory brought Pranesh level with Abhimanyu at the top, where they were joined by Leon Luke Mendonca after his win over Aryan Chopra. <\/p>\r\n\r\n
GM Harika Dronavalli prevailed against GM Vaishali Rameshbabu in the all-women Grandmaster clash, while Adhiban Baskaran outplayed Diptayan Ghosh to climb up the standings. Pa Iniyan and Harshavardhan GB split the point after a draw. <\/p>\r\n\r\n
Results & standings: <\/p>\r\n\r\n
Masters \u2013 Round 6: <\/p>\r\n\r\n
Arjun Erigaisi (\u00bd) drew with Vincent Keymer (\u00bd)<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Awonder Liang (1) bt Pranav V (0)<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Vidit Gujrathi (\u00bd) drew with Anish Giri (\u00bd)<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Jorden van Foreest (1) bt Nihal Sarin (0)<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Karthikeyan Murali (\u00bd) drew with Ray Robson (\u00bd)<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Masters \u2013 Round 6 <\/p>\r\n\r\n
1. Vincent Keymer \u2013 4.5<\/p>\r\n\r\n
=2 Arjun Erigaisi \u2013 3.5<\/p>\r\n\r\n
=2 Awonder Liang \u2013 3.5<\/p>\r\n\r\n
=4 Karthikeyan Murali \u2013 3.0<\/p>\r\n\r\n
=4 Anish Giri \u2013 3.0<\/p>\r\n\r\n
=4 Vidit Gujrathi \u2013 3.0<\/p>\r\n\r\n
=4 Jorden van Foreest \u2013 3.0<\/p>\r\n\r\n
8. Ray Robson \u2013 2.5<\/p>\r\n\r\n
=9 Nihal Sarin \u2013 2.0<\/p>\r\n\r\n
=9 Pranav V \u2013 2.0<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Challengers \u2013 Round 6: <\/p>\r\n\r\n
M Pranesh (1) bt Abhimanyu Puranik (0)<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Leon Luke Mendonca (1) bt Aryan Chopra (0)<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Harika Dronavalli (1) bt Vaishali Rameshbabu (0)<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Adhiban Baskaran (1) bt Diptayan Ghosh (0)<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Pa Iniyan (\u00bd) drew with Harshavardhan GB (\u00bd)<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Challengers \u2013 Standings after Round 6: <\/p>\r\n\r\n
=1 M Pranesh \u2013 4.5<\/p>\r\n\r\n
=1 Abhimanyu Puranik \u2013 4.5<\/p>\r\n\r\n
=1 Leon Luke Mendonca \u2013 4.5<\/p>\r\n\r\n
=4 Adhiban Baskaran \u2013 3.5<\/p>\r\n\r\n
=4 Diptayan Ghosh \u2013 3.5<\/p>\r\n\r\n
=4 Pa Iniyan \u2013 3.5<\/p>\r\n\r\n
7. Harshavardhan GB \u2013 2.0<\/p>\r\n\r\n
=8 Aryan Chopra \u2013 1.5<\/p>\r\n\r\n
7. Harshavardhan GB \u2013 2.0<\/p>\r\n\r\n
10. Vaishali Rameshbabu \u2013 1.0.<\/p>\r\n\r\n