Alexander Grischuk confirmed his reputation as a blitz specialist to win the Tata Steel Chess India Open Blitz by a full point. Nodirbek Abdusattorov and overnight leader Praggnanandhaa finished 2nd and 3rd respectively, with 11 points each. Vidit, who appeared to be one of the main contenders for the title at the end of the first day, had a rough second day, beginning with four losses in a row, and never really recovering.

Tania Sachdev and Robert Hess commentated on the day's action, with Vishy Anand joining them.

Replay all the Tata Steel Chess Indian Open Blitz games.

The importance of draws

Commentating during the live broadcast, Vishy Anand discussed the best mindset for playing blitz tournaments:

He also pointed out the reason for Alexander Grischuk being one of the best players in the world in blitz for decades now: "Alexander likes blitz, most of all."

Twin winners of the Tata Steel Chess Rapid & Blitz, Vachier-Lagrave and Grischuk | photo: Vivek Sohani, Tata Steel Chess India

Trailing Praggnanandhaa by half a point at the end of the first day, Grischuk played steadily throughout the day, netting four wins, three draws, and a solitary loss to score a total of 5.5 points for the day and finish with 12 points. In comparison, Praggnanandhaa had three wins, three draws, and three losses. thus scoring only 4.5 points and finishing with 11 points.

Vidit, who had actually occupied the second position at the end of the first day, suffered a total of six losses on the day, as well as scoring two draws and a solitary win.

But the best comeback performer of the day was Nodirbek Abdusattorov, who had six wins, two draws and a loss, the high number of wins even enabling him to threaten Grischuk's march to the title. Ultimately he finished on 11 points, along with Praggnanandhaa, and edged him out of the second place.

Grischuk's first win of the day showed his sense of the basics, and then his attacking instincts, as he outplayed Vidit with effortless play.

His steady play once again enabled him to score a smooth win over Gukesh.

The pivotal game of the day was Grischuk's game against the overnight leader Praggnanandhaa. Unlike his play in the earlier rounds, Grischuk played sharply with the black pieces from the word go, emphasizing his words from the previous day: "I play more aggressively in blitz."

This actively contested game is our Game Of The Day, annotated by GM Rafael Leitao.

The chasing pack

Praggnanandhaa started the day impressively, with a well-conducted game against Teimour Radjabov. The whole game seemed to be centered on the square f5, which Black weakened in the early middlegame: a textbook example of playing for weak squares.

But unlike on the first day, his desire to keep the game simple, or to attack when necessary, didn't work out on a few occasions, as he lost three important games to Grischuk, Vidit, and Abdusattorov.

Praggnanandhaa and the importance of the f5-square | photo: Maria Emelianova, Chess.com

The most impressive comeback of the day belonged to Abdusattorov, whose determination enabled him to play powerful chess, scoring six victories.

At the end of the day, Grischuk joined the commentary team and revealed an interesting detail.

At the end of the 16th round, Grischuk had 11 points followed by Abdusattorov and Praggnanandhaa on 9.5 points. Hence, Grischuk needed just two draws in the remaining two rounds to net the title. This was the game between Abdusattorov and Grischuk from the 17th round, and Grischuk offered a draw, which was boldly refused by Abdusattorov. He commented:

Grischuk warmly praised Abdusattorov's fighting spirit.

Abdusattorov—fearless? | photo: Maria Emelianova, Chess.com

The final draw that clinched the title was less hard-fought, as Grischuk and Harikrishna played just seven moves.

At the end of the day, the players sat down and patiently obliged all the fans with autographs.

Gukesh, Arjun, and Praggnanandhaa | photo: Maria Emelianova, Chess.com

The final standings look as follows.

Replay all the Tata Steel Chess Indian Open Blitz games.