Both Grandmasters, who also reached the playoffs at last year\u2019s edition, will now lead India\u2019s challenge in the quarterfinals on Friday as they vie for the title and a share of the $1.5 million (INR 14.3 crore) prize pool.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Nihal Sarin began his day with a closely contested LB matchup against Team Nemesis\u2019 Wei Yi. After the opening two games ended in draws, the Indian Grandmaster held his nerve in the Armageddon tiebreaker to secure victory and advance to the LB decider. <\/p>\r\n\r\n
He then faced Weibo Gaming\u2019s Jan-Krzysztof Duda, drawing the first game before winning the second to book his place in the playoffs. The qualification marks another strong EWC showing for Nihal, who also reached the quarterfinals at last year\u2019s edition before being eliminated by eventual champion Magnus Carlsen of Team Liquid.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Speaking after his qualification, Nihal Sarin said, \u201cFirstly, I am just extremely happy to make the top eight again and to have managed to play some good chess in some really tough matches. The format is very short, and you need to be sharp from the start. Getting just one win can make a huge difference psychologically. I am relieved to pull through and hope to do well tomorrow.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n
His S8UL teammate Pranesh M also kept his playoff hopes alive with a hard-fought victory over Team MGD1\u2019s Benjamin Bok. After winning the opening game, Pranesh came close to sealing the match in the second before Bok mounted a late comeback to force an Armageddon. The tiebreaker ended in a draw, with Pranesh, playing with the Black pieces, progressing to the next round.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
That set up an all-Indian LB decider against Arjun Erigaisi, who ultimately prevailed 2-0 to join Nihal in the quarterfinals, ending Pranesh\u2019s campaign and completing Group A\u2019s playoff lineup. Erigaisi, who finished fourth at last year\u2019s edition, will now look to build on that performance and go further this time around.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cI am happy I got the job done. It is not going to be easy (to lift the trophy) with strong players like Alireza, Magnus and others, but I\u2019ll just focus on giving my best,\u201d said Erigaisi after his victory.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
In Group B, Aurora Gaming\u2019s Ian Nepomniachtchi defeated Virtus. pro's Andrey Esipenkopro\u2019s Andrey Esipenko 1.5-0.5 to set up a Lower Bracket decider against AG.AL\u2019s Denis Lazavik. Meanwhile, Team Stallions\u2019 Sina Movahed defeated Fnatic\u2019s Alexey Sarana in an Armageddon tiebreaker to advance to a decider against GodLike Esports\u2019 Hans Moke Niemann.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cI am happy I got the job done. It is not going to be easy (to lift the trophy) with strong players like Alireza, Magnus and others, but I\u2019ll just focus on giving my best,\u201d said Erigaisi after his victory.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
The playoffs will take place on Friday and Saturday and will feature a single-elimination bracket. The quarterfinals will be played over four games, followed by six-game semifinals, while the grand final will be decided through a best-of-three sets format. The first two sets will consist of four games each, with a potential third and final set comprising two games.<\/p>\r\n\r\n