57th Biel Festival: Praggnanandhaa rules Blitz, qualifies for finals

Grandmaster Praggnanandhaa made a much-needed comeback at the 57th Biel Chess Triathlon on Sunday.

In the blitz leg of the triathlon, the Indian finished on top with seven points in the bag.

The winning streak at the blitz games assured Praggnanandhaa of a top-four finish at the event. Also, it ensured that the youngster qualified for the last 3 classical rounds to decide the tournament's winner.

Meanwhile, his sister GM Vaishali is at the other end of the field. She is playing the challenger triathlon at Biel.

She has had a forgettable outing so far at the blitz leg, scoring just 2.5/10.

But her performance in the classical leg ensured that she remained in the top-four and will play the final rounds.

Praggnanandhaa’s raid

Praggnanandhaa kept up his good form after the must-win classical game against the American GM Sham Shankland.

He dominated his opponents during the ten blitz games on Sunday.

The Chennai lad started the day playing against the same opponent from the previous day and the outcome was the same - a dominant victory over Shankland.

In the first rounds of the double round-robin blitz leg, Praggnanandhaa continued to win.

He beat Abhimanyu Mishra, Vincent Keymer, and Le Quang Liem. Then, he drew against the Armenian Haik Martirosyan.

However, in the last five rounds, Praggnanandhaa lost two games and drew one while winning the latter two.

He lost to Sham Shankland and Haik Martirosyan and drew with Le Quang Liem.

GM Praggnanandhaa finished with a total of six wins and two draws, ending the blitz leg of the triathlon on top and swiftly entering into the top four.

Next, Praggnanandhaa will face GM Le Quang Liem, GM Haik Maritosyan, and GM Abhimanyu Mishra in classical rounds.

These matches will determine the winner of the 57th Biel Grandmasters Festival.

Vaishali’s off-day on the board

GM Vaishali, who just finished a great leg of classical rounds and even entered into the world's top 10 in the process, went through a rough day.

She just scored 2.5/10, with only two wins against Danish GM Jonas Buhl Bjerre and French GM Marc Andria Maurizzi.

She had just one draw against the German GM Alexander Donchenko.

Even after a bad day, Vaishali stays in the top four.

She will play on the last three days of the tournament against Saleh Salem, Alexander Donchenko, and Jonas Buhl Bjerre.

They will determine the winner of the 57th Biel Challenger Triathlon.

Monday is a rest day at the 57th Biel Chess Festival and the battles will resume from Tuesday.