Firouzja Returns To Titled Tuesday With Spectacular Win
GMs Dmitry Andreikin and Alireza Firouzja were the victors in Titled Tuesday on November 8, both with scores of 9.5/11, Andreikin on tiebreaks and Firouzja outright. It was Andreikin's 10th Titled Tuesday victory of the year and Firouzja's second, in just eight tries since his return to the event on October 18.
Early Tournament
Andreikin built a half-point lead over the field by reaching 9/10 with a win over GM Oleksandr Bortnyk in the 10th round, delivering checkmate in 34 moves out of a Berlin Defense.
GM Tuan Minh Le joined Andreikin in the final round by defeating GM Hikaru Nakamura in an endgame as Andreikin made a 10-move draw with GM Jose Martinez.
Minh Le, who dropped his third-round game, had also defeated Firouzja in the 10th round to climb back into second place as Andreikin held the tiebreak advantage. Runner-up status was still a major feat for the player who was a half-point behind after nine rounds with possibly the two toughest opponents in the field coming up.
November 8 Titled Tuesday | Early | Final Standings (Top 20)
| Number | Rk | Fed | Title | Username | Name | Rating | Score | SB |
| 1 | 7 | GM | @FairChess_on_YouTube | Dmitry Andreikin | 3046 | 9.5 | 60.5 | |
| 2 | 23 | GM | @wonderfultime | Tuan Minh Le | 2987 | 9.5 | 58.5 | |
| 3 | 5 | GM | @Oleksandr_Bortnyk | Oleksandr Bortnyk | 3081 | 9 | 57 | |
| 4 | 9 | GM | @mishanick | Alexey Sarana | 2997 | 9 | 52.5 | |
| 5 | 19 | GM | @vi_pranav | Pranav V | 2978 | 9 | 51 | |
| 6 | 37 | GM | @AryanTari | Aryan Tari | 2932 | 9 | 50.25 | |
| 7 | 10 | GM | @Jospem | Jose Eduardo Martinez Alcantara | 3017 | 9 | 47.5 | |
| 8 | 1 | GM | @Hikaru | Hikaru Nakamura | 3216 | 8.5 | 61.75 | |
| 9 | 13 | GM | @dropstoneDP | David Paravyan | 3023 | 8.5 | 58.5 | |
| 10 | 40 | GM | @VerdeNotte | Gawain Jones | 2897 | 8.5 | 49.75 | |
| 11 | 12 | GM | @DenLaz | Denis Lazavik | 3004 | 8 | 52.25 | |
| 12 | 18 | GM | @rasmussvane | Rasmus Svane | 3008 | 8 | 51 | |
| 13 | 25 | GM | @Sam_ChessMood | Samvel Ter-Sahakyan | 2910 | 8 | 50.5 | |
| 14 | 59 | GM | @XDPS | Pablo Salinas Herrera | 2869 | 8 | 50.25 | |
| 15 | 8 | GM | @BogdanDeac | Bogdan Daniel Deac | 3013 | 8 | 48.5 | |
| 16 | 118 | GM | @Byniolus | Zbigniew Pakleza | 2755 | 8 | 45.75 | |
| 17 | 27 | GM | @BillieKimbah | Maxim Matlakov | 2934 | 8 | 45.25 | |
| 18 | 80 | GM | @TimurGareyev | Timur Gareyev | 2811 | 8 | 44.5 | |
| 19 | 29 | GM | @Parhamov | Parham Maghsoodloo | 2929 | 8 | 43 | |
| 19 | 117 | IM | @jakopogi | Michael Concio Jr. | 2759 | 8 | 43 | |
| 19 | 6 | GM | @Sibelephant | Vladislav Artemiev | 3024 | 8 | 43 | |
| 56 | 152 | WGM | @Meri-Arabidze | Meri Arabidze | 2641 | 7 | 33 |
(Full final standings here.)
Andreikin earned $1,000 with the victory while Minh Le took home a well-earned $750. Bortnyk wound up in third for $350, with GM Alexey Sarana in fourth for $200 and GM Pranav V in fifth for $100. WGM Meri Arabidze won the $100 women's prize with a 7/11 score.
