Mumbai, Nov 16: World number-one Magnus Carlsen was on fire as he posted a six-game winning streak to win the 2024 Tata Steel Chess India Open Rapid with a round to spare. A thrilling battle against GM Vincent Keymer was followed by a grinding win against GM Daniil Dubov, while GM Nodirbek Abdusattorov fell away with two losses to GMs Wesley So and Arjun Erigaisi before missing a win against Carlsen in the final round. GM Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu scored 2.5/3 to catch So and take second place, though the players share the same prize money.GM Aleksandra Goryachkina also won the 2024 Tata Steel Chess India Women’s Rapid with a round to spare. A 12-move draw in the first round of the day looked like a potential miscalculation when GM Nana Dzagnidze won to close the gap to half a point, but Goryachkina’s win over IM Divya Deshmukh in the next round sealed victory when Dzagnidze blundered in a drawn position against GM Valentina Gunina. Dzagnidze still took second, while IM Vantika Agrawal took third.
Carlsen started the final day half a point ahead of Abdusattorov after what he would later call “one of the best days of chess Iāve had recently,” adding, “one thing is to score 3/3, but I also felt the level of play was very high as well.” Day three would be a bit bumpier, with Carlsen facing Keymer, who was celebrating his 20th birthday.