Chennai, Aug 9 (IANS) Germany’s Vincent Keymer continued his flawless form in the Chennai Grandmasters 2025, posting his third straight victory by overcoming Karthikeyan Murali in Round 3 at the Hyatt Regency here on Saturday. With this win, Keymer remains the only player in the Masters section with a perfect score, emerging as the early leader in India’s most prestigious classical chess tournament.

The Chennai Grand Masters 2025 features two elite 10-player round-robin sections – Masters and Challengers – with nine rounds over ten days. The winner of the Challengers will earn ₹7 lakh and a coveted direct entry into the 2026 Masters.

The day also saw a strong performance from Arjun Erigaisi, who defeated American GM Ray Robson to stay firmly in the hunt for the top spot. Vidit Gujrathi bounced back with an important win over Nihal Sarin, while Awonder Liang scored his first victory of the tournament, stunning Dutch GM Jorden van Foreest. V. Pranav, one of the youngest in the field, impressed once again by holding top seed Anish Giri to a draw.

In the Challengers section, Abhimanyu Puranik maintained his steady rise with a win over Harshavardhan GB, while M Pranesh defeated Pa Iniyan to keep the leaderboard tight. Leon Luke Mendonca overcame Vaishali Rameshbabu, and Adhiban Baskaran split the point with Harika Dronavalli. Aryan Chopra and Diptayan Ghosh also played out a draw in a balanced encounter.

Results:

Masters Round 3:

Vincent Keymer (1) def. Karthikeyan Murali (0)

Arjun Erigaisi (1) def. Ray Robson (0)

Awonder Liang (1 ) def. Jorden van Foreest (0)

V Pranav (½) drew Anish Giri (½)

Vidit Gujrathi (1) def. Nihal Sarin (0)

Challengers Round 3:

Abhimanyu Puranik (1) def. Harshavardhan GB (0)

M. Pranesh (1) def. Pa Iniyan (0)

Adhiban Baskaran (½) drew Harika Dronavalli (½)

Leon Luke Mendonca (1) def. Vaishali Rameshbabu (0)

Aryan Chopra (½) drew Diptayan Ghosh (½)

Standings after Day 3:

Masters:

1. Vincent Keymer – 3

2. Arjun Erigaisi – 2.5

3. Ray Robson – 1.5

4. Awonder Liang – 1.5

5. Anish Giri – 1.5

6. Vidit Gujrathi – 1.5

7. Jorden van Foreest – 1

8. V Pranav – 1

9. Karthikeyan Murali – 1

10. Nihal Sarin – 0.5

Challengers Points Table after Day 3:

1. M. Pranesh – 2.5

2. Abhimanyu Puranik – 2.5

3. Diptayan Ghosh – 2

4. Leon Luke Mendonca – 2

5. Adhiban Baskaran – 1.5

6. Pa Iniyan – 1.5

7. Vaishali Rameshbabu – 1

8. Aryan Chopra – 1

9. Harika Dronavalli – 0.5

10. Harshavardhan G B – 0.5

–IANS

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