Late Tournament
After a tough early tournament, Firouzja started only 2.5/4 in the late event before winning his final seven games. His last three contests came against a "murderers' row" of GM Jeffery Xiong, Nakamura, and GM Daniil Dubov. The last victory against Dubov broke their tie to clinch Firouzja's comeback and the tournament.
Despite his loss to Firouzja, Xiong finished in second place, which he achieved by defeating Nakamura in the final round.
November 8 Titled Tuesday | Late | Final Standings (Top 20)
| Number | Rk | Fed | Title | Username | Name | Rating | Score | SB |
| 1 | 2 | GM | @Firouzja2003 | Alireza Firouzja | 3130 | 9.5 | 64.25 | |
| 2 | 13 | GM | @jefferyx | Jeffery Xiong | 3012 | 9 | 55 | |
| 3 | 49 | IM | @I_am_Javi | Ernesto Javier Fernandez Guillen | 2807 | 9 | 54 | |
| 4 | 8 | GM | @dropstoneDP | David Paravyan | 3023 | 9 | 47.75 | |
| 5 | 16 | GM | @Duhless | Daniil Dubov | 2997 | 8.5 | 54.5 | |
| 6 | 12 | GM | @GM_dmitrij | Dmitrij Kollars | 2999 | 8.5 | 49.25 | |
| 7 | 25 | GM | @Msb2 | Matthias Bluebaum | 2958 | 8.5 | 48.5 | |
| 8 | 52 | GM | @AvitalBor | Avital Boruchovsky | 2847 | 8.5 | 47.5 | |
| 9 | 3 | GM | @Oleksandr_Bortnyk | Oleksandr Bortnyk | 3081 | 8.5 | 44.25 | |
| 10 | 29 | GM | @Fandorine | Maksim Chigaev | 2924 | 8.5 | 41.25 | |
| 11 | 31 | GM | @TigrVShlyape | Gata Kamsky | 2915 | 8 | 48.25 | |
| 12 | 28 | GM | @Beca95 | Aleksandar Indjic | 2929 | 8 | 46.5 | |
| 13 | 11 | GM | @rasmussvane | Rasmus Svane | 3008 | 8 | 46.25 | |
| 14 | 4 | GM | @exoticprincess | Baadur Jobava | 2981 | 8 | 45.75 | |
| 15 | 38 | GM | @frederiksvane | Frederik Svane | 2859 | 8 | 45.25 | |
| 16 | 1 | GM | @Hikaru | Hikaru Nakamura | 3216 | 8 | 44.75 | |
| 17 | 24 | GM | @jcibarra | José Carlos Ibarra Jerez | 2903 | 8 | 44.25 | |
| 18 | 9 | GM | @BogdanDeac | Bogdan Daniel Deac | 3013 | 8 | 43.75 | |
| 19 | 15 | GM | @erichansen | Eric Hansen | 2950 | 8 | 43 | |
| 20 | 5 | GM | @FairChess_on_YouTube | Dmitry Andreikin | 3046 | 8 | 42.75 | |
| 45 | 91 | GM | @Goryachkina | Aleksandra Goryachkina | 2655 | 7 | 27 |
(Full final standings here.)
Firouzja won $1,000, the first-place prize, while Xiong took $750 for second. IM Ernesto Fernandez earned $350 for third place and GM David Paravyan $200 in the fourth position. Dubov secured $100 for fifth place despite his loss in the final round, and GM Aleksandra Goryachkina won the $100 women's prize with a 7/11 score.
Titled Tuesday is a weekly Chess.com event held for titled players. Two 11-round Swiss tournaments are contested every Tuesday, beginning at 8:00 a.m. Pacific Time/17:00 Central European and 2:00 p.m. Pacific Time/23:00 Central European.
Nathaniel Green is a staff writer for Chess.com who writes articles, player biographies, Titled Tuesday reports, video scripts, and more. He has been playing chess for about 30 years and resides near Washington, DC, USA.
