Chennai

 Sharing the lead with Ponkratov at 2 points were Grandmasters Martinez Alcantara Jose Eduardo (Per), Aleksandrov Aleksej (Blr), Goganov Aleksey (Rus), Mchedlishvili Mikheil (Geo), Visakh N R (Ind) and Rozum Ivan (Rus) among others. First board game saw Ponkrantov accounting for Chennai boy Rathneesh R. It was the third board that brought the upset of the day, as Sanket Chakravarthy (Elo 2055) stunned defending champion GM Pantsulaia Levan (Elo 2598) of Georgia. The English opening game saw Sanket weaving his knight through the defences of black. Pantsulaia gave up his exchange and tried to restore the balance, but the Indian boy converted his advantage smoothly in 52 moves.

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