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Time of India
2 days ago
- Sport
- Time of India
Chennai Grand Masters: Nihal Sarin outwits Arjun Erigaisi in slow-burn duel
Nihal Sarin A fan of rapid and blitz, Indian shows his mettle in classical CHENNAI: Long known as a 'speed demon' for his exploits in rapid and blitz, Nihal Sarin decided last year to change lanes and focus on classical chess. With blue-ribbon events like the FIDE Grand Swiss and the FIDE World Cup on the horizon, he sought out Vishnu Prasanna, world champion D Gukesh's former coach. And, the results began to show when he claimed silver at the Asian Continental Chess Championship in May. Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW! But at the Chennai Grand Masters, he had a difficult start: a first-round loss to Vincent Keymer, a hard-fought draw with Anish Giri, and a tough setback against Vidit Gujrathi. However, on Sunday in the fourth round, Nihal broke through and eked out his first win of the tournament against the top seed, Arjun Erigaisi in a humdinger. Poll Which player do you believe has the best chance of winning the Chennai Grand Masters? Vincent Keymer Arjun Erigaisi Anish Giri 'He has a great passion for rapid and blitz. But he feels that he has stagnated and is underrated in the classical format. So that's something that has been bothering him. We started working together in March this year. He approached me at the closing ceremony of the Global Chess League last year, but we only picked it up around five months later,' Vishnu told TOI. For someone trying to slow himself down to the pace of classical chess, the 21-year-old from Thrissur couldn't quite resist the occasional yawns and strolls during his games here. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like At 62, Laura San Giacomo Is Still Turning Heads The Noodle Box Undo 'Classical games are very long… all my games went about for almost four hours,' Nihal said with a smile. 'I was not happy with how it (the tournament) was going. But in general, I'm happy with the way I'm playing. I'm just trying to play some exciting chess. Trying to not think too much about the result. Obviously, losing hurts. It was quite hard for me after yesterday's game. I just tried my best to somehow find the motivation to keep playing. And, today Arjun defended like an absolute machine, but I think I did get quite lucky. ' Despite the defeat, Arjun (2.5 points) remains second in the standings, right behind Vincent Keymer (3.5 points) who split the point with Anish Giri. Vincent is the favourite: Anand For a brief moment, the focus shifted away from the games to Viswanathan Anand, as he walked into the venue. The five-time world champion sized up the tournament favourite: 'Vincent is obviously the favourite. Until today (Sunday), Arjun was placed just as well. But his defeat today means Vincent now leads by a whole point. While Arjun can definitely score, a point is a point,' Anand told TOI. W hen asked what advice he would give young players to stay at the top, Anand joked, referring to his own five titles: 'I think 'Mere Paas Panch Hai' (I have five) is a good starting point. I think he (Gukesh in this context) knows what to do.' He went on to add: 'In general, sport is evolving very formats, new things. The only thing I can do is, if they ask, describe how I face a certain situation, and then it's their job to convert that.' Results (Round 4): Masters: Murali Karthikeyan bt Jordan van Foreest; Ray Robson drew with Liang Awonder; Nihal Sarin bt Arjun Erigaisi; V Pranav drew with Vidit Gujrathi; Vincent Keymer drew with Anish Giri. Challengers: Diptayan Ghosh bt GB Harshvardhan; Pa Iniyan bt Aryan Chopra; B Adhiban drew with M Pranesh; Leon Mendonca bt D Harika; Abhinmanyu Puranik bt R Vaishali. Catch Rani Rampal's inspiring story on Game On, Episode 4. Watch Here!
News18
07-05-2025
- Sport
- News18
Indian GM Nihal Sarin To Lead Indian Contingent For Asian Continental Chess Championship
Last Updated: Indian Grandmaster Nihal Sarin is the favorite in the Asian Continental Chess Championship, aiming for a World Chess Cup berth. Indian Grandmaster Nihal Sarin will start as favourite in the Asian Continental Chess Championship here. The nine-round event will see an in-form Sarin, who is the top seed, competing for the top prize as well as a berth in the next World Chess Cup slated to be held in New Delhi in October later this year. As many as 18-Indian Grandmasters will be seen in action in the strongest Asian championship with top 10 places reserved for the next World Chess Cup. Sarin, who recently won the Tashkent Open, is now closing in on becoming the next 2700 ELO rating player from India with just seven points short of the coveted mark. The ride could be bumpy though with presence of many Asian stalwarts like Amin Tabatabai of Iran and Nodirbek Yakubboev of Uzbekistan, who have been given the second and third billing. Forth seeded Murali Karthikeyan will be the other Indian to watch out for, while Leon Luke Mendonca and reigning world junior champion V Pranav are likely to be other major contenders for a podium finish. Though not at their prime, one can never rule out several times national champion and former gold medalist Surya Shekhar Ganguly and former world junior champion Abhijeet Gupta in the USD 80000 prize money event. The women championship will be held simultaneously and the Indian challenge will be spearheaded by International Master and Chess Olympiad gold medallist Vantika Agrawal. This will also be the first time ever that the Russian players will be part of the Asian event, playing under the FIDE flag. Topping the list in the women's section is Leya Garifullina who will start as the top seed, Valentina Gunina and Olga Girya, who are seeded second and thiird. Vantika, seeded seventh, can give everyone a run for their money as she has been doing pretty well in the ladies' section. P V Nandhidha, Padmini Rout and Rakshitha Ravi are the other Indian players, who can make a mark for themselves but a good start will be the key for them. The event will also have two blitz championships, for men and women, reserved for the last day. First Published: May 06, 2025, 18:18 IST
