Magnus Carlsen takes sole lead in Tata Steel India chess tournament

World No. 1 Magnus Carlsen produced a stellar performance to take the sole lead as he registered wins against SL Narayanan, Wesley So and Arjun Erigaysi at the Tata Steel Chess India Rapid Tournament in Kolkata on Thursday. Starting the day just half a point behind overnight leader Nodirbek Abdussaturov, the Norwegian's excellent play took him to the top of the leaderboard with five out of a possible six points in the 'Open' section. Russia's Alexandra Goryachkina produced an equally impressive performance in the women's category, taking the sole lead after three wins on the second day.

India's Vantika Agarwal and R. Her consecutive wins against Vaishali were followed by a win over Katarina Lagno, taking her tally to five.

Close behind Carlsen is former world rapid champion Abdusattorov with 4.5 points. The Uzbek prodigy held his own against Nihal Sarin and Vidit Gujarati in Rounds 4 and 5 and ended the day with a win over Narayanan, establishing himself as Carlsen's primary challenger heading into the final day .

In the women's category, Georgian Grandmaster Nana Dzaganidze is far behind Alexandra with four points. Dzaganidze's successful day included wins over Vaishali and Koneru Humpy, as well as a hard-fought draw with Katarina Lagno.

India's D. Harika and Vantika Agarwal and Valentina Gunina are tied for third place with 3.5 points.

Standings: (Open) Magnus Carlsen 5; Nodirbek Abdusattorov 4.5; Wesley So 3.5; Daniel Dubov and R. Praganananda 3; SL Narayanan and Vincent Keymer 2.5; Arjun Erigaysi, Nihal Sarin and Vidit Gujarati 2.

Women: Alexandra Goryachkina 5; Nana Dzaganidze 4; Vantika Agarwal, D Harika, Valentina Gunina 3.5; Katerina Lagno 3; Divya Deshmukh 2.5; Koneru Humpy, Alexandra Kosteniuk 2; R Vaishali 1.