Norway Chess: Viswanathan Anand Loses To Shakhriyar Mamedyarov, Slips to the third spot

Indian grandmaster Viswanathan Anand lost to Azerbaijan's Shakhriyar Mamedyarov in the ninth round of the Norway Chess tournament. The 37-year-old Azerbaijan player got ahead due to an error made by Anand and gained three full points.

This was a setback for him as Norwegian star Magnus Carlsen shot into the sole lead. He defeated Frenchman Maxime Vachier-Lagrave after the regular classical game ended in a marathon 79-move draw.

Anand had earlier beat Carlsen to lead the standings after the fifth round. After losing against Mamedyarov in 22 moves in the Classical match, he slipped to the third spot with 13 points at the conclusion of the eighth round.

Anand had earlier shown impressive form during his game with Carlsen.

In the Norway Chess tournament, the players take part in Armageddon (sudden death) in case of a draw in the classical match.

American Wesley So lost in Armageddon to veteran player Bulgarian Veselin Topalov. Azerbaijani chess grandmaster Teimour Radjabov won against China's Hao Wang in a sudden death tiebreak. Dutch player Anish Giri defeated Norway's Aryan Tari in 61 moves in the classical match.

Carlsen now has 15 points followed by Mamedyarov on 14.5. Vachier-Lagrave is behind Anand by half a point. The ninth and final round will be played on Friday night.