Ganges Grandmasters and defending champions Alpine APL Pipers secured convincing victories in the penultimate Global Chess League Season 4 round in Bengaluru, moving closer to the final. Ganges Grandmasters topped the standings on game score, while American Gambits remained third.
Ganges Grandmasters and defending champions Alpine APL Pipers strengthened their chances of reaching the Global Chess League (GCL) Season 4 final with impressive victories in the penultimate round in Bengaluru on Friday.
The Ganges Grandmasters produced the biggest win of the tournament, defeating CheQ Mumba Masters by a massive 16-1 margin, while Alpine APL Pipers overcame FYERS American Gambits 9-7 in a crucial clash between the top two teams. In the other match of the day, Triveni Continental Kings defeated PBG Alaskan Knights 13-7.
With the victories, both Ganges Grandmasters and Alpine APL Pipers moved to 18 match points. However, Ganges Grandmasters took the top position in the overall standings because of their superior game score following their emphatic victory over Mumba Masters.
The defending champions had to work considerably harder for their victory against American Gambits. The two sides entered the ninth round level on both match points and game points, making the result particularly important in the race for the final.
World No. 1 Magnus Carlsen played a decisive role for Alpine APL Pipers, ending Candidates 2026 winner Javokhir Sindarov’s three-game winning streak. Carlsen maintained control on the icon board and eventually forced Sindarov to resign after 36 moves. His performance earned him the Player of the Match award.
Carlsen praised the overall team effort after the victory and highlighted the contribution of Indian Grandmaster Vidit Gujrathi, who secured another crucial win for the Pipers.
Vidit defeated Daniil Dubov in a marathon 96-move encounter on the Superstar men’s board. The game entered a tense time scramble, but Vidit remained composed and successfully converted his additional knight and pawn advantage against Dubov’s rook to secure victory.
Vidit’s win sealed the match for Alpine APL Pipers and helped the defending champions complete a double over American Gambits.
Women’s World Cup winner Divya Deshmukh, meanwhile, continued to struggle in her debut GCL campaign. She lost on time against Bibisara Assaubayeva on move 34, registering the only defeat for the Pipers in the match.
The result left American Gambits in third place with 15 match points. They now need one of the top two teams to lose in the final round, while also requiring a convincing victory over CheQ Mumba Masters to keep their final hopes alive.
Ganges Grandmasters were in dominant form against Mumba Masters. Icon player Ian Nepomniachtchi, Superstar men Levon Aronian and Leinier Dominguez Perez, Superstar woman Stavroula Tsolakidou and prodigy Leon Luke Mendonca all secured convincing victories with the white pieces. Polina Shuvalova drew against D. Harika, allowing Mumba Masters to register their only game point of the match.
In the other penultimate-round encounter, two-time champions Triveni Continental Kings proved too strong for PBG Alaskan Knights. Zhu Jiner recorded her first win of the tournament by defeating Kateryna Lagno in 44 moves, while Alexandra Kosteniuk capitalised on an error by Nino Batsiashvili.
On the prodigy board, Pranav Venkatesh defeated Abhimanyu Mishra after 42 moves. Although Arjun Erigaisi beat Wei Yi and 15-year-old Yagiz Kaan Erdogmus defeated Aravindh Chithambaram for the Alaskan Knights, their victories could not change the outcome.
Triveni Continental Kings collected 12 points from three victories with the black pieces, underlining their strength in the match.
| Also Read: P.T. Usha shares nostalgic track memories as 80s trend goes viral |
With just one round remaining, Ganges Grandmasters and Alpine APL Pipers are now within touching distance of the Season 4 final. Both teams will need victories in their final matches to guarantee their places in the title clash, while American Gambits face a must-win situation and will also need favourable results elsewhere.
