Alpine Sg Pipers Inflict 1st Loss Upon PBG Alaskan Knights

The Alpine Sg Pipers were the first team to beat the PBG Alaskan Knights on Monday at the Tech Mahindra Global Chess League in London. The Pipers are now just three points behind the leaders, along with the Triveni Continental Kings. Scoring their second match victory, the Ganges Grandmasters are not out of contention yet either but for the upGrad Mumba Masters things are looking grim.

Day six starts on Tuesday, October 8, at 8 a.m. ET / 14:00 CEST / 5:30 p.m. IST.

Day 5 Standings

Triveni Continental Kings 10-8 upGrad Mumba Masters

This hard-fought, close match ended in a narrow victory for the Triveni Continental Kings, just like in the first half of the tournament and in the season-one finale last year. It was an excellent birthday gift for team captain GM Loek van Wely, who turned 52 today.

Sadly for GM Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, also his individual game with GM Alireza Firouzja repeated their game from the other day: MVL was building up a winning attack but then chose a wrong capture that spoiled it completely. This time, he got more chances but eventually it was Firouzja who once again had the strongest nerves. It was his fifth win in a row!

Here is the game, with annotations by GM Rafael Leitao:

GM Vidit Gujrathi did manage to take revenge for his loss today and scored a clutch win vs. GM Wei Yi, who defended well for a long time but eventually got his king trapped in a mating net:

Vidit picks up a 1st win of the 2024 #TechMGCL, weaving a mating net against Wei Yi! https://t.co/xXqb3e6k3C pic.twitter.com/gWk7XROLcf

— chess24 (@chess24com) October 7, 2024

With the teams swapping victories on the women's boards, it all came down to the prodigy board, where the upGrad Mumba Masters desperately needed a win. GM Raunak Sadhwani didn't seem aware of that since he made the impression of being happy with the draw, but perhaps it was some consolation for him to know that the position was indeed a draw with best play.

Raunak Sadhwani tries his best, but Javokhir Sindarov holds on tight - the game ends in a draw, and @trivenickings score a narrow 10-8 win against the Mumba Masters! What a tense match #TechMGCL pic.twitter.com/ylguEWXfJb

— ChessBase India (@ChessbaseIndia) October 7, 2024

Alpine Sg Pipers 9-7 PBG Alaskan Knights

After five straight victories, the PBG Alaskan Knights finally lost a match as the Alpine Sg Pipers took revenge with a 9-7 win. Coach GM Praveen Thipsay expressed some prophetic words about facing the Knights once again, straight after yesterday's Nihal-Dardha controversy: "I think it’s the best opportunity because really the team wants to bounce back and the earlier the better. I think they are more spirited than they would be after three or four days."

The match was decided on the women's boards, for a change. Both GMs Hou Yifan and Kateryna Lagno played strongly and left their opponents no chance. In Hou's case, that meant revenge for her loss the other day against GM Tan Zhongyi in a very powerful game that started so quietly:

Hou Yifan strikes when needed the most - she scores an important win for her team, taking down Tan Zhongyi in beautiful fashion! Kateryna Lagno also scored a convincing win - the @AlpineSGPipers now have a 6-point-lead over Alaskan Knights. #TechMGCL pic.twitter.com/tAoQ9QH7wj

— ChessBase India (@ChessbaseIndia) October 7, 2024

American Gambits 4-10 Ganges Grandmasters 

Also in the last match of the day, things were decided on the lower boards. GM Volodar Murzin became the Man of the Match for a quick, brilliant victory (10.Nb5!!) that set the tone. Later on, IM Nurgyul Salimova sealed the deal for the Ganges Grandmasters.

18-year-old Murzin seems to have a quiet, modest personality but at the board he is incredibly dangerous. Using the Jobava London, he came up with a devilish idea that left his opponent completely lost as early as move 10. What a way to start the match for the Ganges Grandmasters.

A critical win for the @GangesGMs - @VolodarMurzin created a winning position out of the opening, and takes down Jonas Bjerre! A 3-point lead for Ganges now against the Gambits. #TechMGCL pic.twitter.com/uFdoV79Jbp

— ChessBase India (@ChessbaseIndia) October 7, 2024

Salimova had been pressing a bit in a solid, positional game but GM Elisabeth Paehtz was holding her own until move 44, when she allowed White to get the upper-hand. A few moves later, Salimova was completely winning in the queen ending but for a single moment she allowed her opponent to get away with a draw–a chance that was missed:

The Tech Mahindra Global Chess League 2024 consists of a preliminary group stage and a final contested by the two top teams. In each match, members of the same team play with the same color. All games have a 20-minute time control without increment.

Previous reports:

• Day 4: Triveni Continental Kings, Alpine Sg Pipers Chase Still Perfect PBG Alaskan Knights
• Day 3: PBG Alaskan Knights Maintain Strong Lead; Ganges Grandmasters Get 1st Win
• Day 2: PBG Alaskan Knights Continue Strong On Global Chess League Day 2
• Day 1: Giri's Alaskan Knights Impress On 2024 Global Chess League Opening Day
• Preview: Global Chess League: All You Need To Know