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          Global Chess League: Carlsen beaten by the clock; Anand, Pragg go down on Day 2

          Global Chess League
          • ESPN staffOct 4, 2024, 11:55 PM ET

          World No 1 Magnus Carlsen ran out of time in his match against Alireza Firouzja as reigning champions Triveni Continental Kings beat league favourites Alpine Sg Pipers 17-4 in season 2 of the Global Chess League in London on Friday. It was not the best of day's for India's stars as Vishwanathan Anand and R Pragnanandhaa lost their respective matches.

          Later India's Nihal Sarin was the standout player of the day as the PBG Alaskan Knights emerged as the sole leaders beating the American Gambits 14-2, followed by a narrow 8-5 win over the Mumba Masters.

          Here's a look at the results:

          Carlsen goes down to Firouzja

          The early stages of the first match were evenly balanced between the two teams. The first to break through was Richard Rapport of the Pipers, who launched an attack on Teimour Radjabov. Soon after, former women's world champions Hou Yifan and Alexandra Kosteniuk agreed to a draw, giving Pipers a 4-1 lead. The other four boards went down to the wire.

          After testing his opponent in the middlegame, Carlsen managed to find a weakness in Firouzja's position, to gain the upper hand. But Firouzja wasn't giving up - his position was lost but he had the time advantage.

          With no time increment, the pressure shifted to Carlsen and despite his efforts, the Norwegian ultimately lost on time, a rare occurrence for him. This critical victory gave Triveni four points and the lead in the match.

          R Pragnanandhaa then fell to Wei Yi on board two, further strengthening Triveni's command of the match.

          Anand, Eriagaisi's team stumbles

          Five-time world champion Vishwanathan Anand went down to former world blitz champion Maxime Vachier-Lagrave as upGrad Mumba Masters registered a 14-5 win over Ganges Grandmasters.

          Despite holding a better position, Anand made a tactical sacrifice, allowing Vachier-Lagrave to turn the tables. Although facing time pressure, the French star tapped into his blitz champion instincts, tightening his control over the game and ultimately clinching a vital victory.

          upGrad Mumba Masters, who played the match as Black - took control from there, with a win on the youngsters' board and a draw on the second women's board, pushing them into the lead.

          Ganges Grandmasters couldn't catch a break, and despite world number three Arjun Erigaisi's best efforts, he could only manage a draw against Vidit Gujrathi. The situation worsened when Koneru Humpy overcame Vaishali R, clinching the match for the upGrad Mumba Masters.

          While Parham Maghsoodloo secured a hard-fought victory against Peter Svidler to salvage some pride for the Ganges, it wasn't enough to save them from a 14-5 defeat.

          Anish Giri holds Hikaru Nakamura, Sarin clinches decider

          Earlier in the day, PBG Alaskan Knights took on the American Gambits with the former playing with white pieces.

          On board one - icon players Anish Giri (Alaskan Knights) and Hikaru Nakamura (American Gambits) drew their game despite a lot of options on the board to consider.

          When asked if they are happy with the outcome, both confirmed but Nakamura noted it was Giri's choice to go for a draw. As the match progressed, this turned out to be a good call for Giri as his teammates secured four victories (on the youngsters board, the women's boards and one of the superstar boards) and one more draw, for a convincing score of 14-2.

          After this round, PBG Alaskan Knights emerged as the sole leaders of the tournament, with six match points, while the American Gambits remained on three.

          In the final match of the day, Alaskan Knights beat upGrad Mumba Masters.

          On board one, Giri and Vachier-Lagrave quickly agreed to a draw, as did Shakhriyar Mamedyarov and Peter Svidler. Mumba's Vidit Gujrathi had an opportunity to turn the tide against Nodirbek Abdusattorov, but after gaining a promising position, time pressure forced him to settle for a draw.

          With the match hanging in the balance, it all came down to the final board. Nihal Sarin, the star youngster of the Alaskan Knights, pulled off a crucial win against Raunak Sadhwani, securing an 8-5 victory.