Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu emerged as the sole leader heading into the final round of the Superbet Chess Classic after defeating Wesley So with the black pieces in a well-handled Benko Gambit. The Indian grandmaster's win was one of two decisive results in the penultimate, as world champion Gukesh Dommaraju claimed his first victory of the event by taking down Levon Aronian.
Pragg now has 5½ points, half a point ahead of former co-leaders Alireza Firouzja, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave and Fabiano Caruana. With the final round set for Friday, Pragg will play white against Aronian, where a draw would secure him at least a share of first place and force a playoff if required. Earlier this year, Pragg won a playoff to clinch the Tata Steel Masters, defeating Gukesh. Meanwhile, MVL will play white against Jan-Krzysztof Duda, who is at the bottom of the standings, Caruana will play black against Gukesh, and Firouzja will face Bogdan-Daniel Deac, also with the black pieces.
The last round will begin one hour earlier than usual.
Round 8 results
Alireza Firouzja got a small edge against Nodirbek Abdusattorov, who managed to hold the draw following his round-seven victory over Jan-Krzysztof Duda | Photo: Lennart Ootes
Pragg's victory against So was achieved in a Benko Gambit, a bold choice against one of the circuit's most solid players. Despite demonstrating good opening preparation, So struggled to keep the position under control as Pragg navigated his way to a heavy-piece endgame with a slight but persistent edge. Pragg's technique was precise, gradually increasing his advantage and converting his positional plus into a 38-move victory (see analysis of the game below).
Gukesh's win against Aronian, also with black, arose from Aronian's questionable 16.f4, a risky pawn push in a queenless, rather quiet position.
Gukesh accepted the pawn and demonstrated strong endgame technique, steadily improving his pieces while pushing Aronian into a passive position. The game eventually transitioned to a rook endgame with 4 pawns against 3, in which Gukesh's more active king proved decisive.
From this point on, Gukesh converted his material advantage smoothly.
Gukesh Dommaraju | Photo: Lennart Ootes
Out of the three drawn games, the clash between Caruana and Vachier-Lagrave was the most consequential in terms of the standings. Playing white against a fellow co-leader, Caruana obtained a clear positional edge but missed a critical opportunity on move 21, when 21.Bxc5 was preferable to the chosen 21.Rdh1
MVL replied with the precise 21...Kf7, preparing to contest the h-file with his rooks and maintaining his defensive setup. From there, Vachier-Lagrave defended accurately, securing the draw and preserving his chances of challenging for the title in the final round.
Maxime Vachier-Lagrave looking satisfied with the draw he achieved against one of the most dangerous players in the field | Photo: Lennart Ootes
Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu fully engaged in his task | Photo: Lennart Ootes
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