Atreyo Mukhopadhyay
Beneath the tales of a Chinese resurgence and an Uzbek uprising lies the story of FIDE World Cup 2025. It needs no introduction. The eventually tame show from a strong Indian presence has been a highlight of the chess by the beach in Goa. Wei Yi is taking on Javokhir Sindarov in the final which began on Monday. China is back in the top flight after Ding Liren’s defeat against D Gukesh in last year’s World Championship. Sindarov and Nodirbek Yakubboev, whom he overcame in the semi-finals, starred in a strong show by Uzbekistan.
The home contingent came with reputations fast enhancing. Arjun Erigaisi and R Praggnanandhaa were the two highest-rated players in the field of 206. Gukesh was the top seed despite being ranked seventh among the participants. Aravindh Chithambaram, Vidit Gujrathi and Nihal Sareen were the others rated 2700 or above. P Harikrishna was marginally behind. In the end, Erigaisi was the lone Indian in the quarterfinals and Harikrishna the only other in the last 16. Players from the country not grabbing even one of the three Candidates berths this event offered was an anti-climax. Expectations were high because of the spectacular show by this bunch at the 2023 World Cup, where four Indians had made it to the quarterfinals and Praggnanandhaa finished second.
“It’s definitely disappointing,” Srinath Narayanan told RevSportz in Goa. The Grandmaster from Chennai was the coach of the Indian men’s team which bulldozed its way to the gold medal at last year’s Olympiad in Budapest, where the women’s team made it a historic double for the country. “I think it’s still not clear why it happened. The World Cup is certainly unique in the format. It puts a lot of pressure in terms of bringing to it too many matches. If something goes wrong, there is little chance of making a comeback. It’s a bit like a sudden death. Like a one-set tennis match for instance.”
The performance of the Indians at the FIDE Women’s World Cup which took place in Georgia in July is a study in stark contrast. Divya Deshmukh won the title, Koneru Humpy finished second and both qualified for the Women’s Candidates. R Vaishali later made the cut to make sure that three Indians will be there in the elite field of eight players, the winner of which challenges the world champion. On the men’s side, only Praggnanandhaa has a chance of going to the Candidates after Erigaisi’s defeat in the quarterfinals against Wei. He is leading the race in the FIDE Circuit 2025 route.
“For certain players, it was the pressure that got to them and they were not being able to play at their best,” felt Srinath. He added it was not the only factor. “In certain cases, it was not as much motivation or preparation as they would have had in their earlier years. In certain cases, it was a matter of playing too frequently. It’s different for each individual. There are a variety of reasons that contributed to this.”
It is a long tournament where the top 50 start from the second round. A player has to win five rounds to reach the final. That becomes six for those starting from the first round. Wei was the only one from the top 10 in the semi-finals. From the top 20, there were just two in the last four. Stars such as Anish Giri, Nodirbek Abdusattorov, Vincent Keymer and Ian Nepomniachtchi bid early goodbyes, not to mention the Indians, including world champion Gukesh in the third round.
“The knockout format makes it tricky,” said Srinath. “One mistake or one defeat can make things difficult.” Asked if the format forces errors, he said: “It does contribute towards players making mistakes. It doesn’t necessarily make them defensive, but it contributes in different ways. Sometimes, it makes them more aggressive. Sometimes, it makes them more defensive. But essentially, it provokes more mistakes.
“On the other hand, chess is also very competitive. There are a lot of countries with good players. And I think it is expected that the competition strikes back.”
That, possibly, sums up the Indian blues.
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