Praggnanandhaa Bounces Back, Joins Second at Sinquefield Cup

R Praggnanandhaa bounced back in style in Round 4 of the GCT Sinquefield Cup, overcoming his Round 3 loss to Vincent Keymer with a convincing victory over Jorden van Foreest to move into joint second with 2.5 points.

Playing with the White pieces, Praggnanandhaa produced a highly accurate performance in a sharp encounter, successfully navigating a fascinating material imbalance after van Foreest made an interesting queen sacrifice for a rook, bishop and pawn. The Indian grandmaster kept his composure amid the complications, gradually outplayed his opponent and converted the advantage to secure the full point.

The quality of Pragg’s play was reflected in the live analysis, which showed him at 92.5% accuracy, compared with 83.4% for van Foreest. His precision was particularly impressive considering the time pressure he faced during the later stages of the game.

At one point, after 71.Qf5 +, Praggnanandhaa had just 7:18 remaining on his clock, while van Foreest still had 24:35. Despite having considerably less time, Pragg continued to find the critical moves and maintained his accuracy to bring the game under control.

The victory was an important response to the setback against Vincent Keymer in Round 3. Praggnanandhaa had made a solid start to the tournament, drawing his opening game against Sam Sevian before defeating Javokhir Sindarov in Round 2. His loss to Keymer had briefly halted his momentum, but the Indian grandmaster responded immediately with a composed and confident display against van Foreest.

The win takes Pragg to 2.5 points after four rounds, putting him level with Levon Aronian and Maxime Vachier-Lagrave. The trio are joint second, just half a point behind tournament leader Wesley So, who has 3 points.

So retained the outright lead after drawing his Round 4 game against Aronian. Behind the leading group, Fabiano Caruana, Vincent Keymer and Sam Sevian are tied on 2 points. Anish Giri and Javokhir Sindarov have 1.5 points each, while van Foreest remains on 0.5.

The Indian grandmaster now faces a major challenge in Round 5, when he takes on tournament leader Wesley So with the Black pieces. So is rated 2765, while Praggnanandhaa is rated 2750.

With only half a point separating So from the three players sharing second place, the clash could have a major impact on the top of the leaderboard. For Pragg, it is an opportunity to build on his Round 4 comeback, challenge the tournament leader and make a strong push for the top spot.