By Kavita Mistry 
Panaji (Goa): Grandmaster Arjun Erigaisi (2773) kept India’s flag flying high as he held Chinese Grandmaster Wei Yi (2754) to a solid draw in 31 moves in the first classical quarterfinal game of the $2 million FIDE World Cup 2026 at Hotel Resort Rio, Goa, on Monday. A place in the newly christened Viswanathan Anand Cup final and a coveted spot in the Candidates 2026, scheduled for March in Cyprus, await the winner of this prestigious event. It goes to the credit of the Andhra boy from Warangal that he drew his game against the dangerous Chinese GM Wei Yi without breaking a sweat. The TATA Steel 2024 champion took the opening battle into a Ruy Lopez Closed system, a position that held no demons for the Indian. Showing excellent preparation, GM Arjun Erigaisi maintained a time advantage throughout. By move 27, the game had simplified into a drawn rook-and-pawn ending, and the players agreed to a draw by threefold repetition after crossing the 30-move threshold.
Results (Quarterfinal Game 1):
Wei Yi drew with Arjun Erigaisi 0.5-0.5
Sam Shankland drew with Andrey Esipenko 0.5-0.5
Sindarov Javokhir drew with Martinez Alcantara Jose Eduardo 0.5-0.5
Yakubboev Nodirbek beat Donchenko Alexander 1-0.