It was a day of upsets at the Tech Mahindra Global Chess League, as the favorites stumbled in two matches, with Magnus Carlsen and Alireza Firouzja suffering shocking defeats. The team of PBG Alaskan Knights extended their dominant run with a commanding victory over the Ganges Grandmasters.
With six victories in seven matches, PBG Alaskan Knights are comfortably at the top, with 18 match points – six more than Triveni and Alpine Sg Pipers, who are trying to catch up. With three more matches remaining before the knockout stage, PBG need to score just one victory to secure a place in the finals.
Despite this, PBG's top board, Anish Giri, was cautious about his team's position: "It's not done yet; we still need to get to the final and win. But so far, it's going well, and I'm happy with everything, that's for sure".
In a stunning upset earlier in the day, the upGrad Mumba Masters defeated the favored Alpine Sg Pipers. On board one, Magnus Carlsen was left reeling after a blunder in a combination that allowed Maxime Vachier-Lagrave to claim victory. Visibly upset, Carlsen stormed out of the venue. The Mumba Masters capitalized on this momentum, securing a dominant 14-5 win and delivering a major blow to the Pipers' chances of closing in on the league's leaders.
In the second match of the day, the season one winners, Triveni Continental Kings, were defeated by American Gambits 14-5. The match saw Alireza Firouzja lose the first game in the tournament – blundering in an even rook endgame against none other than world number two, Hikaru Nakamura.
The day closed with PBG Alaskan Knights confidently beating Ganges Grandmasters 15-4. Playing as Black, the Alaskan Knights started with a defeat but then quickly took control of the match, winning on three boards.
With just three rounds left, PBG are almost unstoppable: they are six match points ahead of everyone else and need just one victory to reach the finals. Despite today's setback, Triveni remains in second place with 12 match points and 70 game points (nine less than PBG). No change for Alpine Sg Pipers despite them also suffering a defeat: they are in third place, with 12 match points and 57 game points.
Here follows a closer look at the matches on the sixth day of the Tech Mahindra Global Chess League:
Alpine Sg Pipers vs upGrad Mumba Masters: Magnus Carlsen and team stunned
In season one, both teams were in contention for the top places. In season one, both teams were strong contenders for the top spots. While the Pipers have maintained their high-level performance in season two, the Mumba Masters have struggled. Mumba lost five matches—including a heavy 4-12 defeat to the Pipers earlier in the event—which has left them at the bottom of the standings.
Alpine Sg Pipers had the initiative of the first move. The match started calmly, with a relatively quick draw on one of the women's boards between Hou Yifan and Humpy Koneru. However, the tide soon turned dramatically against the Pipers.
Magnus Carlsen made a critical blunder on the icon board, losing to Maxime Vachier-Lagrave. Upset by his loss, Carlsen stormed out of the playing area, visibly shaken. In response, Pipers' Praggnanandhaa launched a fierce attack against Vidit's Black king, securing a win and keeping the Pipers in the match. On the second superstar board, Peter Svidler – who up to this point had recorded two losses and four draws – claimed his first victory of the tournament, defeating Richard Rapport with the black pieces.
Things went downhill for the Sg Pipers from there: Kateryna Lagno narrowly avoided defeat as Harika Dronavalli ran out of time, resulting in a draw. To cap it off, Daniel Dardha fell to Raunak Sadhwani in a tense rook endgame.
The final score was 14-5 in favor of upGrad Mumba Masters. Not only was this a remarkable comeback for Mumba, but it also prevented the Pipers from closing the gap with the top two teams, keeping the league standings wide open.
Triveni Continental Kings vs American Gambits: Triveni upset as Firouzja suffers first loss
In the second match of the day, Triveni Continental Kings played the American Gambits. In their first encounter, Triveni – who played as Black - crushed the American Gambits 15 – 3. However, this rematch was much more intense, with all the games going down to the wire, leading to some of the most surprising twists and turns in the tournament so far.
The first shock came when Triveni's Valentina Gunina blundered a rook in a winning position against Elisabeth Paehtz, handing the American Gambits an early lead.
Then, on the icon board, Triveni's Alireza Firouzja lost an even rook endgame to Hikaru Nakamura, completely misplaying it despite not being in time trouble. After the game, Nakamura quickly left the arena, while Firouzja—suffering his first defeat in the league—remained at the board, visibly stunned, as he put the pieces back in starting position.
The setbacks continued for Triveni: on the superstar board, Wei Yi failed to capitalize on a better position against Jan-Krzysztof Duda, and both Teimour Radjabov and Yu Yangyi drew their games.
The decisive blow came from Bibisara Assaubayeva, who turned a losing position around to defeat former World Champion Alexandra Kosteniuk. The only bright spot for Triveni was Javokhir Sindarov, who notched up a win over Jonas Bjerre on the prodigy board.
The final score was 14-5 in favor of the American Gambits.
PBG Alaskan Knights vs Ganges Grandmasters: PBG continue strong
In the final match of the day, tournament leaders PBG Alaskan Knights played the Ganges Grandmasters, who have been struggling at the bottom of the standings.
Ganges, playing as White, took an early lead thanks to Parham Maghsoodloo, who bested Shakhriyar Mamedyarov on the second superstar board.
However, PBG's Anish Giri quickly leveled the score, defeating Vishy Anand with the Black pieces after Anand made a costly mistake, entering a lost endgame.
Despite initially achieving a promising position, PBG's Nodirbek Abdusattorov was unable to convert his advantage and ended up drawing against Arjun Erigaisi. Meanwhile, Ganges' Vaishali Rameshbabu first got out of serious trouble but then dropped a victory against former Women's World Champion Tan Zhongyi, with the game finishing in a draw.
PBG then scored an important victory when Alina Kashlinskaya confidently defeated Nurgyul Salimova on board five, pushing the score to 10-4.
To seal the deal, Nihal Sarin prevailed over Volodar Murzin, bringing the final score to 14-5 for PBG Alaskan Knights. After this defeat, Ganges Grandmasters were again relegated to the bottom of the scoreboard.
Written by Milan Dinic
Photos: Michal Walusza and Lennart Ootes
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
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