BENGALURU: Defending champions APL Pipers bounced back to beat Alaskan Knights 11-6 in their second match of the day and move to the top of the standings after Day 6 of the Global Chess League in Bengaluru on Thursday.The Pipers’ victory came after they had suffered a 4-12 defeat to Ganges Grandmasters earlier in the day. Ganges, playing with the black pieces, produced a dominant performance without dropping a single game.Stavroula Tsolakidou handed Koneru Humpy her second defeat of the season, while Levon Aronian turned around a difficult position to beat Anish Giri in 61 moves.Aronian, named Player of the Match, admitted he had been “very lucky” but said he always believed he could find the best moves despite his poor start.The Pipers responded strongly in their second match. Magnus Carlsen, playing White, defeated Viswanathan Anand, before Humpy, against formidable Nino Batsiashvili, led the charge with her fourth win of the season.After the match, Humpy, who won the Man of The Match, revealed that the current World No. 1 and her Pipers teammate Magnus Carlsen plays the role of a motivator inside the dressing room.“He (Carlsen) is motivating us a lot,” she told reporters. “Like, even when we lose a match, like, he’s telling us how to approach the game and how we should maintain our cool. So yes, having him is a great inspiration.”
Grandmaster Volodar Murzin then sealed the team victory by beating Abhimanyu Mishra in a time scramble. For the Alaskan Knights, 15-year-old Yagiz Kaan Erdogmus was the only winner, scoring four points with the black pieces.Earlier, Mumba Masters kept their playoff hopes alive with a convincing 14-5 win over Triveni Continental Kings. Maxime Vachier-Lagrave defeated Alireza Firouzja on the Icon board, while Shakhriyar Mamedyarov beat Aravindh Chithambaram on the Superstar men’s board. Bardiya Daneshvar also won on the Prodigy board.APL Pipers and American Gambits are level on 15 match points. Ganges Grandmasters are third on 15 match points, just one game point behind. With each team having only two more matches over the next couple of days, the battle for the top two spots could change again on Friday.GCL 2026 Standings after Day 6
| Pos | Team | M | W | L | MP | GP |
| 1 | APL Pipers | 8 | 5 | 3 | 15 | 73 |
| 2 | American Gambits | 8 | 5 | 3 | 15 | 73 |
| 3 | Ganges Grandmasters | 8 | 5 | 3 | 15 | 72 |
| 4 | Mumba Masters | 8 | 4 | 4 | 12 | 73 |
| 5 | Alaskan Knights | 8 | 3 | 5 | 9 | 64 |
| 6 | Triveni Continental Kings | 8 | 2 | 6 | 6 | 57 |
GCL 2026 Day 7 Schedule — Friday, September 11
| Time | Fixture |
| 5:00 PM | Triveni Continental Kings vs Alaskan Knights |
| 6:30 PM | APL Pipers vs American Gambits |
| 8:00 PM | Ganges Grandmasters vs Mumba Masters |
