Giri and Shakh's wins not enough for Playoffs

PBG Alaskan Knights had a fantastic tournament but in the Finals they underperformed. The 'Icon' Anish Giri bounced back, Shakhriyar Mamedyarov scored a win, but the rest of the team could not deliver when they needed it the most. Triveni Continental Kings might have had a shaky round-robin stage. However, in the Finals, they played like champions and defended their title successfully. GM Nihal Sarin and IM Alina Kashlinskaya were announced as the male and female players of the series. Alexandra Kosteniuk won the Player of the Final for winning both of her games.

Endgame essentials you need to know Vol.1 & Vol 2

In this video course, GM Surya Ganguly joins IM Sagar Shah and drawing from his colossal experience, shares some uncommon endgame wisdom. The material mostly features positions with rook against rook and a pawn, and starts by covering the fundamentals.

Alireza Firouzja, who was not in the initial lineup of the team, turned out to be the key player for the team's second consecutive triumph

The finalists - Triveni Continental Kings and PBG Alaskan Knights

Final 1: Continental Kings - Alaskan Knights: 3-0 (9-7)

PBG Alaskan Knights won the toss and opted for the black pieces. The first result was a draw between Teimour Radjabov and Shakhriyar Mamedyarov. Alireza Firouzja scored the first win of the match, against Anish Giri. Javokhir Sindarov drew with Nihal Sarin. Valentina Gunina and Alina Kashlinskaya had a rollercoaster game which ended in a draw. Alexandra Kosteniuk defeated Zhongyi Tan to ensure the team's victory in the first match of the Finals. Nodirbek Abdusattorov scored the sole win for his team, against Wei Yi.

Alireza Firouzja sacrificed an exchange - 23.Rxe6 - for a bishop and pawn. A closer look reveals that Black has light square weakness on the kingside, so this makes sense. 23...Bxe6 24.Qxe6 Qxe6 25.Bxe6 d4 Black decided to return the exchange 26.Bxc8 Rxc8 27.cxd4 Nxd4 28.Kg2 Rd8 29.Ne5 Be5? 30.Bxe5 and White went on to convert his advantage into a win comfortably.

Anand Mahindra, Chairman of Mahindra Group, made the ceremonial first move on Alireza Firouzja and Anish Giri's board in the first match of the Finals

After a back-and-forth queen and minor piece endgame, Wei somehow got himself back in the bishop and knight endgame. However, he made one final mistake with 92.Kc6?? g4-+ and Abdusattorov won the game in the next few moves. 92.Kb4/c4 would have kept the game going for White.

Improve your pieces - a winning system you need to know

In this course, we will learn how to identify passively placed pieces in any given situation and how to improve their health by bringing them into active squares.

Nodirbek Abdusattorov scored the sole win for his team

Alexandra Kosteniuk's win over Zhongyi Tan secured the match for her team

GM Valentina Gunina blundered 56.Rf6?? Her opponent, IM Alina Kashlinskaya, correctly spotted h5+ 57.Kg5 Rg3+ 58.Kh6 Nf5+ 59.Kh7 Ke7 60.Rxg6 Kxd8 61.Rf6 Ne7? Black needed to go Nd6 to win the game.

Replay Final 1 games

Final 2: Alaskan Knights - Continental Kings: 0-3 (7-13)

GM Valentina Gunina scored the first win against IM Alina Kashlinskaya. Shakhriyar Mamedyarov defeated Teimour Radjabov. Nihal Sarin drew with Javokhir Sindarov. Anish Giri won a must-win game against Alireza Firouzja. Nodirbek Abdusattorov lost to Wei Yi after a blunder in the endgame. Zhongyi Tan lost to Alexandra Kosteniuk and this brought Triveni Continental Kings their second consecutive GCL title.

Giri made a very nice exchange sacrifice with 31.Rxd5! when he had about ten minutes to Firouzja's two. Qxd5 32.Qxf6+ Kh7 33.Qe7+ Kg8 and after a few more moves, Black got a winning opportunity. However, in time trouble, he blundered, arrived at a lost position and also ran out of time.

Anish Giri avenged his loss of the first game against Alireza Firouzja

Nodirbek Abdusattorov almost managed to save the game from a losing position. He maintained a stronghold for almost 22 moves. Then he blundered 79.Rd4+?? Rc4-+ and Wei Yi won the game.

Nodirbek Abdusattorov had a great tournament except a tough loss at the end

Bologan‘s Chess Academy Vol. 1 - “Practical Endgames”

This course isn’t just another addition to your chess library—it’s the definitive guide to elevate your endgame play. From fundamental principles to advanced techniques, “Practical Endgames” covers every aspect of endgame strategy.

Shakhriyar Mamedyarov scored the only other victory for his team

Alexandra Kosteniuk defeated Zhongyi Tan for the second time in a day

Replay Final 2 games

For more prize distribution ceremony and closing ceremony photos, please click here.

Video Gallery

Life story of David Howell | Childhood, Friendship with Magnus Carlsen, commentary and more | Video: ChessBase India

Bollywood star John Abraham meets Sagar Shah | Video: ChessBase India

A unique chess store for chess lovers - Chess and Bridge London | Video: ChessBase India

A Supergrandmaster's Guide to Openings Vol.1 & 2

This video course includes GM Anish Giri's deep insights and IM Sagar Shah's pertinent questions to the super GM. In Vol.1 all the openings after 1.e4 are covered.

Alireza beats Anish to win the first match of the Global Chess League Finals | Video: ChessBase India

Alexandra Kosteniuk wins for the second time in the Finals | Video: ChessBase India

Links

Chess-results

Tournament Regulations

Tech Mahindra Global Chess League: Official site, facebook, twitter, instagram, youtube and linkedin

Tech Mahindra: Official site, facebook, twitter, youtube and linkedin