Author: Atreyo Mukhopadhyay

By Atreyo Mukhopadhyay in Goa The sun was shining bright and lovely on the beaches of Goa. It was not exactly a sunny day for the Indian players in the second round of the FIDE World Cup, though. Eight of them were involved in tie-breakers to qualify for the third round of the world’s biggest knockout chess competition, and some of the top names crashed out. Nihal Sarin and Raunak Sadhwani were among those, big upsets indeed. On a brighter note, R Praggnanandhaa advanced after a prolonged struggle, and so did Vidit Gujrathi. There were emotional scenes…

Atreyo Mukhopadhyay in Goa On a day the eyes of the chess world were fixated on the young and happening hipsters of India, a player from the country made heads turn in an unexpected manner. Unknown Kolkata boy Diptayan Ghosh caused the biggest upset of the event so far by beating Russian superstar Ian Nepomniachtchi in the second round of the FIDE World Cup in Goa. This sends the two-time Candidates champion, ranked 19th in the world, home. Advancing to the third round of the world’s most prestigious knockout chess event is the player ranked 237th. It’s undoubtedly the most…

Atreyo Mukhopadhyay in Goa Land of sun, sea, sand and sports. There are four Ss that Goa wants to be known as. From an Indian point of view, Tuesday, November 4, at the FIDE World Cup was about a fifth ‘S’ as well. That’s sorrow. All the top guns barring Arjun Erigaisi were held to draws by opponents rated lower than them in the second round of the prestigious knockout event. The list included world champion D Gukesh. There is a second game to be played on Wednesday. If that doesn’t produce a result, there is an option for a…

By Atreyo Mukhopadhyay in Goa The FIDE World Cup’s second game of the first round is taking place today. There is not a lot of star attraction yet because the top 50 players have got byes into the second round of this knockout competition. It’s still an important day for certain Indian players. Foremost is Divya Deshmukh. The winner of the women’s World Cup lost her first game against Stamatis Kourkoulos-Arditis of Greece. She has to win to force a tie-breaker. Even if she draws, Divya is out. Divya is rated below her opponent. Both are Grandmasters and the…

Atreyo Mukhopadhyay in Goa The FIDE World Cup is here in India and it’s a massive competition. Lots of aspirants and accomplished players have descended in Goa and most of them are chasing one goal — to do as well as they can and go for the three slots that this event offers as far as the Candidates 2026 is concerned. The winner of that eight-player elite meet will secure the right to challenge D Gukesh for the World Championship crown next year. That, however, is not the only talking point in chess at this moment. The death of American…

By Atreyo Mukhopadhyay in Goa The 12th FIDE World Cup is here. Rio Resort in Goa will stage the world’s biggest knockout chess tournament from November 1-27. Several top names are present in field of 206 players. There is a strong Indian contingent and a few of them are among the favourites. This is an important event offering Candidates berths to the top three. The winner of the eight-player Candidates event will earn the right to challenge D Gukesh in the World Championship duel next year. HISTORY OF THE COMPETITION FIDE World Cup was first held in 2000. The first…

By Atreyo Mukhopadhyay in Kolkata Fire in the belly speaks a thousand words. Mohammed Shami avoided making controversial remarks after putting in a stellar performance for Bengal against Gujarat in a Ranji Trophy Elite Group C match. Thanks to the veteran fast bowler’s five-wicket haul at Eden Gardens, the home team posted a 141-run win, which didn’t seem likely at the start of the final day’s play. The pitch hadn’t deteriorated much and taking 10 wickets in less than a day looked difficult after Bengal batted for half an hour in the morning. Shami struck with the first ball…

By Atreyo Mukhopadhyay in Kolkata There was one matter of interest when play resumed on Day 3 of this Ranji Trophy Elite Group C match between Bengal and Gujarat. Gujarat were 107/7 and trailing by 172 runs. The home team securing a first-innings lead was a foregone conclusion. The question was, could Bengal push themselves into a position to win this one outright? At stumps on the penultimate day at Eden Gardens, that possibility looked bleak. On another day of cricket unattractive and low on intrigue, Bengal took far too long to dislodge the last two Gujarat wickets. After that,…

Atreyo Mukhopadhyay in Kolkata Newly-appointed national selector RP Singh is at Eden Gardens for the Bengal-Gujarat Ranji Trophy match. National selectors can’t go everywhere because each round in the Elite division has 16 games. They have to pick and choose. Sometimes, they are more interested in watching those who could be in national reckoning. Looking at the players of the two teams in this Elite Group fixture, there is only one who is closely followed. There is no doubt about his ability. The selectors want to see what kind of condition he is in. Mohammed Shami didn’t disappoint the…

Atreyo Mukhopadhyay in Kolkata Some indiscreet shot-making and disciplined bowling by Gujarat restricted Bengal to 244/7 on Day 1 of the Ranji Trophy Elite Group C match at Eden Gardens on Saturday. A few got starts, even made half-centuries, but none apart from Sumanta Gupta showed the temperament to dig deep. The No. 6 batter was unbeaten on 58 at stumps. Bengal have a strong attack featuring Mohammed Shami and their bowlers can put pressure on the opposition, but they would know that their team could have put more runs on the board. Two dismissals on either side of lunch…