Chennai Grand Masters 2023; Dommaraju Gukesh clinches title; Arjun Erigaisi secures second spot in Chess

In Chennai Grand Masters 2023 tournament, Indian chess prodigy, Dommaraju Gukesh clinched the title by holding compatriot Pentala Harikrishna for a draw, yesterday. Meanwhile, Arjun Erigaisi secured the second spot. Both Arjun and Gukesh finished the event at 4.5 points out of 7.

Gukesh won the tournament on tie-breaks. Pentala Harikrishna finished third with 4 points, as all three Indians in the tournament ended the campaign with a podium finish.

With this win, Gukesh takes the lead in the FIDE Circuit. If he keeps the lead till 1st January 2024, he will qualify for the highly coveted Candidates Tournament 2024. Earlier, R. Praggnanandhaa qualified for the Candidates by finishing second at the FIDE World Cup 2023 held at Baku, Azerbaijan this year.

Vidit Gujrathi too secured the candidate's spot by winning the FIDE Grand Swiss 2023 concluded on the 5th of November this year at the Isle of Man (UK).

The 2024 Candidates Tournament is an eight-player chess tournament, held to determine the challenger for the 2024 World Chess Championship. It is scheduled to be held from 2 to 25 April 2024 in Toronto, Canada.