 "Chennai Grand Masters 2025: Vincent Keymer remains ahead of Arjun Erigaisi despite being held to second consecutive draw")
German Grandmaster Vincent Keymer remained a point clear of pre-tournament favourite GM Arjun Erigaisi to remain top of the Chennai Grand Masters standings despite being held to a second consecutive draw, this time by GM Vidit Gujrathi in Round 5 on Monday.
Erigaisi, who had suffered a surprise defeat at the hands of GM Nihal Sarin in the previous round, missed out on the chance to narrow the gap with Keymer as he was held to a 78-move draw by Pranav V despite playing with white pieces.
Keymer and Gujrathi, on the other hand, decided to shake hands after 40 moves with the latter playing as white and game developing from an Indian Game opening.
Erigaisi, who had reached the semi-finals of Freestyle Chess Las Vegas as well as the chess event at the Esports World Cup, was off to a strong start earlier in the tournament, beating American GMs Awonder Liang and Ray Robson and playing out a draw against Dutch GM Jorden van Foreest in the first three rounds.
The defeat against Sarin, who had also participated at the Esports World Cup, has since threatened to deny Erigaisi the Chennai title for the third consecutive time. The 21-year-old chess star had finished in the joint-lead in each of the last two editions, only to miss out on the trophy by a whisker, and is hoping to finish on the right side of the result this year.
Masters Standings – Round 5 Recap
— Quantbox Chennai Grand Masters (@Chennai_GM) August 11, 2025
Five rounds in, and the leaderboard is tighter than ever.
Every result is shifting the balance, and the pressure is at its peak. 🔥
The road to the title is narrowing stay tuned!
Who’s your frontrunner after Round 6? 👇@chess24com @QBResearch… pic.twitter.com/GvXhfC4SJT
Sarin held Liang to a draw while Dutch GM Anish Giri split a point with Indian GM Murali Karthikeyan. Van Foreest registered the only decisive result in the Masters’ section in the fifth round, registering a hard-fought win over Robson in 82 moves while playing as white.
Erigaisi and Keymer face off in a highly-anticipated sixth-round showdown on Tuesday that could decide the title. The winner of the third edition of the what is India’s strongest Classical tournament will pocket Rs 25 lakh of the total prize money of Rs 1 crore along with 24.5 FIDE Circuit points that will count towards Candidates 2026 qualification.
Masters: Round 5 Results: Anish Giri (½) drew Murali Karthikeyan (½); Vidit Gujrathi (½) drew Vincent Keymer (½); Arjun Erigaisi (½) drew Pranav V (½); Liang Awonder (½) drew Nihal Sarin; Jorden van Foreest (1) def. Ray Robson (0).
Challengers: Round 5 Results: Vaishali Rameshbabu (0) lost to Harshavardhan GB (1); Harika Dronavalli (0) lost to Abhimanyu Puranik (1); M Pranesh (½) drew Leon Luke Mendonca (½); Aryan Chopra (½) drew Adhiban B (½); Diptayan Ghosh (½) drew Pa Iniyan (½.
Masters Standings after Day 5
1. Vincent Keymer – 4
2. Arjun Erigaisi –3
3-6. Anish Giri, Vidit Gujrathi, Murali Karthikeyan, Awonder Liang – 2.5
7-10. Nihal Sarin, Pranav V, Ray Robson, Jorden van Foreest – 2
Challengers Standings after Day 5.
1. Abhimanyu Puranik – 4
2-4. Pranesh M, Diptayan Ghosh, Leon Luke Mendonca – 3.5
5. Iniyan Pa – 3
6. Adhiban Baskaran – 2.5
7-8. Aryan Chopra, Harshavardhan GB – 1.5
9. Vaishali Rameshbabu – 1
10. Harika Dronavalli – 0.5
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