All posts tagged: indian chess

Rathanvel VS becomes India’s 99th Grandmaster

Rathanvel VS becomes India’s 99th Grandmaster

Published by Webster

Tamil Nadu’s Rathanvel VS has become India’s 99th Grandmaster after crossing the 2500 Elo rating mark during the 3rd Guwahati Smart City International Open 2026, completing the final requirement for the coveted title. The Coimbatore-born player had already secured the required three Grandmaster norms in 2022, but spent nearly four years trying to breach the 2500 rating barrier. His achievement in Guwahati finally brought an end to a long wait and moved India one step closer to producing its 100th Grandmaster. India has witnessed a rapid rise in elite chess players over the past decade, with reigning world champion D Gukesh, R Praggnanandhaa, Arjun Erigaisi, Nihal Sarin and R Vaishali among the latest generation of Grandmasters to emerge on the global stage. The Coimbatore native also adds to Tamil Nadu’s rich chess legacy, joining a long list of Grandmasters from the state that includes Viswanathan Anand, Krishnan Sasikiran, R Praggnanandhaa, D Gukesh, Aravindh Chithambaram and Arjun Kalyan. Rathanvel entered the tournament with a live rating of 2492 and gained the eight points needed to reach …

Bengaluru to host Global Chess League season 4 from September 3

Bengaluru to host Global Chess League season 4 from September 3

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The Global Chess League (GCL), a joint initiative of Tech Mahindra and FIDE, today announced that Season 4 will be hosted in Bengaluru, a city where innovation meets ambition and where the future is constantly being rewritten. This isn’t just another season. It’s the continuation of a growing movement. Season 4 is scheduled to begin on September 3, 2026. Across previous editions, the league has ignited packed arenas, high‑voltage fan zones, and a wave of digital engagement that has redefined how chess is consumed. What was once quiet and contemplative is now fast, fierce, and impossible to ignore. Now, that energy comes to Bengaluru. Known as India’s tech capital, Bengaluru brings with it a new kind of audience — young, connected, and ready for a sport that moves at their pace. Here, strategy meets spectacle. Precision meets pressure. And every move plays out in real time for a global fanbase. The Global Chess League has already changed the format of the game: franchise teams, mixed‑gender lineups, rapid‑fire matches. But more importantly, it has changed the …

The night R Praggnanandhaa won Norway Chess on Magnus Carlsen’s home turf

The night R Praggnanandhaa won Norway Chess on Magnus Carlsen’s home turf

Published by Webster

6 min readJun 6, 2026 12:02 PM IST The meticulously-maintained silence of Oslo’s Deichman Bjørvika, the biggest public library in Norway, was shattered late on Friday evening by spontaneous applause that rang out from the fourth floor and reverberated till the ground floor. For the past two weeks, the Deichman has been even quieter than you would expect a library to be. It’s hosting the Norway Chess tournament after all and silence is non-negotiable. So much so, that at various times, volunteers have had to rush to the children’s playing area in the library to request parents to quieten their boisterous kids. Late on Friday evening, no one was bothering to hush anyone. R Praggnanandhaa, newly-minted Norway Chess champion, had just walked into one of the three broadcast studios and the 50 or so people who were waiting for him to autograph their chess boards broke into a well-deserved applause. The Indian grandmaster had won one of the strongest invitational tournaments on the calendar after a remarkable run in the second half of the 10-round …

R Praggnanandhaa becomes first Indian to win Norway Chess Title

R Praggnanandhaa becomes first Indian to win Norway Chess Title

Published by Webster

Indian Grandmaster R Praggnanandhaa created history by becoming the first Indian to win the prestigious Norway Chess 2026 title, sealing the championship with a crucial final-round victory over Germany’s Vincent Keymer in Oslo. The 20-year-old capped a remarkable turnaround after recovering from a difficult middle phase of the tournament to emerge victorious in one of the strongest fields in world chess. Praggnanandhaa finished ahead of a star-studded lineup that included world No. 1 Magnus Carlsen, reigning world champion D Gukesh, Alireza Firouzja, Wesley So and Keymer. Stunning comeback powers Praggnanandhaa to title The Indian’s title challenge appeared under threat midway through the tournament, but a series of impressive victories brought him back into contention. He registered crucial classical wins over Firouzja, Carlsen and Gukesh, setting up a dramatic final-round battle for the championship. His victory over Gukesh in Round 9 proved particularly important, keeping him within striking distance of the leaders before he delivered the decisive win against Keymer. One of the standout achievements of Praggnanandhaa’s campaign was his dominance over Carlsen. He defeated the …

Praggnanandhaa beats Alireza Firouzja in round 7

Praggnanandhaa beats Alireza Firouzja in round 7

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Round seven of Norway Chess 2026 kept the pressure on in Oslo, with decisive classical results and tense Armageddon battles on Monday. The headline result came when Indian star Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu defeated Alireza Firouzja of France in a grinding 51-move game. The Indian star outplayed Firouzja in a long struggle and converted his advantage in the middle game with confident technique to score a crucial victory. The result tightens the race at the top of the standings and hands Firouzja his second classical defeat of the tournament, having 10 points after 7 rounds. Meanwhile, World Champion Gukesh Dommaraju and Wesley So drew their game after a tense battle, but the former went on to win the Armageddon game, collecting the additional points. 📊 Standings Update 🇰🇿 Bibisara Assaubayeva is on top of Norway Chess Women, now leading by 2.5 points after another huge classical win over Zhu Jiner 🔥 At Norway Chess, 🇺🇸 Wesley So stays at the top with a 2,5 point lead after his closest chaser Alireza Firouzja drops back… pic.twitter.com/nGGB9i2n06 — Norway …

