Fueled by Escapes, Vachier-Lagrave Leads Rapid After Day 1
GM Maxime Vachier-Lagrave is the sole leader of the 2024 Saint Louis Rapid & Blitz after the first day of rapid games. After escaping vs. GM Hikaru Nakamura and turning the tide vs. GM Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu, the French grandmaster defeated GM Nodirbek Abdusattorov in our Game of the Day.
Throughout the day, there was fighting chess aplenty, including an all-decisive round two. GMs Ian Nepomniachtchi, Levon Aronian, and Leinier Dominguez trail by a point in a tie for second.
The Saint Louis Rapid & Blitz will continue with rounds four through six of the rapid segment on Tuesday, August 13, at 2 p.m. ET / 20:00 CEST / 11:30 p.m. IST.
Standings
With its European events completed, the 2024 Grand Chess Tour has reached America's chess capital for its last speed chess event, the Saint Louis Rapid & Blitz.
GM Fabiano Caruana currently leads the tour comfortably after victories in both of the tournaments he's partaken in so far, the Superbet Chess Classic Romania and the SuperUnited Rapid & Blitz Croatia. GM Alireza Firouzja and Praggnanandhaa are on his tail in second and third place respectively.
American GMs Nakamura, Dominguez, and Aronian join the GCT mainstays to make this an enticing blend of playing styles and experience levels.
Levon Aronian has already arrived in St. Louis and is excited for the start of the #StLRapidandBlitz!#grandchesstour pic.twitter.com/x5kBvni7fH
— Grand Chess Tour (@GrandChessTour) August 10, 2024
Though a few games had potential for a decisive result, Nepomniachtchi was the only winner of round one. He stirred up trouble vs. Firouzja with the startling 63.g4!?, and his ambitious play paid off.
Surprised in the opening by Praggnanandhaa, Aronian fell into an 18-minute time deficit by move 17. Pressing his time edge into the ending, the prodigy was on the verge of a decisive advantage.
In an endgame arising from the Sicilian Dragon, Dominguez spotted a clever perpetual to untangle his pieces against Abdusattorov.
In round two, every game was decisive. Firouzja combined tactics and positional nuance to gain a superior knight against GM Wesley So's restricted bishop.
Vachier-Lagrave fought back from a worse position vs. Praggnanandhaa, ultimately turning it into a victory in the rook ending, though he later revealed: “Towards the end, I almost fell victim to a beautiful trap."
The rest of the round was defined by a slew of shocking blunders. First, Caruana blundered a bishop in the time scramble vs. Dominguez.
Nakamura made a mistake that left his forces scattered, giving Abdusattorov the opportunity to crash through tactically.
Nodirbek Abdusattorov outplayed Hikaru Nakamura! Check the last minutes of this intense and emotional game!#stlrapidblitz #grandchesstour pic.twitter.com/npcG9vQFJZ
— Grand Chess Tour (@GrandChessTour) August 12, 2024
Nepomniachtchi dropped a pawn vs. Aronian, who eventually ground his opponent down for the full point.
The last round of the day featured a matchup between the top two Americans, Nakamura and Caruana, with a wild fight straight from the opening. Both kings danced through the center as attacking chances swung back-and-forth between the players. Yet, Nakamura gained a vast time edge by move 10, making the double-edged position difficult for Caruana.
You can listen to Nakamura's video recap below.
Nepomniachtchi sacrificed a pawn to create kingside attacking chances against Praggnanandhaa. GM Peter Svidler shared his insights on the psychological side of Nepomniachtchi's approach:
This is a typical Ian game after a loss. He just finds a way to semi-bluff a little bit. He's a full pawn down, but the knight on h4 has a very nice f5-square. There's some things to look forward to.
In the end, Nepomniachtchi's quick, aggressive play succeeded. Unable to find a clear path to convert his advantage, Praggnanandhaa made inaccuracies in time trouble while the two-time challenger finished with most of his time still on the clock.
What a win for Ian!🤩 At the end of the game, Ian had 20 minutes left!🙌 Follow the live broadcast to catch all the action♟️🔥
— Saint Louis Chess Club (@STLChessClub) August 12, 2024
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♚#STLChessClub #STLRapidBlitz #GrandChessTour pic.twitter.com/mXLZuYAJN7
Vachier-Lagrave closed out the day with a clean endgame win vs. Abdusattorov. The French grandmaster's victory to take over the tournament lead is our Game of the Day. Enjoy analysis below by GM Rafael Leitao.
Vachier-Lagrave shared his reflections on each round:
I'm feeling well, of course, but I was in some trouble in both my black games. Against Hikaru first, this position felt a bit dubious all the way until the end... and then of course against Pragg, this English that didn't go so well, and this endgame that was on the defensive side for a while. I just got my chance when I got it.
Will he be able to keep his lead as a pack of players chase after him? Will Caruana and Praggnanandhaa resurge after their rocky starts?
How to watch?
You can review the round's broadcast on the Saint Louis Chess Club YouTube or Twitch channels. The games can also be reviewed from our dedicated 2024 Saint Louis Rapid & Blitz events page. You can also watch Nakamura's stream on Kick.
The broadcast was hosted by GMs Yasser Seirawan, Peter Svidler, Cristian Chirila, and IM Nazi Paikidze.
The 2024 Saint Louis Rapid & Blitz is the fourth leg and final rapid and blitz event of the 2024 Grand Chess Tour. Ten players compete in a rapid (25+10) single round-robin followed by a blitz (5+2) double round-robin for their share of a $175,000 prize fund.
Previous Coverage
Vanessa West is a National Master, a chess teacher, and a writer for Chess.com. In 2017, they won the Chess Journalist of the Year award.
You can follow them on X: Vanessa__West
