Chess WC: Pragg escapes scare; Erigaisi too settles for stalemate

In the FIDE World Cup 2025's fourth round first games played in Panaji, multiple Indian Grandmasters achieved draws while two-time champion Levon Aronian secured a victory.R Praggnanandhaa faced a challenging situation with white pieces against GM Daniil Dubov but managed to secure a draw.

The game concluded after 41 moves following a critical position where both players were under time pressure.Second-seeded Arjun Erigaisi, playing with black pieces, secured a quick 20-move draw against Hungarian GM Peter Leko. Similarly, P Harikrishna drew with Swedish GM Nils Grandelius in 32 moves, and Karthik Venkataraman shared points with Vietnam's GM Le Quang Liem in 36 moves.Two-time World Cup Champion Levon Aronian defeated GM Radoslaw Wojtaszek in 37 moves while playing with white pieces.

GM Jose Eduardo Martinez Alcantara emerged victorious against GM Alexey Sarana in 39 moves with black pieces.Peter Leko, aged 46, is participating in an individual event after six years. He opted for a draw by repetition against Arjun, who controlled the 'a' file with his rook. Leko will now play with black pieces in the next game."It was a very interesting game. Arjun came up with a big surprise. But in this game, I knew the lines but I had not analysed it deeply.

So being too low on the clock, I decided to draw by repetition," said Leko, who also added that he likes playing with black and will try his best to win.Praggnanandhaa's game was notably tense after he made an error by advancing his d-pawn on the 14th move. He remained under time pressure until Dubov missed a potentially winning advantage, as both players needed to make quick moves to meet time control.

India results (Round 4, Game 1)