Alireza Firouzja maintains lead at Chennai Grand Masters as Round 4 matches end in draws

On Sunday, 19 July 2026, French Grandmaster Alireza Firouzja maintained his half-point lead over India’s Arjun Erigaisi after all fourth-round matches ended in draws at the Quantbox Chennai Grand Masters 2026 chess tournament in Chennai.

The prestigious classical chess tournament, currently in its fourth edition, is organized by MGD1. It features eight elite grandmasters competing in a round-robin format for a prize purse of Rs 75,00,000 and valuable FIDE Circuit points.

More than 500 chess fans attended the venue to watch the Round 4 matches live. The spectators also had the opportunity to interact with chess legend Viswanathan Anand, who made the ceremonial first move to kick off the match between Erigaisi and M Pranesh.

Erigaisi, who had heated up the title race on Saturday by scoring a full point in the third round, was the first player to agree to a draw in Round 4. Playing with the white pieces against his compatriot Pranesh, Erigaisi engaged in an evenly balanced game. The two players signed a peace treaty after 34 moves.

Tournament leader Firouzja, who won his first two matches of the event, opted for a safe strategy in his Round 4 game. Playing with the black pieces against GM Hans Niemann, Firouzja secured a draw after 50 moves, successfully defending his position at the top of the leaderboard.

Meanwhile, World Champion D Gukesh pushed for a victory playing with the black pieces against GM Nodirbek Abdusattorov. Despite his efforts to find a way past his opponent, Gukesh eventually settled for a draw after 41 moves.

The final match of the round between GM Dmitry Andreikin and GM Nihal Sarin also ended in a draw. Following the Round 4 results, Firouzja leads the tournament with 3 points, followed by Erigaisi with 2.5 points. Andreikin, Sarin, and Abdusattorov each have 2 points, while Niemann, Gukesh, and Pranesh sit at 1.5 points.