Tata Steel Masters: Vidit Gujrathi joint third after draw with Richard Rapport

India’s Vidit Gujrathi drew with Richard Rapport of Hungary on Tuesday to be joint third after nine rounds at the Tata Steel Masters chess tournament.

R. Praggnanandhaa’s struggles continued as he lost to Sergey Karjakin - his third straight defeat - on Tuesday night. He remained on 2.5 points and in 13th place in the 14-player field. World No. 1 Magnus Carlsen beat one of his main competitors, Shakhriyar Mamedyarov, to jump into the lead. Dutchman Anish Giri trails the Norwegian by half a point after defeating Sam Shankland.

Rapport tested Gujrathi in the Catalan defence and eventually won a pawn, but the Indian GM put up a stubborn defence and opted for a draw.

In the game against Karjakin, Praggnanandhaa boldly sacrificed an exchange as White in the London System and got sufficient compensation. However, an error on the 40th move proved costly for him.

In the Challengers event being played simultaneously, India’s Arjun Erigaisi beat China’s Jiner Zhu in the ninth round to extend his lead at the top to two points. He has eight points and faces Polina Shuvalova in the 10th round.

Surya Shekhar Ganguly, the other Indian in the fray, lost to Jonas Bhul Bjerre to remain on four points and in ninth spot.