Indian Grandmaster Vidit Gujrathi holds world No. 1 chess player Magnus Carlsen to a draw

World number 22 Vidit Gujrathi surprisingly held world number one, Magnus Carlsen, to a draw in the eleventh round of the Tata Steel Masters chess tournament on Friday to keep joint hold of fourth place with six points.

Meanwhile, the Norwegian continues to hold the lead with 7.5 points despite missing a clear winning opportunity against Gujrathi. With two more rounds remaining in the competition, it will be interesting to see who finishes on top. Here is a look at the updated standings after 11 rounds of the tournament and a brief overview of the results from other games.

Tata Steel Masters: Vidit Gujrathi draws against Magnus Carlsen

In the eleventh round of the Tata Steel Masters chess tournament, world number one Magnus Carlsen attempted the Italian Game against Vidit Gujrathi by playing Nc3. The Indian GM played the opening well and reached equalized the position.

While Gujrathi managed to escape threats in the opening, the world champion did manage to cause the 27-year old Indian several problems in the middle and end game. Despite the mistake by the world number 22 on move 28, Carlsen was unable to take advantage of the situation as he made an error on move 36, resulting in Gujrathi being able to escape with a draw.

Tata Steel Masters other results

World number seven Anish Giri suffered a disappointing defeat at the hands of fellow countryman Jorden Van Foreest, resulting in him dropping to third place in the Tata Steel Masters standings after 11 rounds. Meanwhile, Richard Rapport moved into second place after he earned a win by forfeit after his opponent Daniil Dubov tested positive for COVID.

16-year old Indian GM R Praggnanandhaa lost to world number four Fabiano Caruana to remain in joint twelfth place with two others on 3.5 points. The teenager fought well against his more experienced opponent as the game was tightly poised before Caruana got the initiative and went on to win in 46 moves.

Tata Steel Masters chess tournament standings after 11 rounds