GCT Finals SF G1: Praggnanandhaa makes a shaky start
GM R Praggnanandhaa made a shaky start in the first Semifinal game of Grand Chess Tour 2025 Finals. The World no.4 made an inaccuracy in the rook and few pawns endgame which shifted the balance in favor of GM Maxime Vachier-Lagrave (FRA). The World Blitz 2021 after initially seizing his opportunity, could not make the most out of it and allowed his opponent to escape with a draw. Thus, both players got three points each. GM Fabiano Caruana (USA) and GM Levon Aronian (USA) had a relatively calm draw. They also got three points each. Semifinal Game 2 starts today at 3 p.m. local time, 11:30 p.m. IST. Photo: Lennart Ootes / Grand Chess Tour
Two contrasting draws
Praggnanandhaa - Vachier-Lagrave: 3-3
World no.4, GM R Praggnanandhaa (2785) has played six Classical rated games against World Blitz 2021 champion, GM Maxime Vachier-Lagrave (FRA, 2738). Praggnanandhaa has lost one and the remaining five ended in draws. Their seventh game was going fine for Praggnanandhaa until he made an inaccuracy in the rook and few pawns endgame.
White was already in trouble after 48.Kh3? gxh4 49.g4? did not help his case. 49...hxg4 50.fxg4 Kf7 51.Rd6 Ke7 52.Rc6 now Rb1 would have been winning for Black. However, 52...Rxa4 was played in the game 53.Rxb6 and White managed to escape with a draw.
Schedule and Format
The GCT Final will take place from 28th September to 3rd October. There is no rest day. Each round starts at 3 p.m. local time, 11:30 p.m. IST. The last day on 3rd October games will start at 1 p.m. local time, 9:30 p.m. IST. Each match will have two Classical, two Rapid and four Blitz games, irrespective of the results, all games will be played. Check the image below for a detailed schedule.
Time control
Classical: 40 moves in 90 minutes + 30 minutes for the remainder + 30-second increment from move no.1
Rapid: 25 minutes + 10 seconds increment
Blitz: 5 minutes + 2 seconds increment
Scoring
● Classical Games: 6 points for a win, 3 points for a draw and 0 points for a loss
● Rapid Games: 4 points for a win, 2 points for a draw and 0 points for a loss
● Blitz Games: 2 points for a win, 1 point for a draw and 0 points for a loss
Each match will therefore be scored out of a total of 28 possible points, with a total of at least 15 points being required to win each match.
Prize
The total prize fund for the Grand Finals is US$ 350000. The prizes are US$ 150000, $100000, $60000 and $40000.
