B Vignesh triumphs at 1st Star Chess Foundation Rating Open 2025
B Vignesh and M Mridav scored an unbeaten 7.5/8 each at 1st Star Chess Foundation Rating Open 2025. Top seed of the tournament, Vignesh became champion due to better tie-break score, Mridav had to be content with second place. Four players - IM Ramnathan Balasubramaniam, B Selvamurugan, Saisarvesh Ar and FM Ayushh Ravikumar scored 7/8 each. They were placed third to sixth respectively. The total prize fund of the tournament was ₹400000, having 100 cash and 105 cups. The top three prizes were ₹40000, ₹30000 and ₹19000 along with a trophy each. The tournament was organized by Star Chess Foundation at JJ College of Engineering and Technology in Trichy, Tamil Nadu from 8th to 11th February 2025. This was Vignesh's first tournament triumph of the year. Photos: IA R Anantharam
Vignesh wins his first tournament of the year
B Vignesh of Chennai won the Star Chess Foundation 1st International Chess tournament held at J J College of Engineering, Trichy. He and M Mridav, also of Chennai scored 7.5 points each but Vignesh had a better tie-break score to win the title and a cash prize of ₹40000.
International master R Balasubramaniam of ICF finished third with a tally of seven points. Three more players B Selvamurugan of Thoothukudi, Ar Saisharvesh, and FM Ayushh Ravikumar of Chennai also scored seven points and were placed from fourth to sixth respectively.
Selvamurugan B, winner of the recent 4th SSS Rating Open in Pudukottai, secured fourth place by beating L Barath of Chennai.
11-year-old Ar Saisharvesh got the better of V Tarun of Salem in the final round to get the fifth place, with an increase in his rating by 65.2 points.
After a loss in the second round, second seeded FM Ayushh Ravikumar could muster only the sixth place, in spite of six consecutive victories.
Third seeded NS Dhanush Ragav’s win over K Marimuthu of Sivakasi, a visually impaired player who has represented India in the tournaments for such handicapped players, helped him to attain the seventh place.
Christy George of Kerala was ranked eighth, in spite of his loss to the runner-up Mridav in the final round.
Rahul Bharadwaj had one draw and one loss to secure the ninth position. The draw was against J Sridhar and the loss against Vignesh, the eventual winner.
The host J J College of Engineering and Technology, Trichy, run by Sowdambika Group of Institutions is a good supporter of sports, especially, chess. The huge air-conditioned hall can easily accommodate around 600 players in a chess tournament.
A total of 482 players including an IM took part from various states across the country, one from Canada and four from the USA. The tournament was organized by Star Chess Foundation at JJ College of Engineering and Technology in Trichy, Tamil Nadu from 8th to 11th February 2025. The eight-round Swiss league Rating tournament had a time control of 90 minutes + 30 seconds increment from move no.1.
Final standings
| Rk. | SNo | Name | Typ | sex | Gr | FED | RtgI | Club/City | Pts. | TB1 | TB2 | TB3 | TB4 | TB5 | n | w | we | w-we | K | rtg+/- | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | Vignesh, B | 9624CGL2024 | IND | 2185 | TN | 7,5 | 43 | 46,5 | 43,25 | 0 | 7 | 8 | 7,5 | 7,06 | 0,44 | 20 | 8,8 | ||||
| 2 | 13 | Mridav, M | U14 | 2327CHE2024 | IND | 1927 | TN | 7,5 | 40,5 | 44 | 41,00 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 6,5 | 5,13 | 1,37 | 40 | 54,8 | |||
| 3 | 4 | IM | Ramnathan, Balasubramaniam | 48/CHE/LIFE | IND | 1998 | TN | 7 | 40,5 | 43,5 | 36,00 | 0 | 7 | 8 | 7 | 5,75 | 1,25 | 10 | 12,5 | |||
