Praggnanandhaa, Aravindh Open with Draws; Keymer Shocks Top Seed Wei Yi at Prague Masters

Prague, Feb 27 – Indian Grandmaster R Praggnanandhaa and Czech chess veteran David Navara played out a tense draw in the opening round of the Prague Masters, while fellow Indian GM Aravindh Chithambaram narrowly escaped with a half-point against local favorite Nguyen Thai Dai Van.

The biggest upset of the round came from German GM Vincent Keymer, who stunned tournament top seed Wei Yi of China. Keymer, who was part of D Gukesh’s team during the World Championship, showcased his tactical prowess to claim an early lead in the tournament.

American Grandmaster Sam Shankland also made a winning start, defeating Turkey’s Gurel Ediz. Meanwhile, the encounter between Vietnamese GM Le Quang Liem and Dutch star Anish Giri ended in a draw.

With these results, Keymer and Shankland lead the standings with full points after the first round, while Praggnanandhaa, Aravindh, Giri, Le, Dai Van, and Navara hold joint third place with half a point each. Wei Yi and Ediz will aim to open their accounts in the next round.

Game Highlights​

Praggnanandhaa, playing White, opted for the Ragozin variation of the Queen's Gambit Declined, but found limited opportunities to press for an advantage in the middlegame. Navara's well-timed pawn sacrifice equalized the position, and as the queens came off, the game transitioned into a theoretically drawn rook and pawn endgame. Despite having an extra pawn, Praggnanandhaa pushed for a win but was unable to break through.

Aravindh, also with White, faced Dai Van’s Neo-Grünfeld Defense. The game seemed to be heading towards a routine draw when Aravindh blundered in time pressure, putting himself in a losing position. However, Dai Van, running low on time himself, chose to steer the game toward a perpetual check, ensuring a safe draw on move 70.

Challengers Section​

In the Prague Challengers category, India’s Divya Deshmukh, the sole female and only Indian representative, suffered a setback in her first-round clash, losing to Spain’s Ivan Salgado Lopez.

Round 1 Results (Masters)​

• Vincent Keymer (GER) beat Wei Yi (CHN)
• Aravindh Chithambaram (IND) drew with Nguyen Thai Dai Van (CZE)
• Sam Shankland (USA) beat Gurel Ediz (TUR)
• R Praggnanandhaa (IND) drew with David Navara (CZE)
• Le Quang Liem (VIE) drew with Anish Giri (NED)

With round one setting the stage for intense battles ahead, all eyes will be on how the top players, especially Wei Yi, bounce back in the upcoming matches.