Indian Grandmaster R Praggnanandhaa had a rare poor day in the office, finishing at the bottom of the table in the rapid section of the Saint Louis Rapid and Blitz Chess Tournament. Praggnanadhaa, who had lost three and drew three by the third and final day of rapid action, was defeated in the seventh round by American Lenier Dominguez. Another American, Hikaru Nakamura, proved too powerful for the 19-year-old Indian in the final game.
In the eighth round, the Indian teenager drew with France’s Alireza Firouzja, finishing with a disappointing four points out of a possible 18. Ian Nepomniachtchi of Russia and the French team of Maxime Vachier-Lagrave and Firouzja were equal for first place with 11 points each in one of the Grand Chess Tour’s most competitive rapid sections.
At this stage, the three leaders are followed by Armenian-turned-American Levon Aronian, who is a full point behind, and the USA’s Wesley So, Dominguez, and Nakamura, who are tied for fifth place with nine points each. Nodirbek Abdusatoorov of Uzbekistan and last year’s tour champion Fabiano Caruana of the United States are close behind on eight points each, with Praggnanandhaa in a distant tenth place.
With each win worth two points in the rapid section, the players’ focus will move to the blitz, in which the competitors will compete in a double round-robin of 18 games. The point system returns to normal in the USD 175000 prize money tournament, with one point granted for a win and half for a draw.
Praggnanandhaa will require a miracle in the blitz section to make a strong comeback in the tournament, and his prospects of winning this leg depend on Firouzja, who also has a slight possibility of moving up to the top slot in the tour standings if he finishes well ahead of Caruana, the current leader.
While Praggnanandhaa is currently ranked third in the tour rankings, an improved performance in blitz may help the Indian leapfrog his nearest rival and compatriot D Gukesh, who is currently fourth and will compete in the Sinquefield Cup, which will take place immediately following this event.
Final Standings Rapid: 1-3: Ian Nepomniachtchi (FID), Alireza Firouzja (FRA), Maxime Vachier-Lagrave (FRA) 11 points each; 4: Levon Aronian (ARM) 10; 5-7: Lenier Dominguez (USA), Wesley So, (USA), Hikaru Nakamura (USA) 9 each, Fabiano Caruana (USA), Nodirbek Abdusattorov (UZB) 8 each; 10: R Praggnanandhaa (IND) 4.
