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R Praggnanandhaa shares Sinquefield Cup lead with Wesley So after defeating Maxime Vachier-Lagrave. Keymer beats Caruana.
R Praggnanandhaa is supposed to take part in Candidates
Grandmaster R Praggnanandhaa beat France’s Maxime Vachier-Lagrave to move into a share of the lead with American Wesley So after the eighth and penultimate round of the Sinquefield Cup in St Louis.
The win took Praggnanandhaa to five points out of a possible eight and the Indian is now assured of a place in the Grand finale scheduled later this year.
Wesley So settled for another draw, this time against compatriot Sam Sevian, while Javokhir Sindarov extended his winning streak to three matches and moved within striking distance of the leaders with 4.5 points.
On the receiving end was Jorden van Foreest of Holland, who continues to trail the field.
In another major result, Germany’s Vincent Keymer beat top seed Fabiano Caruana of the United States to move into third place alongside Sindarov. In the other match of the day, Dutchman Anish Giri drew with Levon Aronian of the United States.
Playing his final match with the white pieces, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave took plenty of risks against Praggnanandhaa, but the approach backfired. Pragg met the Ruy Lopez with another Møller Variation, while an early piece sacrifice by the Frenchman looked promising but couldn’t deliver.
Praggnanandhaa lost three pawns in exchange for the piece but relocated his forces well to win in just 28 moves.
Vincent Keymer produced his own brand of chess to outwit Fabiano Caruana with the white pieces. The match started as an irregular queen’s pawn opening before reaching a dynamic middlegame, where Keymer’s tactical prowess proved decisive.
As it happened, the German knocked down two pawns before forcing resignation in 76 moves.
After an indifferent start, world championship contender Javokhir Sindarov appears to have found his rhythm at the crucial stage of the tournament. The Uzbek was at his best in a technical endgame that emerged from the Petrosian Variation of the Queen’s Indian Defence.
After an early pawn sacrifice, Sindarov won a rook for a minor piece and then kept pushing till Foreest could no longer sustain. The match lasted 56 moves.
In the final round, Praggnanandhaa will have the white pieces against Anish Giri, while another intriguing clash awaits between Javokhir Sindarov and Wesley So. Vincent Keymer, meanwhile, faces Jorden van Foreest, with a victory enough to see him join the leaders at the top.
Results round 8: Javokhir Sindarov (Uzb, 4.5) beat Jorden Van Foreest (Ned, 1.5); Sevian Samuels (Usa, 4) drew with Wesley So (Usa, 5); Vincent Keymer (Ger, 4.5) beat Fabiano Caruana (Usa, 4); Anish Giri (Ned, 3.5) drew with Levon Aronian (Usa, 3.5); Maxime Vachier-Lagrave (Fra, 4) lost to R Praggnanandhaa (Ind, 5)
(With PTI Inputs)
Key Questions Answered
Ask News18Praggnanandhaa’s win against Vachier-Lagrave secured him a place in the Grand finale scheduled for later this year.
Ask News18August 19, 2026, 1:51 PM IST
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