Keymer wins Quantbox Chennai GM with a round to spare

Germany No. 1 Vincent Keymer with a powerful & undefeated show of 6/8 score clinched the Rupees 10,000,000 (approx USD 114133) prize money Quantbox Chennai Grandmasters Chess title with a round to spare at Hotel Hyatt Regency Chennai. Keymer logged 6.0 points, an unassailable 1.5 point lead, ahead of second placed Erigaisi Arjun and Karthikeyan Murali at 4.5 points. For the hard-mind labor for the past ten day’s Keymer will pocket the winner’s purse of Rupees 2,500,000 (approx USD 28522) while the rest of the field will fight out for other prizes. With titles being shared in the first two editions, Keymer becomes the first sole winner in Chennai Grandmasters Super GM tournament.

In the Challengers section, GM Pranesh Munirethinam led the table with 6.5 points. GMs Abhimanyu Puranik and Mendonca Leon Luke were half a point shy at 6.0 points. With a handsome prize of Rupees 25 lakhs to be won, the Challengers will be leaving no stone unturned, going for the kill. The Chennai Grand Masters 2025 is sponsored by Quantbox, organised by MGD1 and supported by the Government of Tamil Nadu.

In a hard fought draw, where at times his Dutch opponent Jorden van Foreest looked better, Keymer defended well to hold a tricky position. Close to five hours Vincent Keymer & Jorden van Foreest took the viewer’s on to the seat’s edge as all three results were possible. In the end, some very accurate play in the bishop and pawn endgame saved the day for the German. The final position with bare pawns around will not say the whole story, for it was a tooth and nail battle that set the adrenaline high before peace prevailed.

Speaking of his victory, Keymer said: “I am very happy with the tournament. Winning my games in the first rounds made me self-confident and helped me to be focused, concentrated, and calm. Entering the top 10 in live rating is a milestone I have wanted to reach for a long time, and I am very glad that the hard work finally paid off.”

“Winning the tournament and breaking into the Top 10 at the same time is fantastic for me and truly special. However, the tournament will continue tomorrow. That is why I prefer to remain focused and keep the tension for the last round. Winning the tournament is a fantastic achievement, but I also really want to stay in the Top 10, meaning either drawing or winning tomorrow’s game,” he added.

After a week of exhausting play containing a myriad of variations, all the games in the Masters section ended peacefully. Not to be left behind, the Challengers section saw four of the five games producing results. Scalping GM Dronavalli Harika tournament leader GM Pranesh Munirethinam (6.5) broke from the pack moving into sole lead with one round remaining. Close behind were GMs Abhimanyu Puranik, Leon Luke Mendonca at 6.0 points. It will be a three horse race for the title today and one can surely expect a real battle.

Now in its third year, the Quantbox Chennai Grand Masters 2025 is India’s strongest classical chess event. Organised by MGD1, it features two elite 10-player round-robin sections —Masters and Challengers— across nine rounds in nine days. With a Rupees 10,000,000 (approx USD 114133) prize pool, the Masters winner earns Rupees 2,500,000 (approx USD 28522), the Challengers winner Rupees 700,000 (approx USD 7986) and a coveted 2026 Masters berth. The event also offered 24.5 FIDE Circuit points, which now deservedly goes to the Quantbox Chennai Grandmasters 2025 champion GM Vincent Keymer. With his fine form taking him into the World Top 10, the German should fancy his chances to lock a spot for the next Candidates soon.

The 9th & final round starts by Friday, 15th August at 2:30 AM ET/8:30 CEST/12 noon IST.

Round 9 pairings (Masters): Erigaisi – Karthikeyan Murali, Liang – Vidit, van Foreest – Giri, Robson – Keymer, Nihal – Pranav

Round 9 pairings (Challengers): Pranesh – Harshavardhan, Chopra – Harika, Ghosh – Vaishali, Iniyan – Puranik, Adhiban – Mendonca

Round 8 Standings (Masters): 1. Vincent Keymer – 6.0 (WINNER), 2-3 Arjun Erigaisi, Karthikeyan Murali – 4.5, 4-6 Anish Giri, Jorden van Foreest, Awonder Liang – 4.0, 7-8 Vidit Gujrathi, Nihal Sarin – 3.5, 9-10 Pranav V, Ray Robson – 3.0

