Praggnanandhaa scripts history, seals maiden Grand Chess Tour Finals crown

St. Louis: Indian grandmaster Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu staged a stunning comeback against GM Fabiano Caruana to win the final match and claim his maiden Grand Chess Tour Finals title, along with the $200,000 first prize on Thursday (local time) in St.Louis.

With this win, Praggnanandhaa scripted history, becoming the first Indian to win the Grand Chess Tour, as per Chess.com.

The Indian grandmaster began the day six points behind Caruana but quickly turned the match around, winning both rapid games to take the lead. He then held Caruana to an even score in blitz, securing the title by a final score of 15-13.


In the first blitz game, Praggnanandhaa had winning chances but blundered in a time scramble. His position quickly deteriorated, but Caruana failed to capitalise, and the game ultimately ended in a draw.

GM Wesley So also staged a comeback in the third-place match against GM Vincent Keymer.

The two players traded wins in the rapid portion, but So dominated the blitz, winning all four games to clinch the match with a game to spare. He finished with an 18-12 victory.

Earlier, Praggnanandhaa secured a draw in his second classical game on Wednesday, but his opponent Caruana enjoyed a six points lead.

The young Indian grand master had lost his first classical game to Caruana 6-0, but managed a draw in the second classical game, 3-3.