The first edition of the Chennai Grand Masters was held in 2023 and was India's strongest classical super tournament ever, with an average rating of 2711. It was a path-breaking event for Indian fans, as Gukesh and Arjun both tied for the first place, which became a crucial result for Gukesh to gain FIDE circuit points. This eventually helped him to reach the Candidates and now, in a few days, he will be fighting for the World Championship title.
The good news is that it was not just a one-off event. The Chennai Grand Masters is here again, and it is here to stay. This event was made possible because of the Tamil Nadu Government's support in 2023, and this year we have them backing the tournament as well. This year's edition will be held in the city of Chennai on 5-11 November 2024. There will be two sections - Masters and Challengers.
Masters - Average rating 2729
The Masters event will feature the current world no. 3 and India no.1 Arjun Erigaisi. We also have two more strong Indian players in the form of Vidit Gujrathi and Aravindh Chithamabram.
The players of the second edition of the Chennai Grandmasters are:
The rating average of this tournament is 2729 according to the October rating list. The ratings will be updated as per the November rating list before the start of the event.
FIDE Circuit points at stake
This event will play a key role in the FIDE circuit 2024 and the spot for the qualification of the Candidates 2026.
Arjun Erigaisi is currently topping the leaderboard and has excellent chances of winning the FIDE circuit 2024 and book himself a spot in the Candidates 2026
The following FIDE circuit points will be at stake at the event:
Challengers - Average rating 2589
The Challengers section is the new addition to the Chennai Grandmasters. Its intention is to give the budding young talents of Indian chess a chance to play in a top-level tournament, as the winner gets to qualify for next year's Masters.
The participants:
Prizes
The total prize fund in the Masters section is Rs.50 lakh, while the prize fund in the challengers is Rs.20 lakh.
The prize money for the Masters section
The prize money for the Challengers section
Schedule
The schedule of the tournament - it will be 7 rounds of classical chess in round robin format
The venue of the tournament is the Anna Centenary Library
One of the main forces behind making this tournament happen is GM Srinath Narayanan. He shared his thoughts about the event with us:
We are really proud to be doing Chennai Grandmasters the second time. The first time is always special. But to do it for the second edition means we did something right in the first edition.
Thanks to the support of the government of Tamil Nadu and SDAT, Chennai has done some amazing things in chess in the last few years, which has served as a catalyst for the rise of some of our top Indian players.
Gukesh has been a great example of this, starting from his historic 8/8 in the Olympiad to winning Chennai Grandmasters last year, which was instrumental in helping him get into the Candidates Tournament. Gukesh now plays against Ding for the World Championship match.
Arjun now faces a similar prospect, being one of the top contenders in the FIDE circuit. Arjun's path looks challenging, but a good performance in this tournament will give his chances a boost.
This year we also have the addition of the Challengers tournament, which will give opportunity to the next line of talents. I hope Chennai continues this tradition and continues to be a catalyst for the rise of our top talents.
The coach of the gold-medal-winning Indian chess team at the 2024 Chess Olympiad - GM Srinath Narayanan, VP of Chess at MGD1
Supported by
The event is supported and sponsored by the Government of Tamil Nadu and the Sports Development Authority of Tamil Nadu
Organized by
The tournament is organized by MGD1 and ChessBase India