Nihal Sarin secures direct qualification for Esports Nations Cup 2026 Chess event

Nihal Sarin secures direct qualification for Esports Nations Cup 2026 Chess event

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Indian Grandmaster Nihal Sarin has secured a direct invitation to the chess competition at the Esports Nations Cup 2026, becoming the only Indian player to qualify automatically through the official Champions Chess Tour (CCT) leaderboard. The tournament will be held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, from November 2 to 8 and will feature 128 players competing for a prize pool of USD 600,000 (approximately ₹5.7 crore). Nihal earned his place after a strong campaign across the CCT 2025-26 season, which included the Speed Chess Championship, Chess.com Open and the Titled Tuesday Grand Prix circuit. Despite narrowly missing direct qualification through the Chess.com Open, the Indian Grandmaster accumulated crucial ranking points through consistent performances across multiple events. He eventually finished with 139 leaderboard points, placing him among the top six players in the overall ENC Chess rankings and securing one of the 64 direct invitations available through the CCT pathway. Nihal joins elite international field The direct qualification places Nihal alongside some of the biggest names in world chess, including Magnus Carlsen, Hikaru Nakamura, Alireza Firouzja, Jan-Krzysztof …

Praggnanandhaa’s dramatic with over Carlsen

Praggnanandhaa’s dramatic with over Carlsen

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Round three of Norway Chess 2026 produced another dramatic day of fighting chess in Oslo, featuring a major upset and tense battles across the boards. The headline result came when Indian star Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu defeated World No. 1 Magnus Carlsen in classical chess. Praggnanandhaa gradually outplayed Carlsen in a long game and appeared to be in control for much of the encounter. However, the momentum shifted in severe time trouble, where Carlsen managed to seize the advantage. Moments later, the Norwegian star made a decisive mistake of his own under pressure and resigned immediately, conceding the win. World Champion Gukesh Dommaraju and tournament leader Alireza Firouzja played a hard-fought classical draw after a tense encounter. Firouzja later prevailed in the Armageddon game to secure the additional points and maintain his strong start to the tournament. The remaining classical game between Vincent Keymer and Wesley So also ended in a draw after a balanced struggle. Wesley So went on to win the Armageddon game, collecting the extra points. Following round three, Firouzja remains at the top …

Nihal Sarin secures direct qualification for Esports Nations Cup 2026 Chess event

Nihal Sarin qualifies for the Esports World Cup 2026 Chess event

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Indian Grandmaster Nihal Sarin, representing S8UL Esports, has officially qualified for the Chess main event at the Esports World Cup (EWC) 2026 through the Champions Chess Tour (CCT) 2025-2026 Leaderboard. He joins teammate Aravindh Chithambaram as the only two Indian players to qualify for the prestigious tournament so far. The CCT 2025-2026 season featured two major events, the Speed Chess Championship (SCC) 2025 and Chess.com Open (CCO) 2026. The top three players from both tournaments secured direct qualification to the EWC, while players finishing between fifth and ninth in SCC, along with the remaining participants in CCO, earned points toward the CCT Leaderboard based on their performances. In addition to these events, players accumulated points through the Titled Tuesday Grand Prix (TTGP) circuit, which was divided into Autumn, Winter, and Spring splits, each featuring 13 Titled Tuesday tournaments. Players earned leaderboard points in every Titled Tuesday event across the season. At the end of the season, the top nine players in the final CCT Leaderboard standings, excluding already-qualified players, secured their spots at EWC 2026. …

‘My perfomance is way below expectations’

‘My perfomance is way below expectations’

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3 min readOslo (norway)Updated: May 25, 2026 09:57 AM IST A smile appears on Gukesh’s face when he is asked about the relentless criticism being hurled his way by multiple ex-world champions. These are men like Magnus Carlsen, Garry Kasparov and Anatoly Karpov whose words carry immense gravitas in the sport. “Most of the criticism I don’t see,” says Gukesh with a smile, as Carlsen, one of those who has been unsparing in his assessment of Gukesh’s form over the last 18 months, sits a few inches to his left at the pre-tournament press conference of Norway Chess. But then, the 19-year-old offers some blunt self-assessment. ALSO READ | Gukesh says playing World Championship at home would be ‘lot of fun’ “There is some criticism that I have heard and I think the criticism is fair,” says Gukesh. “I have not been performing well in the last 18 months and even I would say (the same thing.) My performance is way below expectations. They have the right to say what they feel and I have …

Norway Chess raises million

Norway Chess raises $10 million

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Norway Chess has completed a $10 million share issue. Johannes Høsflot Klæbo, the most decorated Winter Olympian of all time, is investing alongside a number of prominent business figures to support the launch of the Total Chess World Championship Tour. It was recently announced that Erling Haaland has become an investor in Norway Chess AS. The company has now raised an additional $10 million from a number of high-profile investors, with Arctic Securities acting as financial adviser and placement agent for the capital raise. The proceeds will help develop Total Chess, a new World Championship tour designed to make chess more accessible and engaging for audiences. The transaction values Norway Chess at $35 million. One of the new investors is cross-country skiing star Johannes Høsflot Klæbo, who won six gold medals at the Winter Olympics in February. “For me, chess is an exciting long-term investment. I strongly believe in the concept, and I see that, together with many others, I can help create value in a broad and highly international sport,” said Klæbo. The share …