Arjun Erigaisi Defeats Anand Again, Sits Second After Day 1 of Tata Steel Chess India Blitz

Arjun Erigaisi continued his impressive run at Tata Steel Chess India, defeating Viswanathan Anand for the second time this week to finish the opening day of the Blitz section in second place, just half a point behind leader Wesley So.

India’s top-ranked player made a flying start to the blitz event, rattling off five straight victories to surge to the top of the standings early on. After nine rounds, the Hyderabad-based grandmaster stood on 6.5 points, narrowly trailing So, who led the field with 7/9.

Arjun had earlier beaten the five-time world champion in the Rapid section and repeated the feat in blitz on Saturday. Their encounter seemed destined for a draw until a late slip from Anand allowed Arjun to take control and force a resignation.

Strong Start, Tough Finish

Arjun’s opening run included wins against Volodar Murzin, Wei Yi, and reigning rapid champion Nihal Sarin, followed by victories over Anand in Round 4 and Aravindh Chithambaram in Round 5. His momentum was finally checked in Round 6, when Wesley So handed him his first loss of the day.

From the final three rounds, Arjun managed one win, enough to keep him firmly in second place heading into the final day of competition.

Behind the leaders, Nihal Sarin occupied third place with 5.5 points, while Viswanathan Anand and Vidit Gujrathi shared fourth place on five points each.

Carissa Yip Leads Women’s Blitz

In the women’s blitz event, Carissa Yip of the USA emerged as the sole leader after Day 1 with 6 points from 9 games. India’s R Vaishali stayed in close contention, finishing the day joint second on 5.5 points.