Sinquefield Cup: Gukesh held by Sevian, Praggnanandhaa draws with Abdusattorov in Round 3

World champion D Gukesh was held to a draw by the lone wild card Samuel Sevian of the United States, while fellow Indian R Praggnanandhaa also split the point with Nodirbek Abdusattorov of Uzbekistan in the third round of the Sinquefield Cup.

With his second draw in as many days, Praggnanadhaa remained in the leading group of three players that now includes Fabiano Caruana of the United States, besides the overnight co-leader, Armenian-turned-American Levon Aronian.

Caruana handed Alireza Firouzja of France his first loss in the tournament in the lone decisive game of the day. Aronian was held to a draw by Maxime Vachier-Lagrave of France, while another American, Wesley So, split the point with Duda Jan-Kryzsztof of Poland.

With six rounds still to come in the 3,75,000 USD prize money tournament, Praggnanadhaa, Aronian, and Caruana share the lead on two points each, and they are now followed by Wesley, Firouzja, Vachier-Lagrave, Sevian and Gukesh — who all stand a half point behind.

Duda is next in line on one point, while Abdusattorov opened his account to be on a half point from his first three outings here.

ALSO READ | Chennai Grand Masters 2025: Vincent finds the key to future greatness

For Gukesh, the first draw in the tournament was rather easy with black pieces. Samuel Sevian tried his hand at the Rosslimo variation against the Sicilian defence, but Gukesh was always in control. The middle game arrived and passed smoothly as both players exchanged pieces at regular intervals, leading to a drawn endgame.

Praggnanandhaa played his first black after two white games and chose the Nimzo-Indian defence, wherein Abdusattorov, struggling to find his form, could not get much. The players reached an opposite coloured Bishops’ endgame where the draw was a just result.

It could have been an uneventful day but for Caruana, who played a fine positional game to outwit Firouzja. The Fianchetto variation against the Nimzo gave Caruana a spatial advantage as his pieces stood better in the middle game, and after a fine grind, the American pushed his central passed pawn to the seventh rank for the desired effect.

With the top four places in the Grand Chess Tour at stake for the grand finale later this year, Caruana seemed pleased with his victory. The American observed that Vachier-Lagrave has almost qualified, and the rest of the bunch is fighting for the last spots.

Published on Aug 21, 2025