Praggnanandhaa (Pic credit: X)

R Praggnanandhaa secured his second consecutive win by defeating Vincent Keymer of Germany, joining fellow Indian Aravindh Chithambaram at the top with three points after round four of the Prague Masters.
Aravindh managed to draw with American Sam Shankland despite early challenges, whilst Chinese top seed Wei Yi found success against local player David Navara.
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Netherlands’ Anish Giri drew his fourth successive match against Turkish player Gurel Ediz, whilst Czech GM Nguyen Thai Dai Van shared points with Vietnamese Quang Leim Le in the other contests of this 10-player round-robin event.
The two Indians, Praggnanandhaa and Aravindh, lead the pack, with Shankland, Keymer, Giri and Le sharing third position one point behind. The tournament appears to be developing into a contest between the two Indians, with five rounds remaining.
Keymer had previously defeated Praggnanandhaa at the Tata Steel Masters, but the Indian found revenge despite a seemingly unstable French defence with black pieces. The middlegame caught Keymer unprepared.
Praggnanandhaa opted for queen exchange and launched his counter-offensive. Time pressure affected Keymer, who repeatedly moved his rook ineffectively. The Indian demonstrated superior understanding, capturing two pawns. Victory came naturally, concluding in 44 moves.
Aravindh encountered Shankland’s Sicilian defence, which achieved quick equalisation. Multiple exchanges led to Shankland holding a minor advantage, though the endgame remained largely drawn. The final position featured rook and pawns, where Shankland’s extra pawn proved insufficient for victory.
The upcoming round will feature a clash between the leaders, with Praggnanandhaa wielding the white pieces.
In the challengers’ category, Divya Deshmukh drew against Chinese player Ma Qun, reaching 1.5 points after four rounds.
Uzbekistan’s Nodirbek Yakubboev and Denmark’s Jonas Buhl Bjerre jointly lead this section with three points each.
Results of Round 4:
Aravindh Chithambaram (IND, 3) drew with Sam Shankland (USA, 2); Vincent Keymer (GER, 2) lost to R Praggnanandhaa (IND, 3); Wei Yi (CHN, 1.5) beat David Navara (CZE, 1.5); Gurel Ediz (TUR, 1.5) drew with Anish Giri (NED, 2) Nguyen Thai Dai Van (CZE, 1.5) drew with Quang Leim Le (VIE, 2).
Challengers: Stamatis Kourkoulous-Arditis (GER, 1.5) drew with Ivan Salgado Lopez (ESP, 2); Vaclav Finek (CZE, 1.5) lost to Marc’andria Maurizzi (FRA, 2); Divya Deshmukh (IND, 1.5) drew with Ma Qun (CHN, 2); Jonas Buhl Bzerre (DEN, 3) drew with Nodirbek Yakubboev (UZB, 2); Nemec Jychym (CZE, 1.5) lost to Richard Stalmach (CZE, 1.5).