GM Alireza Firouzja took down World Champion Gukesh Dommaraju as Triveni Continental Kings won 15-3 to stay perfect on day two of the Tech Mahindra Global Chess League 2025. Other team leaders had mixed days. GM Hikaru Nakamura beat GM Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, but his team Fyers American Gambits lost 7-9 to upGrad Mumba Masters. GM Shakhriyar Mamedyarov starred for the team from Mumbai, with a brilliant win over GM Richard Rapport.
GM Fabiano Caruana also beat GM Viswanathan Anand on top board for Alpine SG Pipers, but saw his team lose 7-13 to the Ganges Grandmasters, after wins for GM Javokhir Sindarov, IM Polina Shuvalova, and GM Raunak Sadhwani.
Day three starts on Tuesday, December 16, at 6:30 a.m. ET / 12:30 CET / 5 p.m. IST.
The standings have opened up, with two teams still perfect and two yet to score a single match point.
There were three matches on day two, with all the teams in action.
upGrad Mumba Masters 9-7 Fyers American Gambits
Nakamura may be feeling homesick after the birth of his child last week, but it hasn’t hindered his chess. On day one he drew against Gukesh, and on day two he beat Vachier-Lagrave in an endgame that initially looked to be in the Frenchman’s favor. We got all the way down to opposite-colored bishops and very limited forces, when 44.Rd2? turned out to be a losing move.
Nakamura again recapped that game and more of the day’s action.
That win wasn’t enough for the American Gambits, however, since GM Bardiya Daneshvar wasn’t gifted a piece on day two, but he did outplay World Rapid Champion GM Volodar Murzin on the board and on the clock to grab a second win in a row.
The crucial game, however, was what GM Rafael Leitao describes as “a true attacking masterpiece by Mamedyarov.” The star move was 21.Raf1!!, but it had to be spotted in advance.
That’s our Game of the Day, which is analyzed below.
The upGrad Mumba Masters could celebrate a narrow 9-7 victory.
Mamedyarov, So & the other upGrad Mumba Masters players celebrate their win! #TechMGCL #MegaMove pic.twitter.com/JhvDWUIMt6
— chess24 (@chess24com) December 15, 2025
While that match had been between two teams who won on day one, the second was between two teams that lost.
Alpine SG Pipers 7-13 Ganges Grandmasters
Anand is of course an absolute legend in India, but his toughest world championship loss came on Indian soil, and again he’s struggled so far in Mumbai. After losing to Firouzja on day one, he was put to the sword by Caruana on day two, with the U.S. star executing a brutal combination after Anand put his queen on the wrong square.
As we mentioned, however, that didn’t hurt the Ganges Grandmasters. IM Polina Shuvalova caught women’s number-one GM Hou Yifan in a mating net in what should have been a holdable endgame, GM Raunak Sadhwani won a wild game against GM Leon Mendonca, and World Cup winner GM Javokhir Sindarov managed to out-hustle a player he’ll face in the 2026 FIDE Candidates Tournament, GM Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu.
Sindarov won a dramatic battle against his future Candidates opponent Praggnanandhaa! https://t.co/FvpXHKuvwJ#TechMGCL #MegaMove pic.twitter.com/9QUE62egEJ
— chess24 (@chess24com) December 15, 2025
That meant a second win for GM Nino Batsiashvili made no difference, and it also didn’t affect the match outcome that GM Anish Giri spoiled a fine attack against GM Vincent Keymer.
18.Nf6! should have been an absolute killer, but we saw a role-reversal of day one, when Keymer was completely winning against GM Wesley So but ultimately settled for a draw by repetition.
PBG Alaskan Knights 3-15 Triveni Continental Kings
This was a rematch of the 2024 Final, but at the same time it should be noted that not a single player on the 2024 PBG Alaskan Knights team is representing the team in 2025. The outcome was the same, however, with the Triveni Continental Kings continuing their bid to win a third title in a row with a dominant 15-3 victory, based on three four-point wins with the black pieces.
GM Marc Maurizzi ground out an endgame win against GM Daniel Dardha on the prodigy board, GM Zhu Jiner left GM Kateryna Lagno in close to zugzwang at the end of their game, while Firouzja once again led from the front, this time by taking down Gukesh. The finishing stages were very convincing, but midway through the game Gukesh had a chance to win the exchange with 14.Ba7.
He invested almost two minutes, but chose to play 14.b3? instead, after which Firouzja was the one pressing. Gukesh still had chances in what followed, but in the end everything collapsed for the world champion.
Firouzja follows his win over Caruana by taking down World Champion Gukesh! https://t.co/61yLYAvRjQ pic.twitter.com/BPN7YV4E56
— chess24 (@chess24com) December 15, 2025
GM Vidit Gujrathi talked about what it’s like to have such teammates as he made a second draw in a row.
Vidit: “After my game I saw Firouzja was winning, Marc’Andria had a great position & Zhu Jiner had already won, so it made my decision of making the draw very easy, so kudos to them!”#TechMGCL #MegaMove pic.twitter.com/sXdY4e1nyX
— chess24 (@chess24com) December 15, 2025
Firouzja vs. Nakamura will be among the highlights as the Continental Kings take on the American Gambits on day three.
The Tech Mahindra Global Chess League 2025 consists of a six-team double round-robin group stage and a final contested by the top two teams. In each match, all members of a team play with the same color, with four points for a win with Black and three for a win with White. All games have a 20-minute time control, with a two-second increment from move 41.
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