But playing with Black against Aronian in the fourth round and the first game of the day, Anand opted for the Grunfeld and got an almost equal position after the opening. In the endgame, Aronian had a passed pawn on the queen side and could have played for a win but defended well and got a draw.

But when Naiditsch took his revenge for first-round loss by beating Nepomniachtchi, Anand got another chance in the fifth round. In the fifth round game, Anand played as Black against Nepomniachtchi and again it was a dramatic clash. On the Black side of a Caro-Kann, Anand carefully converted an equal position into a slightly better one. The advantage was with Anand, but when a win looked certain, Anand was unable to find it and the draw came in 50 moves.

Now Anand's chances depended on Aronian beating Nepomniachtchi. Aronian tried his level best to beat Nepomniachtchi but was unable to get that win and finished with a draw. Meanwhile, Anand playing Naiditsch, kept on the eye on this game. As Aronian agreed to a draw, so did Anand.

Standings after final round of prelims:

1. Aronian (Arm, 4.5); 2. Nepomniachtchi (Rus, 3.5); 3. Anand (Ind, 2.5); 4. Naiditsch (Ger, 1.5).