| 4 | 7 | Selvamurugan, B | 9685MDU2024 | IND | 1972 | TN | 7 | 38 | 41,5 | 36,00 | 0 | 6 | 7 | 6 | 5,43 | 0,57 | 20 | 11,4 | ||||
| 5 | 34 | Ar, Saisharvesh | U12 | 1425CGL2024 | IND | 1789 | TN | 7 | 38 | 41 | 34,50 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 4,37 | 1,63 | 40 | 65,2 | |||
| 6 | 2 | FM | Ayushh, Ravikumar | 2397CHE2024 | IND | 2039 | TN | 7 | 36 | 39,5 | 34,50 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 6,10 | -0,10 | 20 | -2 | |||
| 7 | 3 | Dhanush, Ragav N S | 4365DGL2024 | IND | 2003 | TN | 6,5 | 42 | 46 | 35,50 | 0 | 6 | 8 | 6,5 | 6,31 | 0,19 | 20 | 3,8 | ||||
| 8 | 30 | Christy, George | U14 | KL | IND | 1814 | KL | 6,5 | 41,5 | 45,5 | 34,25 | 0 | 6 | 7 | 5,5 | 3,66 | 1,84 | 40 | 73,6 | |||
| 9 | 29 | Rahul, Bharadwaj B | 18090TLR2024 | IND | 1815 | TN | 6,5 | 41,5 | 45 | 34,25 | 0 | 6 | 7 | 5,5 | 3,45 | 2,05 | 20 | 41 | ||||
| 10 | 16 | Kanishkaraj, V | 24553CHE2024 | IND | 1893 | TN | 6,5 | 39,5 | 43,5 | 34,00 | 0 | 6 | 7 | 5,5 | 5,22 | 0,28 | 40 | 11,2 | ||||
| 11 | 6 | Hiren, K G | 2739CHE2024 | IND | 1985 | TN | 6,5 | 39 | 43 | 33,75 | 0 | 6 | 7 | 5,5 | 5,63 | -0,13 | 20 | -2,6 | ||||
| 12 | 10 | Sridhar, J | 21795TRY2024 | IND | 1943 | TN-T | 6,5 | 39 | 41 | 31,00 | 0 | 5 | 7 | 5,5 | 4,99 | 0,51 | 20 | 10,2 | ||||
| 13 | 20 | Santhosh, V L | U16 | 3735CHE2024 | IND | 1873 | TN | 6,5 | 38,5 | 41 | 32,75 | 0 | 5 | 7 | 5,5 | 5,17 | 0,33 | 40 | 13,2 | |||
| 14 | 26 | Saravanan, | 2305CHE2024 | IND | 1839 | TN | 6,5 | 37 | 40 | 30,25 | 0 | 6 | 7 | 5,5 | 4,37 | 1,13 | 20 | 22,6 | ||||
| 15 | 14 | Ayyappan, P Santhana Prabu | 2621CHE2024 | IND | 1902 | TN | 6,5 | 35,5 | 39 | 31,25 | 0 | 6 | 7 | 5,5 | 5,91 | -0,41 | 20 | -8,2 | ||||
| 16 | 24 | Unnikrishnan, M A | KL | IND | 1842 | KL | 6,5 | 35 | 38,5 | 30,75 | 0 | 5 | 7 | 5,5 | 5,72 | -0,22 | 20 | -4,4 | ||||
| 17 | 18 | Barath, L | 36983CHE2024 | IND | 1887 | TN | 6 | 42,5 | 44 | 29,50 | 0 | 6 | 7 | 5 | 4,47 | 0,53 | 20 | 10,6 | ||||
| 18 | 46 | Yogesh, Selvam | 7242TNJ2024 | IND | 1722 | TN | 6 | 40,5 | 45 | 32,25 | 0 | 5 | 7 | 5 | 3,37 | 1,63 | 20 | 32,6 | ||||
| 19 | 31 | Adharva, P T | U14 | 6582SLM2024 | IND | 1813 | TN | 6 | 40 | 44,5 | 31,75 | 0 | 5 | 7 | 5 | 4,48 | 0,52 | 40 | 20,8 | |||
| 20 | 8 | FM | Vinoth Kumar, M. | 9709CHE2024 | IND | 1944 | TN | 6 | 40 | 44 | 31,00 | 0 | 6 | 7 | 5 | 5,51 | -0,51 | 20 | -10,2 | |||
| 21 | 15 | Gokul, G | U14 | 9019VPM2024 | IND | 1900 | TN | 6 | 40 | 44 | 31,00 | 0 | 5 | 7 | 5 | 5,00 | 0,00 | 40 | 0,0 | |||
| 22 | 52 | Manikandan, Tayalan | 1755CGL2024 | IND | 1694 | TN | 6 | 39,5 | 43 | 29,50 | 0 | 5 | 7 | 5 | 3,13 | 1,87 | 20 | 37,4 | ||||
| 23 | 5 | Sivan, S Roshan | 23673CHE2024 | IND | 1997 | TN | 6 | 39 | 43,5 | 31,75 | 0 | 4 | 7 | 5 | 6,03 | -1,03 | 20 | -20,6 | ||||
| 24 | 22 | Vakeesh, S | 3122CGL2024 | IND | 1862 | TN | 6 | 39 | 42,5 | 29,50 | 0 | 5 | 7 | 5 | 4,64 | 0,36 | 20 | 7,2 | ||||
| 25 | 12 | Rutherford, S | 1322KKI2024 | IND | 1932 | TN | 6 | 39 | 40,5 | 28,75 | 0 | 4 | 7 | 5 | 5,76 | -0,76 | 20 | -15,2 |
About the Author
Prof. Rathinam Anantharam is an A-grade international arbiter. Member of FIDE Arbiters’ Commission, Chairman of Titles Commission in All India Chess Federation, Vice President of Tamil Nadu State Chess Association, Chief Arbiter for six world championships, many Asian, International and National Championships. Nominated as one of the top seven arbiters in the world for the past hundred years by FIDE.
The report was edited by Shahid Ahmed
