2 min readJul 22, 2026 09:31 PM IST
French-Iranian grandmaster Alireza Firouzja parried away the attacks of India’s Arjun Erigaisi in the final round to clinch the Chennai Grand Masters 2026 tournament.
The contest between the two title contenders ended in a draw, despite the best efforts of Arjun, who needed a win to take the crown. He opted for a Sicilian Defence but the game ended in a 41-move stalemate.
Arjun had also finished second in the inaugural edition of the tournament, where he was pipped to the post by D Gukesh. In the next two editions, he had finished third in the standings.
Arjun is likely to end the month as the India No.1 and World No.9. He and R Praggnanandhaa are the only Indians now rated above 2750, with a Chess Olympiad title defence looming in two months’ time.
In the only other game that could have had a significant say on the final results, Nodirbek Abdusattorov lost to GM Dmitry Andreikin in 37 moves. Meanwhile, the much-anticipated game between current world champion Gukesh and Hans Niemann fizzled out into a quick draw in under 30 minutes.
Gukesh ended the tournament without a single win after seven rounds, his four draws and three defeats pointing to his continuing slump in form. He finished at the bottom of the standings among the eight grandmasters. That would be a major concern with the World Championship contest against Uzbek Javokhir Sindarov at the end of the year.
The other two Indians in the eight-man field, Pranesh M and Nihal Sarin, ended the short event one point behind the winner.
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Round 7 Results:
• GM D Gukesh (2) drew with GM Hans Niemann (3)
• GM Nihal Sarin (3.5) drew with GM M Pranesh (3.5)
• GM Alireza Firouzja (4.5) drew with GM Arjun Erigaisi (4)
• GM Dmitry Andreikin (4) beat GM Nodirbek Abdusattorov (3.5)
