Author: Atreyo Mukhopadhyay

The introduction of new formats and competitions have made chess a lucrative earning option. According to Chess.com, 26 players earned in excess of $100,000 from prize money alone in 2025. The list includes India’s Arjun Erigaisi, R Praggnanandhaa, D Gukesh, Nihal Sarin and Koneru Humpy. This has also resulted in congestion in the calendar. Tournaments take place one after another, often without much of a gap between two. Players who participate in these events to maintain rankings and fulfil other commitments, have no choice but to follow the order of the day. RevSportz asked this to a few participants at…

Indian challengers fought hard and made things difficult for the overnight leaders at times. Almost till the end, it wasn’t clear which way it’s headed. However, Wesley So and Carissa Yip got the job done when needed to win the men’s and women’s blitz titles, respectively, at Tata Steel Chess India. The USA double was completed after So overcame the questions posed by Arjun Erigaisi and Nihal Sarin. In the end, the highest-rated blitz player in the field won with a round to spare. The women’s competition went down to the wire. Vantika Agarwal did brilliantly to force a tie-breaker,…

In Goa, in the first half of November. London after that. Mumbai and Doha in December. Kolkata in the first and second week of January. Then off to Wijk Aan Zee in the Netherlands for an event starting on January 16. This is a small chunk from the itinerary of R Praggnanandhaa. He was crisscrossing the globe before November as well, to ensure qualification for the 2026 Candidates. That done, the chess star from Chennai hasn’t been able to think about the competition yet. Until Wijk Aan Zee — where he will try to defend his crown at the Tata…

Blitz chess is like rapid fire. There’s no time to lock target or take aim. It’s like point and shoot. If you miss, you miss. If you hit, you hit. Chances are high that the more accomplished the player, the greater the probability to succeed. That turned out to be the case in the open section of Tata Steel Chess India. After the first nine rounds in the blitz segment, Wesley So was leading with seven points. He is the highest-rated player in the field. No. 2 Arjun Erigaisi was half-a-point behind. The final nine rounds will be played on…

It’s often said that Indians are not as good in speed chess as they are in classical. Almost all their exploits have come in the longest format. Not that returns have been zero in rapid and blitz, but compared to laurels in the traditional form, those are not many. That seems to be changing. Arjun Erigaisi won double bronze at the World Rapid and Blitz, beating Magnus Carlsen in the process. In a disappointing 2025 for him, D Gukesh also defeated the world No. 1 in rapid, other than topping that section in a competition in Zagreb. In 2024, Koneru…

Nihal Sarin was going through a range of emotions. Last night (Thursday), he received news of his grandfather passing away. On Friday, he won the rapid title at Tata Steel Chess India in Kolkata. That he wouldn’t have even played this event had D Gukesh not pulled out at the last minute makes it memorable. The reigning world champion’s late replacement finished with 6.5 points from nine rounds to edge Viswanathan Anand by half-a-point. These two faced each other in the last round, where Nihal needed a draw and Anand a win. After 21 moves in about 22 minutes, they…

Not because of its novelty on the board, this move by Wesley So might well remain a highlight of Tata Steel Chess India 2026 in Kolkata. He could have won the game by default when R Praggnanandhaa pressed the clock without having made a move. This was in the closing stages of a sixth-round game of the rapid segment. Already low on time, the Indian spent precious moments thinking and with a second remaining, pressed the clock, not realising he had not actually moved his piece. Going by the letter of the law, the player representing USA could have claimed…

Viswanathan Anand and Nihal Sarin dealt timely blows to emerge as joint leaders after Round 6 in the rapid section of Tata Steel Chess India. Arjun Erigaisi made a strong comeback after his opening-day blues. The going wasn’t as good as far as the Indian women were concerned. Three more rounds will be played on Friday before the blitz segment over the weekend. Two Indians share lead Overnight joint leader with Hans Niemann of the USA, Anand frittered away a winning position against Erigaisi and lost the fourth-round game. He then posted wins against Niemann and Volodar Murzin of Russia…

Deferment caused by the FIDE World Cup in November 2025 might have come as a blessing in disguise of sorts for Tata Steel Chess India. Forced to be held in January, the rapid and blitz event might stick to this window. This will make it the first elite competition of the year. It will also make this the only elite chess tournament in India with a fixed slot in the calendar. In the previous six editions, this event was held between a certain period, but did not have a specific time. September to December — it was played in different…

Reputation is cumbersome baggage. It has to be protected all the time. Arjun Erigaisi failed to do that on Day 1 of Tata Steel Chess India. After three rounds of rapid, he was eighth in the field of 10 with just one point. Viswanathan Anand gave a fresh taste of his greatness by finishing the day as joint-leader on 2.5 points with Hans Niemann of USA. Vidit Gujrathi was in a pack of two with two points. R Praggnanandhaa and Nihal Sarin were on 1.5 each. Aravindh Chithambaram was at the bottom with 0.5. In the women’s section, India’s top…