 "Chennai Grand Masters: Arjun Erigaisi, Nihal Sarin settle for draws; Vincent Keymer takes sole lead after Round 2")
Day two of the Chennai Grand Masters 2025 saw plenty of drama as Germany’s Vincent Keymer became the only player with a perfect 2 out of 2 score in both the Masters and Challengers sections. Playing with the black pieces, he beat India’s V Pranav in a wild game to take the sole lead in the Masters section.
“The position was very complicated and we both had to make many committal decisions low on time. Of course in the end it was complete madness!” Keymar said after his win against Pranav.
The biggest surprise of the day came when American player Ray Robson beat India’s Vidit Gujrathi in a nail-biting finish. Robson is now in second place with top-seeded Arjun Erigaisi, who was held to a draw by Dutch GM Jorden van Foreest. Nihal Sarin and Anish Giri also drew their game. Karthikeyan Murali’s clash with Awonder Liang ended in a draw too.
In the Challengers section, Indian GM Iniyan Pa impressed with a clinical win over GM Harika Dronavalli, while GM Abhimanyu Puranik bounced back with a victory over Leon Luke Mendonca. The remaining games involving Diptayan and Pranesh, Adhiban and Vaishali, and Harshavardhan and Aryan ended in close draws.
The third round of the Chennai Grand Masters 2025 is set to begin on Saturday, August 9, with games kicking off at 3:00 PM IST.
Chennai Grand Masters 2025: Masters standings after Round 2
| Rank | Player | Country | Rating | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Vincent Keymer | Germany | 2730 | 2.0 |
| 2 | Ray Robson | USA | 2687 | 1.5 |
| 3 | Arjun Erigaisi | India | 2776 | 1.5 |
| 4 | Anish Giri | Netherlands | 2748 | 1.0 |
| 5 | Jorden van Foreest | Netherlands | 2697 | 1.0 |
| 6 | Karthikeyan Murali | India | 2658 | 1.0 |
| 7 | Vidit Gujrathi | India | 2720 | 0.5 |
| 8 | Awonder Liang | USA | 2696 | 0.5 |
| 9 | Nihal Sarin | India | 2692 | 0.5 |
| 10 | V Pranav | India | 2597 | 0.5 |
Chennai Grand Masters 2025: Challengers standings after Round 2
| Rank | Player | Country | Rating | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Abhimanyu Puranik | India | 2635 | 1.5 |
| 2 | M Pranesh | India | 2589 | 1.5 |
| 3 | Diptayan Ghosh | India | 2576 | 1.5 |
| 4 | P Iniyan | India | 2586 | 1.5 |
| 5 | Adhiban Baskaran | India | 2534 | 1.0 |
| 6 | Vaishali Rameshbabu | India | 2476 | 1.0 |
| 7 | Leon Luke Mendonca | India | 2606 | 1.0 |
| 8 | Aryan Chopra | India | 2634 | 0.5 |
| 9 | Harshavardhan G B | India | 2454 | 0.5 |
| 10 | Harika Dronavalli | India | 2487 | 0.0 |
(With agency inputs)
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