PBG Alaskan Knights suffered their first defeat of the league, losing to the third-placed Alpine Sg Pipers. Meanwhile, last year's winners, Triveni Continental Kings, climbed to second place, tying with PBG in game points. Ganges Grandmasters also made strides up the table, while the American Gambits and upGrad Mumba Masters find themselves at the bottom of the standings.
The three matches played today at London's Friends House marked the beginning of the second half of the Tech Mahindra Global Chess League, with teams now facing each other in return matches.
Defending champions, Triveni secured a 10-8 win over upgrade Mumba Masters in the opening match of the day. Triveni's star player, Alireza Firouzja, continued his stellar performance, clinching his fifth consecutive victory in the league. Despite having one fewer match win than PBG, Triveni now have an equal number of game points. Meanwhile, upGrad Mumba Masters have fallen to the bottom of the standings, being the only team with just one match win.
League leaders PBG Alaskan Knights faced their first setback in the league, after a narrow 9-7 loss to Alpine Sg Pipers. Led by Magnus Carlsen on the icon board, the Pipers secured victory thanks to excellent performances by their two women players, Kateryna Lagno and Hou Yifan, who both won their games.
In the final match of the day, Ganges Grandmasters cruised to a 10-4 win over the American Gambits. Key victories by Nurgyul Salimova and Volodar Murzin sealed the win. This victory pushed Ganges up to fourth place, while the Gambits dropped to fifth.
Here follows a closer look at the matches on day five of the Tech Mahindra Global Chess League:
Triveni Kings vs Mumba Masters: A dramatic rematch as Firouzja stays undefeated
The Triveni Continental Kings and upGrad Mumba Masters opened the second half of the Tech Mahindra Global Chess League on day five of the event.
Triveni, the reigning champions from season one, entered the match with three wins out of five, starting the day in second place. Meanwhile, the Mumba Masters—season one's top contenders—were in a tough spot, managing only one win and four losses, leaving them just one position above last place.
This second phase of the tournament marks the beginning of the rematch stage, as all teams have already faced each other once. In their first encounter, Triveni—playing with the White pieces—defeated Mumba 12–3, with decisive victories by Alireza Firouzja, Wei Yi, and Valentina Gunina. However, this time, Mumba had the advantage of making the first move.
Mumba's Maxime Vachier-Lagrave was looking to avenge his yesterday's loss to Firouzja. In a sharp, tactical game, Vachier-Lagrave made several blunders, allowing Firouzja to wrap it up with a crushing attacking combination. The game would have ended in checkmate had Vachier-Lagrave not resigned. It marked Firouzja's fifth consecutive victory, leaving him undefeated after six rounds.
Superstars Vidit Gujrathi and Wei Yi followed the same opening line as on the top board. Unlike the first game, however, Mumba came out on top after a critical mistake by Wei Yi late in the game. Alexandra Kosteniuk then extended Triveni's lead by defeating Humpy Koneru, but Harika Dronavalli struck back against Gunina, keeping Mumba in contention.
With Triveni leading 9–7, the outcome hinged on the youngsters' board. Triveni's Javokhir Sindarov had winning positions twice but misplayed both times, ending in desperate time trouble. Mumba's Raunak Sadhwani wasn't aware that his team needed a win – he could have played on but opted to repeat the moves, giving a draw to Triveni, which sealed their victory.
The final score of the match was 10–8 for Triveni.
"This is one of the best performances I've ever had, but there are still a few rounds left," said Firouzja after the game, adding that his team was "a bit lucky to win the match."
Alpine Sg Pipers vs PBG Alaskan Knights: Revenge served as tournament leaders suffer first defeat
The second match saw Magnus Carlsen's Alpine Sg Pipers face league leaders PBG Alaskan Knights. Their previous encounter ended in a narrow victory for the Knights, 9-7. The Knights entered this rematch hoping to extend their unbeaten run, but the Sg Pipers were eager for revenge.
Right from the outset, SG Pipers, playing with the White pieces, seemed to obtain more comfortable positions and were steadily pressing the tournament leaders. Carlsen sacrificed an exchange and got more than sufficient compensation, while Giri opted for a daring combination, giving up his queen but hoping to build a fortress. By this point, Giri had six minutes left on the clock, while Carlsen was down to just three. Carlsen ultimately got the upper hand but faltered under time pressure, and the game ended in a draw.
The first decisive result of the match came from Alpine's Kateryna Lagno, who scored her first victory in six games by defeating Alina Kashlinskaya. With the superstar boards ending in draws, this win was critical for the Sg Pipers. However, on board six, things weren't going their way: Daniel Dardha was in serious trouble against PBG's Nihal Sarin. Fortunately for the Pipers, Hou Yifan beat Tan Zhongyi, which ultimately swung the match in her team's favor.
Thanks to Pipers scoring two victories on the women's boards, the final result mirrored their previous defeat to the Knights – 9-7 – but this time in their favor, making it a sweet revenge. Pipers moved one step closer to the top two teams in the league, while PBG Alaskan Knights got a sobering reminder that they are not the only ones in contention for first place.
Ganges Grandmasters vs American Gambits: Vishy Anand's team finally pulls through
The Ganges Grandmasters entered this match at the bottom of the league standings. They had just one victory and four losses, totaling only 28 game points. The team led by Vishy Anand needed a win to avoid falling further behind in the competition. Meanwhile, the American Gambits were also under pressure, needing a win to catch up with the top three teams.
In their previous encounter, the American Gambits had dominated with a 10-4 win over the Ganges Grandmasters. In the rematch, Ganges had the advantage of playing with the White pieces.
The match was tense from the start. Vishy Anand drew with Hikaru Nakamura on the top board, as neither side was able to gain a sizable advantage. On the first superstar board, Ganges' Erigaisi had a golden opportunity to score a win against Jan-Krzysztof Duda but blundered in the endgame, settling for a draw. Tight draws also followed on the second superstar board and the first women's board, with Vaishali and Bibisara Assaubayeva unable to break through each other's defences.
The match outcome hinged on the lower boards. Nurgyul Salimova made a strong comeback, avenging her previous loss to Elisabeth Paehtz by winning a tricky queen endgame. Meanwhile, Ganges' youngster Volodar Murzin established a commanding position early on against Jonas Bjerre and converted it into a crucial victory.
With two victories and four draws, Ganges Grandmasters secured a 10-4 win, lifting them from the bottom of the table. The American Gambits, on the other hand, dropped to fifth place.
Written by Milan Dinic
Photos: Michal Walusza
Official website: globalchessleague.com/
About Tech Mahindra Global Chess League
The Global Chess League is the world's first and largest official franchise league of its kind, with chess players from all over the world competing in a unique joint team format. It is a joint venture between Tech Mahindra, a part of the Mahindra Group, and FIDE. The league will feature male and female chess champions competing in the same team. Playing on the popular rapid format, the league's joint male-female teams will have the rare distinction of being a unique multiplayer team in the world of professional sports. In addition, the league is a one-of-its-kind live televised chess event, offering fans a unique viewing experience. Tech Mahindra and FIDE will explore innovative ways to promote the game through interactive technology-enabled platforms by leveraging next-generation technologies such as 5G, artificial intelligence, and virtual reality, among others. For more information on Tech Mahindra Global Chess League, please visit: globalchessleague.com/
Contact: Abhilasha Gupta, Head - Global Corporate Communications & Public Affairs, Tech Mahindra
Email: Abhilasha.Gupta@TechMahindra.com; media.relations@techmahindra.com
