Tal Memorial: Anand slips to third spot after draw

Five-time world champion Anand has been in fine form in the tournament. After a draw against Giri, Anand scripted a brilliant win against Shakhriayar Mamedyarov of Azerbaijan in the second round to move into joint-lead.

Anand started the black with a Nimzo-Indian against the Chinese. By the time it reached the mid-game, Anand had an extra pawn on the board, but Li Chao was still slightly ahead. The Indian maestro decided to play it safe and gave away the extra pawn and settled into an easy end game that led to a draw.

Overnight joint leaders Giri and Nepomniachtchi won their respective third round games to move ahead of Anand. Top seed Vladimir Kramnik now sits at the bottom after his loss to  Nepomniachtchi.

Six more rounds remain to be played.

Leaderboard: Ian Nepomniachtchi (Rus, 2.5), Anish Giri (Ned, 2.5), Viswanathan Anand (Ind, 2), Peter Svidler (Rus, 1.5), Levon Aronian (Arm, 1.5), Shakhriayar Mamedyarov (Aze, 1.5), Li Chao (China, 1.5), Vladimir Kramnik (Rus, 1)