BENGALURU: Before the fourth edition of the Global Chess League, Magnus Carlsen was asked what he was most looking forward to. "Want to flag the s*** out of Alireza Firouzja," he had said, in jest. It was one of several reasons why this particular match between Alpine APL Pipers and Triveni Continental Kings attracted a lot of attention on a Tuesday evening.
The crowd started filling out the seats pretty soon while the fanzone was borderline overflowing when the players were introduced. Carlsen didn't get his wish but both players duked it out from start to finish before the game finished in a draw. However, the Continental Kings, champions the first two seasons, won on some of the other boards to beat Carlsen's Pipers.
In the day's late game, Javokhir Sindarov beat Viswanathan Anand for a second time on the trot to help FYERS American Gambits edge past PBG Alaskan Knights. The contender to the World Championship, Sindarov, who opened GCL with a win over the five-time world champion on Saturday, completed the double after Anand ran out of time. Alaskan Knights had also lost on board 2 as Nihal Sarin beat Arjun Erigaisi in an all Indian affair but Yagiz Kaan Erdogmus enjoyed a big win over Daniil Dubov. That, though, wasn't enough.
After the fourth day, as many as four teams share first spot on nine points (American Gambits lead on account of a better tie-break score).