This is getting close but not quite over. We are talking about R Praggnanandhaa and next year’s Candidates Championship to be played in Cyprus. The winner of that event will challenge D Gukesh in the World Championship match.
Pragg missed out on sealing qualification because he didn’t win the open category of the London Chess Classic outright. He was one of three players who finished joint top with seven points each after nine rounds. Had the Indian been the sole winner, he would have made the Candidates cut.
As things stand, Nodirbek Abdusattorov is the only one with a slight chance of overtaking Pragg in the FIDE Circuit 2025 standings. The topper gets a berth in the eight-player Candidates to be played in March-April 2026. The Uzbek will win the elite section of the London event regardless, holding a two-point lead with one round to play.
But that will not be enough. The rising star will have to win one of the titles at the World Rapid and Blitz Championship and ideally finish second or third in the other to stand any realistic chance. If Pragg plays in these competitions, he can stretch his lead over Abdusattorov and close the door on him in Doha, where the World Rapid and Blitz will be played later this month.
According to rough calculations on ChessBase India and other information on X, Abdusattorov will not make the cut if Hikaru Nakamura, who is ahead of him in world rankings in all three formats, doesn’t play the World Rapid and Blitz. The average strength of the field would decrease in his absence, reducing the Uzbek’s potential points haul.
Even if Nakamura does play, it remains an uphill task for Abdusattorov. Magnus Carlsen, the undisputed No. 1 across all formats, will be among the participants in Doha. Beating him and winning both titles is next to impossible, even for a player in peak form. So Pragg is almost there as the only Indian in the open section of the Candidates, although the official confirmation is taking time.
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