Arjun Erigaisi dominates 5th Stepan Avagyan Memorial with a 2823 performance
Arjun Erigaisi is playing phenomenally for a really long time. Despite winning 5th Stepan Avagyan Memorial 2024 with a round to spare, he did not want a quick draw. He kept fighting against Manuel Petrosyan (ARM). Tried to look for chances. While all other games got over much earlier, Arjun played on. The game only ended in a draw via perpetual check as there was no better choice left for the current World no.4. He scored an unbeaten 6.5/9, with a performance of 2823 and gained 7.2 Elo rating points, taking his live rating to 2778.1. The defending champion, Samuel Sevian (USA), M Amin Tabatabaei (IRI) and Bogdan-Daniel Deac (ROU) scored 5/9 each. They secured second, third and fourth place respectively. However, they shared the prize as per the tournament regulations. Photo: Chess Academy of Armenia
Arjun keeps fighting, even after winning the tournament
Arjun Erigaisi is a world-class player. He is a soft-spoken powerhouse. The world is talking about him as he is letting his performance on the board speak for himself. The strong Category 17 tournament had an average rating of 2668. The total prize fund of the tournament was 7450000 AMD (≈ US$ 18400). The top three prizes were 3100000 AMD (≈ US$ 7976), 1 850 000 AMD (≈ US$ 4760) and 1500000 (≈ US$ 3859) each. There were also Chessify prizes for all ten participants. The top three Chessify prizes were - bundles worth $350, $300 and $250 each
By IM Sagar Shah
Arjun hasn't played many super tournaments but that's because he hasn't got invitations. Since 2024 began, he has played the following classical tournaments:
1. Bundesliga (West)
2. Israeli National League
3. Shenzhen Masters
4. Grenke Open
5. Menorca Open
6. Tepe Sigeman
7. Sharjah Masters
8. The French League
9. Stepan Avagyan Memorial
Apart from that he has also played in Rapid and Blitz events like the Warsaw leg of the Grand Chess Tour. In all the above tournaments combined he has played in 70 games, with 41 wins, 27 draws and just 2 losses - making it a total Elo gain of 40.9.
The boy is the current India no.1 by 15 Elo points ahead of Gukesh and the world no.4 behind Carlsen, Nakamura and Caruana. Arjun's grit, persistence and never give up spirit is simply amazing. Take a bow, Arjun. 2800 Elo is not too far you!
Photo Gallery
Chess journalist, Tarjei J Svensen shared Arjun Erigaisi's rating jump is third highest for a 2700 player. The top two are - Magnus Carlsen and Maxime Vachier-Lagrave. That certainly speaks volumes about Arjun's strength.
Game theory expert, Dr. Mehmet Ismail shared the following
Replay Round 9 games
Round 9 results
| Bo. | No. | Rtg | Name | Result | Name | Rtg | No. | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 5 | 2680 | GM | Deac Bogdan-Daniel | ½ - ½ | GM | Martirosyan Haik M. | 2662 | 10 | |||
| 2 | 6 | 2650 | GM | Murzin Volodar | ½ - ½ | GM | Bluebaum Matthias | 2647 | 4 | |||
| 3 | 7 | 2625 | GM | Petrosyan Manuel | ½ - ½ | GM | Erigaisi Arjun | 2761 | 3 | |||
| 4 | 8 | 2611 | GM | Hovhannisyan Robert | ½ - ½ | GM | Sevian Samuel | 2687 | 2 | |||
| 5 | 9 | 2639 | GM | Sargsyan Shant | ½ - ½ | GM | Tabatabaei M. Amin | 2713 | 1 |
Final standings
| Rk. | SNo | Name | FED | Rtg | Pts. | TB1 | TB2 | TB3 | K | rtg+/- | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3 | GM | Erigaisi Arjun | IND | 2761 | 6,5 | 26,75 | 0 | 4 | 10 | 7,2 | |
| 2 | 2 | GM | Sevian Samuel | USA | 2687 | 5 | 22,25 | 0 | 4 | 10 | 2,3 | |
| 3 | 1 | GM | Tabatabaei M. Amin | IRI | 2713 | 5 | 21,75 | 0 | 4 | 10 | -1,3 | |
| 4 | 5 | GM | Deac Bogdan-Daniel | ROU | 2680 | 5 | 21,50 | 0 | 4 | 10 | 3,1 | |
| 5 | 8 | GM | Hovhannisyan Robert | ARM | 2611 | 4,5 | 19,25 | 0 | 5 | 10 | 7,7 | |
| 6 | 10 | GM | Martirosyan Haik M. | ARM | 2662 | 4,5 | 19,00 | 0 | 5 | 10 | 0,8 | |
| 7 | 7 | GM | Petrosyan Manuel | ARM | 2625 | 4 | 18,25 | 0 | 5 | 10 | 0,8 | |
| 8 | 9 | GM | Sargsyan Shant | ARM | 2639 | 4 | 17,25 | 0 | 5 | 10 | -1 | |
| 9 | 4 | GM | Bluebaum Matthias | GER | 2647 | 3,5 | 15,00 | 0 | 4 | 10 | -7,1 | |
| 10 | 6 | GM | Murzin Volodar | FID | 2650 | 3 | 13,00 | 0 | 5 | 10 | -12,5 |
Time Control
90 minutes for the first 40 moves + 30 minutes for the rest of the game (with 30 seconds increment starting from move one).
Prizes
The total prize fund is 7450000 AMD (≈ US$ 18400). The top three prizes are 3100000 AMD (≈ US$ 7976), 1 850 000 AMD (≈ US$ 4760) and 1500000 (≈ US$ 3859). There are also Chessify prizes for all ten participants. The top three Chessify prizes are - bundles worth $350, $300 and $250 each.
Schedule
| Sunday | 9 June at 19:00 | Opening Ceremony |
| Monday | 10 June at 15:00 | Round 1 |
| Tuesday | 11 June at 15:00 | Round 2 |
| Wednesday | 12 June at 15:00 | Round 3 |
| Thursday | 13 June at 15:00 | Round 4 |
| Friday | 14 June at 15:00 | Round 5 |
| Saturday | 15 June at 15:00 | Round 6 |
| Sunday | 16 June at 15:00 | Round 7 |
| Monday | 17 June at 15:00 | Round 8 |
| Tuesday | 18 June at 11:00 | Round 9 |
| Tuesday | 18 June at 17:00 | Closing Ceremony |
