Alpine APL Pipers and Ganges Grandmasters took major steps toward the Tech Mahindra Global Chess League final with key victories marked by sportsmanship from World No. 1 Magnus Carlsen.
World No. 1 Magnus Carlsen demonstrated a magnanimous gesture on Friday after Alpine APL Pipers secured a crucial 9-7 victory against Fyers American Gambits at the Lalit Ashok in the Tech Mahindra Global Chess League.
Carlsen, who defeated Javokhir Sindarov, was presented with the Player-of-the-Match trophy but handed it directly to his teammate, Grandmaster Vidit Gujrathi from Nashik, who defeated Dubov to seal the match. Carlsen noted: "In my game, I was doing pretty well early on but Sindarov put up a good fight. I was able to wriggle out and find the win. As much as I am happy with my win, I don’t deserve the award as much as the man who won us the match." Vidit stated he was honoured by the gesture.
In the rest of the Pipers-Gambits match, Giri drew with Nihal, Divya lost to Assaubayeva, Humpy drew with Sarasadat, and Murzin drew with Maurizzi.
Generosity continued in the clash between Ganges Grandmasters and Cheq Mumba Masters, which the Grandmasters won 16-1 with five player victories. Stavroula Tsolakidou received the Player-of-the-Match honor after defeating Carissa Yip, but presented her trophy to team coach B. Adhiban. In that fixture, Nepomniachtchi beat Vachier-Lagrave, Aronian beat Pranesh, Perez beat Mamedyarov, Shuvalova drew with Harika, and Mendonca beat Daneshvar.
Going into the final day of the league phase, both Ganges Grandmasters and Alpine APL Pipers stand tied at 18 match points, with the Grandmasters holding 88 game points compared to the Pipers' 82. Fyers American Gambits remain on 15 match points with an outside chance of progressing. In another match of the day, Triveni Continental Kings beat PBG Alaskan Knights 7-13, highlighted by Zhu Jiner's win over Kateryna Lagno.
Reporting sourced from The Hindu Sport. Photo courtesy The Hindu Sport.