Reigning classical World champion D Gukesh, Arjun Erigaisi and world No.1 Magnus Carlsen were among the leaders after the first five rounds on the opening day of the FIDE World Rapid Championships in Doha on Thursday.
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'Again this year was not going well, I was working very hard but somehow the results were not going my way, this win is very crucial.'
Defending champion and Grandmaster R Vaishali jumped into sole lead in the women's section
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Grandmaster Nihal Sarin played out a quick and effortless draw with Matthias Bluebaum of Germany to share the lead with the German on six points after the end of the eighth round of FIDE Grand Swiss in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, on Friday.
Vaishali knew she had to win to remain in contention and her approach right from the start was in sync with the requirement of the tournament situation.
Indian Grandmaster Nihal Sarin's hopes of making to the Candidates tournament suffered a setback as he lost to Alireza Firouzja of France in the ninth round of the FIDE Grand Swiss, in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, on Saturday.
This marks the first time that four players from a single country have reached the quarter-finals of the FIDE Women's World Chess Cup.
While only one place seems assured for the Indians in the men's section, there are already three in the women's category who have made it to the Candidates.
Erigaisi in second place, German GM Keymer leads after three rounds of Chennai chess
R Praggnanandhaa was held to a draw by the world's youngest-ever Grandmaster Abhimanyu Mishra of the United States.
India's Arjun Erigaisi delivered a commanding performance against American Awonder Liang, while compatriot Nihal Sarin lost to Germany's Vincent Keymer in the opening round of the Chennai Grandmasters Chess tournament on Thursday.
Looking to assert his supremacy across formats, reigning world champion D Gukesh of India began his campaign in the FIDE Grand Swiss in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, with a crushing victory over France's Etienne Bacrot in the first round.
Grandmaster R Vaishali was so crestfallen following seven straight losses in the Chennai Grandmasters that she had made up her mind to pull out of the Grand Swiss tournament, but family support steered her to the event where she won the title to qualify for the Candidates next year.
Women's World Cup winner Divya Deshmukh, who has also qualified for the Women's Candidates, has opted out of the women's section to compete with the best in business.
In the open section, Gukesh squandered a winning position against Erdogmus and eventually had to settle for a draw in a dramatic, time-troubled encounter.
World Champion D Gukesh suffered his second straight defeat at the FIDE Grand Swiss, losing to Greece's Nikolas Theodorou in the sixth round in Samarkand, Uzbekistan on Tuesday.
World Champion D Gukesh went down to world's youngest-ever Grandmaster Abhimanyu Mishra of the US in the fifth round of the FIDE Grand Swiss.
While Vantika, Harika and Vaishali have an uphill task in the first set of tie-break games, they can still make it to the round of 16.
International Master Divya Deshmukh, who is waiting to become a Grandmaster, had a tough day in office as she was outplayed by Zhu Jiner of China in the return game of the pre-quarterfinals in the FIDE World Women's Chess Cup in Batumi, Georgia on Thursday.
R Vaishali also made it to the next round, defeating Ouellet Maili-Jade of Canada in another Indian victory of the day while Divya Deshmukh ousted Kesaria Mgeladze of Georgia.
Karthikeyan upsets Vidit Gujrathi, Vincent Keymer edges closer to maiden title at Chennai Grand Masters.
Indian International Master Divya Deshmukh made a huge stride forward, defeating second seed Jiner Zhu of China in the first game of the pre-quarterfinals of the FIDE World Women's Chess Cup in Batumi, Georgia, on Wednesday.
Vantika Agrawal humbled former World champion Anna Ushenina in the second round of FIDE Women's World Chess Cup in Batumi, Georgia, on Wednesday.
Apart from Tan, top seed Tingjie Lei of China also made it to the semifinals at the expense of Nana Dzagnidze of Georgia.
Praggnanandhaa takes on a strong field at Grand Swiss, eyes Candidates berth
Neither current World Champion D Gukesh nor former world champion Vishy Anand are the top rated Indian chess player.
Former women's World champion Susan Polgar believes Indian chess is riding a wave of success and predicted a bright future for the sport in the country.
With Vantika's hard-earned victory there are still five Indians left in the last 32 stage of this US$691,250 prize money event with an additional bonus of making it to the Women's candidates' tournament slated in 2026 for the top three finishers.
D Gukesh will take on Magnus Carlsen in the opening round in what should be one of the most keenly-contested matches at the Norway Chess tournament.
India's global chess domination was lauded by President Droupadi Murmu in her address to the nation on Thursday
Divya Deshmukh came to the star-studded FIDE Women's World Cup 2025 in Batumi, Georgia, as an underdog, hoping to at least win one Grandmaster norm in her journey to become a GM in the future.
A former school principal of newly crowned chess champion from Nagpur Divya Deshmukh remembers her as a student with calm composure who started playing the board game when she was just five and also excelled in studies.
Chennai's Velammal Vidyalaya, the alma mater of the youngest reigning World champion D Gukesh and Grandmaster R Praggnanandhaa, won the gold medal at the World Schools Team Chess Championship in Virginia, United States.
The stars competing at the Norway Chess event were in for an authentic Wild West surprise when they had to don cowboy hats, roper boots, well worn-out jeans to indulge in some rodeo activity.
Arjun Erigaisi and R Praggnanandhaa finished in sixth and seventh position respectively, even as Grandmaster Levon Aronian of the United States reigned supreme in the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam.
'She is now a role model for the upcoming young generation. And I am sure that this victory will definitely motivate and inspire the Indian women, and those who are coming up.'
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