Round 8 Standings (Challengers): 1. M Pranesh – 6.5, 2-3 Abhimanyu Puranik, Leon Luke Mendonca – 6.0, 4. Adhiban Baskaran – 5.0, 5. P Iniyan – 4.5, 6. Diptayan Ghosh – 3.5, 7-8 Aryan Chopra, Harshavardhan G B – 3.0, 9. Harika Dronavalli – 1.5, 10. Vaishali Rameshbabu – 1.0

Round 8 results (Masters): Karthikeyan Murali (4.5) drew with Nihal Sarin (3.5), Pranav Venkatesh (3.0) drew with Ray Robson (3.0), Vincent Keymer (6.0) drew with Jorden van Foreest (4.0), Anish Giri (4.0) drew with Awonder Liang (4.0), Vidit Santosh Gujrathi (3.5) drew with Erigaisi Arjun (4.5)

Round 8 results (Challengers): Harshavardhan G B (3.0) lost to Adhiban Baskaran (5.0), Leon Luke Mendonca (6.0) drew with Iniyan Pa (4.5), Abhimanyu Puranik (6.0) beat Diptayan Ghosh (3.5), Vaishali Rameshbabu (1.0) lost to Aryan Chopra (3.0), Dronavalli Harika (1.5) lost to Pranesh M (6.5)

Vincent Keymer (2730) – Jorden van Foreest (2697) 1. Nf3 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. g3 Bg7 4. Bg2 O-O 5. d4 d6 6. Nc3 Bf5 7. Nh4 Bc8 8. O-O e5 9. Nf3 Nc6 10. h3 exd4 11. Nxd4 Nxd4 12. Qxd4 c6 13. Qh4 Nd7 14. Bg5 f6 15. Bh6 f5 16. Qxd8 Rxd8 17. Bxg7 Kxg7 18. Rad1 Nf6 19. Rd4 Be6 20. Rfd1 Rd7 21. e4 fxe4 22. Rxd6 Rxd6 23. Rxd6 Bxc4 24. Nxe4 Nxe4 25. Rd7+ Kf6 26. Bxe4 Re8 27. f3 Re7 28. Rxe7 Kxe7 29. a3 Kd6 30. Kf2 b5 31. b4 c5 32. Ke3 Bd5 33. Bc2 Kc6 34. f4 Kb6 35. g4 a5 36. bxa5+ Kxa5 37. h4 b4 38. axb4+ cxb4 39. Kd4 b3 40. Bd3 Bf3 41. g5 Kb4 42. f5 gxf5 43. Bxf5 Bd1 44. g6! (precise endgame play saved the day for Keymer)

44…hxg6 45. Bxg6 b2 46. Bb1 Bh5 47. Bc2 Be2 48. Bb1 Kb3 49. Ke3 Bg4 50. Kd2 Bh5 51. Bc2+ Ka2 52. Bd3 Ka1 53. Bc2 Bf7 54. Bd3 Bc4 55. Bc2 Ba2 56. h5 Bb1 57. Bxb1 Kxb1 58. h6 Ka2 59. h7 1/2-1/2

Dronavalli Harika (2487) – Pranesh Munirethinam (2589) 1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 d5 3. c4 e6 4. Nc3 c6 5. e3 Nbd7 6. Bd3 dxc4 7. Bxc4 b5 8. Bd3 Bb7 9. O-O a6 10. e4 c5 11. d5 Qc7 12. Qe2 Bd6 13. dxe6 fxe6 14. Ng5 Nf8 15. f4 c4 16. Bc2 h6 17. Nf3 O-O-O 18. e5 Bc5+ 19. Kh1 Nd5 20. Ne4 Nd7 21. a4 Rhf8 22. axb5 axb5 23. b3 Nxf4 24. Bxf4 Rxf4 25. bxc4 b4 26. Rad1 Rdf8 27. Nd6+ Bxd6 28. exd6 Qc5 29. Qxe6 Bc6 30. Rde1 Qxc4 31. Bb3 Qxe6 32. Bxe6 Kb7 33. Bxd7 Bxd7 34. Re7 R8f7 35. Rxf7 Rxf7 36. Rb1 Rf4 37. Ne5 Bf5 38. Re1 b3 39. g4 Be4+ 40. Kg1 b2 41. d7 Kc7 42. Rd1

42…Rf8 0-1

Photo courtesy: MGD1

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