Magnus Carlsen had to rely on his experience and composure as he edged past Arjun Erigaisi to reach the Grand Final of the 2025 Chessable Masters. Carlsen, played with Black in the armageddon tiebreaker, and drew the India No. 2, and then sealed a 2.5-0.5 win vs Hikaru Nakamura, with a game to spare.
Arjun still has a chance to reach the Grand Final, through the Losers Bracket. Fabiano Caruana, Vladislav Artemiev, Wei Yi, Anish Giri, Andrey Esipenko and Yu Yangyi were also eliminated in the Losers bracket. Other than Nakamura, who advanced directly to the Loser Final, Arjun will face Ian Nepomniachtchi, Alireza Firouza will take on Jan-Krzysztof Duda in the Losers Quarterfinals.
In the first game against Arjun, Carlsen reigned supreme in a knight endgame, and had an extra pawn. Then it was followed by back-to-back draws. The third game was close as Carlsen almost won, but Arjun staged a comeback. Speaking on the game, Carlsen remarked, “It’s funny that rook against bishop is generally considered quite easy to win [with three pawns on the same side of the board], but he chose the most resilient setup and it wasn’t that easy.”
In the fourth game, Arjun once showcased why he is regarded so highly with a sensational win, from an equal endgame, to force an Armageddon tiebreaker. The World No. 1 managed to hold his nerves and edged out in a draw. According to armageddon rules, the player with Black gets less time on the clock. But if the game ends in a draw, the player with Black is declared the winner, and Erigaisi had the White pieces in the game.
‘I was very lucky’: Magnus Carlsen
Speaking after the match, Carlsen, who recently finished third at the Weissenhaus Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Tour, said, “It turned into a complete mess, and I was very lucky to get out of it with a win.”
Meanwhile, Erigaisi’s form will be a huge boost to his confidence, and he has built on his late streak from Wijk aan Zee, where he got wins against Nodirbek Abdusattorov and D Gukesh in the last two rounds.
