French Grandmaster Alireza Firouzja secured victory at the fourth Chennai Grand Masters by drawing with India’s Arjun Erigaisi in the final round at The Westin Chennai Velachery Hotel. Firouzja, needing just a draw to clinch the title, finished with 4.5 points from seven rounds, remaining unbeaten with two wins and five draws.
Heading into the final round with a half-point lead over his competitors, Firouzja’s path to victory was solidified as Uzbekistan’s Nodirbek Abdusattorov lost to Russia’s Dmitry Andreikin in a 37-move defeat. Firouzja’s draw against Erigaisi in a rook-and-pawn endgame sealed his championship win.
The tournament, featuring eight players in a round-robin format, offered a prize purse of ₹75 lakh and valuable FIDE Circuit points. Firouzja’s triumph earned him a winner’s cheque of ₹25 lakh (approximately USD 26,500). Andreikin, also unbeaten, finished joint second with Erigaisi, while Abdusattorov shared fourth place with Indian Grandmasters Nihal Sarin and M. Pranesh, all ending on 3.5 points.
Reigning world champion D. Gukesh had a challenging tournament, finishing at the bottom of the standings with two points after losing three games. In the final round, he drew against American Grandmaster Hans Niemann. The final standings were shaped by Andreikin’s victory over Abdusattorov.
