Grandmaster R Vaishali emerged victorious at the Women's Candidates Tournament, earning the right to challenge Ju Wenjun for the World Championship title.
With D Gukesh and R Vaishali set to play world title matches, experts urge India to bid for hosting rights, calling it a major boost for the sport.
R. Vaishali, the newly-crowned Candidates champion, exemplifies quiet intensity and strong values, nurtured by a supportive family, as she prepares for the World Championship showdown against Ju Wenjun.
India's R Vaishali wins the FIDE Women's Candidates 2026 in Cyprus, earning the right to challenge world champion Ju Wenjun and drawing praise for her historic achievement.
FIDE, the world chess governing body, has rejected calls to move the Candidates Tournament from Cyprus despite security concerns arising from regional conflicts. The tournament is scheduled to begin on March 28.
Former world blitz and rapid champion Anna Muzychuk discusses the upcoming World Chess Championships, highlighting the importance of psychological momentum and pressure handling for Indian players D Gukesh and R Vaishali.
Indian Grandmaster Koneru Humpy has withdrawn from the FIDE Women's Candidates Tournament, citing concerns over her personal safety amidst the West Asia conflict.
R. Vaishali leads the Women's Candidates Tournament, while Javokhir Sindarov dominates the Open section, nearing a shot at the World Championship.
Indian Grandmaster R Praggnanandhaa faced a defeat in the third round of the FIDE Candidates Tournament, while other key matches saw significant shifts in standings.
Indian Grandmaster R Praggnanandhaa began his campaign at the Candidates Tournament with a win against Anish Giri, sharing the lead with Fabiano Caruana and Javokhir Sindarov. In the women's section, Indian Grandmaster Divya Deshmukh drew her game.
Indian Grandmaster Koneru Humpy is uncertain about competing in the Candidates Tournament in Cyprus due to safety concerns amid the West Asia conflict, despite assurances from FIDE.
Anna Muzychuk of Ukraine will replace Koneru Humpy in the Candidates Tournament in Cyprus after Humpy withdrew due to safety concerns related to the region's proximity to the West Asia conflict.
Indian Grandmaster R Praggnanandhaa faced a defeat in the third round of the FIDE Candidates Tournament against Javokhir Sindarov, while Fabiano Caruana surged ahead. In the women's event, Bibisara Assaubayeva secured the first victory.
Viswanathan Anand shares his views on R. Praggnanandhaa's chances at the upcoming FIDE Candidates tournament, highlighting potential rivals and the tournament's significance.
Divya Deshmukh has been awarded a wild card for the FIDE World Cup 2025 following a last-minute withdrawal of one of the participants.
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.
In an event completely dominated by the Chinese, Ju Wenjun went on to snare the world title, defeating compatriot Lei Tingjie 3.5-2.5.
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.
Slowly but surely emerging as one of India's key players, International Master Divya Deshmukh stunned higher-ranked compatriot Harika Dronavalli 2-0 in the tiebreaks to enter the semifinals of the FIDE World Women's Chess Cup in Batumi, Georgia.
Indian Grandmaster R Vaishali faces a tough challenge in the Candidates chess tournament after losing her lead, while Javokhir Sindarov dominates the open section.
Indian Grandmaster R Vaishali's loss to China's Jiner Zhu has thrown the FIDE Women's Candidates tournament wide open.
Indian Grandmaster R Vaishali's loss to China's Jiner Zhu has thrown the Women's Candidates Tournament wide open, while Javokhir Sindarov is closing in on a dominant victory in the open section.
The two-day World Blitz Championship in both the Open and Women's categories commences in Doha, on Monday, December 29.
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.
Indian Grandmaster R Praggnanandhaa drew against Wei Yi in the second round of the FIDE Candidates tournament, maintaining his joint lead. In the women's section, Divya Deshmukh missed a chance to take the lead, drawing with R Vaishali.
Gukesh suffers crushing loss against Nakamura, Erigaisi wins in Norway Chess
Grandmaster R Praggnanandhaa defeated the reigning and four-time women's world champion Wenjun Ju from China in the ninth round of the Tata Steel Masters in Wijk aan Zee, Netherlands.
Divya Deshmukh not only became the first Indian woman to win the FIDE Women's World Cup, she also instantly secured the prestigious Grandmaster title.
Arjun Erigaisi joined Hikaru Nakamura in the lead at the Norway Chess 2025 after handing compatriot World champion Gukesh Dommaraju a second straight defeat on Tuesday. After two rounds of action-packed games in Stavanger, Erigaisi and Nakamura share the lead with 4.5 points each.
Five-time World champion Magnus Carlsen clinched his seventh Norway Chess title after American Grandmaster Fabiano Caruana did a good turn by defeating D Gukesh.
'Right now, I'm happy with the game that I played today. Tomorrow (Friday), hopefully, another good game I can play. And whatever the result will be, we'll see later. But yeah, just focusing on playing the game.'
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.
Reigning world champion D Gukesh continued to turn adversity into opportunity as he wriggled out of a virtually intractable position to beat compatriot Arjun Erigaisi for the first time ever in a classical game and jump to sole second position after round 7 of the Norway Chess.
...'you are 37. It's quite difficult when you get older to keep that motivation and stay sharp when required.'
Dronavalli Harika stunned world champion Ju Wenjun in the third round to grab a share of the top spot in the FIDE Women's Grand Prix
With her family in tow, Humpy met the PM and described it as a "once-in-a-lifetime privilege."
Viswanathan Anand is the third Indian in the top 10, occupying the 10th spot with an ELO rating of 2750.
R Praggnanandhaa was the best Indian with an overall third place finish
'Most of my birthdays I end up losing the game, so glad it did not repeat in the classical. When I was playing, I felt fine, but when I was losing, I was like, 'ok, not again'.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances