Can Erigaisi Triumph in the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Semifinals?

Las Vegas, July 18 (NationPress) Grandmaster Arjun Erigaisi made a remarkable advance into the semifinals of the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Tour by defeating Uzbekistan's Nodirbek Abdusattorov. Meanwhile, R Praggnanandhaa was eliminated from the title contention after a defeat against Fabiano Caruana from the USA in this prestigious USD 750,000 event.

Erigaisi triumphed with a score of 1.5-0.5, while Praggnanandhaa fell short with a final score of 3-4 against Caruana.

In the only match of the Upper Bracket that did not go into tiebreakers, Erigaisi advanced to the semifinals by winning the second 30+30 game. He nearly secured victory in the first game, but Abdusattorov exhibited exceptional defense and managed to hold on.

In the second game, Abdusattorov could not replicate that success while playing from a disadvantaged position within the opening.

The encounter between Praggnanandhaa and Caruana unfolded dramatically as well, featuring two 30+30 games. Praggnanandhaa seized an early advantage with an impressive win using the white pieces. Caruana responded decisively, leveling the score as he dominated his game with white, reaching a piece-up endgame, though he faced stiff resistance until Praggnanandhaa made a significant blunder by losing his rook.

The pattern continued but with colors reversed; Praggnanandhaa won the initial 10+10 game as Black but faltered in the subsequent game as White. The tiebreaker then consisted of two 5+2 blitz games, where the first featured a frenetic time scramble with the evaluation bar fluctuating wildly before Caruana emerged as the victor. This was the most thrilling game of the day.

In a crucial must-win situation, Praggnanandhaa delivered, ultimately winning from a disadvantageous middlegame setup, leading to the tournament's first Armageddon game.

He bid 4:27 to play Black, but Caruana's bid of 4:02 allowed him to play Black with draw odds, while Praggnanandhaa had 5 minutes for White and an increment of 1 second per move after move 60. Caruana skillfully won the game, displaying exceptional composure under time pressure.

Meanwhile, Levon Aronian and Hans Moke Niemann from America were the other victors who secured their spots in the Upper Bracket's semifinals alongside Caruana and Erigaisi.

In the Lower Bracket, Magnus Carlsen, Wesley So, Vincent Keymer, and Leinier Dominguez emerged victorious on Friday, eliminating Vidit Gujrathi, Sam Sevian, Ray Robson, and Bibisara Assaubayeva, respectively.

The semifinal matchups in the Upper Bracket are now set as Caruana vs. Niemann and Aronian vs. Erigaisi.

Those eliminated from the Lower Bracket (Vidit, Sevian, Robson, and Assaubayeva) conclude their journey sharing 13th place. The winners (Carlsen, So, Keymer, and Dominguez) progress to the Intermediate Matches Stage 1, facing off against the losers of the Upper Bracket quarterfinals.

The pairings in the Lower Bracket include Praggnanandhaa vs. Carlsen, Sindarov vs. So, Nakamura vs. Dominguez, and Abdusattorov vs. Keymer.