Alisher Suleymenov on Gukesh, Sindarov and the psychological side of chess

FM Aarav Sarbalia won the Karnataka State Blitz Championship 2026 with a perfect 9 out of 9. He also finished runner-up in the Karnataka State Rapid Championship with 8 out of 9. The events were held in Tumkur on 31 October and 1 November. His father, Yatin Sarbalia, tells the story of how a Halloween night became the best tournament preparation. Photos: Yatin Sarbalia

The tournament is heading towards its halfway mark, and after 4 rounds, five players are co-leading with 3.5/4 points. In 3rd round, GM Karthikeyan Murali and GM Leon Mendonca drew on the 1st board. GM Pranesh M. defeated GM Aswath S. on the third board. In another important result, S.L. Narayanan won an aggressive game against GM Levan Pantsulaia. WIM Sachi Jain is also putting up a great fight and defeated FM Jihan Tejas Shah with black pieces in a long endgame. Check out the Round 4 report. Photos: Devansh Singh

After decades of following Indian chess, Venkat Rangan is supporting the next generation by awarding Daakshin Arun a ₹50,000 scholarship through HelpChess. The award comes as Daakshin builds on his second International Master norm and continues pursuing the title.

At just 10 years old, FM Sarbartho Mani scored his first classical win over a Grandmaster, defeating GM Dimitris Alexakis in round two of the 1st Chola Chess GM 2026 in Chennai. It wasn't a straightforward game. Sarbartho thought he might have to settle for a draw before finding his chances. After the game, he spoke to ChessBase India's senior editor, Devansh Singh, about the key moments of his win. Photo: Devansh Singh

The third day of the 1st Chola Chess Grandmasters 2026 was as exciting as the previous two days. 9 players started on a perfect 2/2, and now there are only 3 players left with a perfect score. On the top board: GM Aravindh Chithambaram and GM Iniyan Panneerselvam played one of the most exciting games of the day. Just to give you a brief idea, it was rook and two bishops against two pawns! The game ended in a draw; how did Aravindh do that? Check out the report of Round 3. Photos: Devansh Singh

It has been quite a while since Gurugram hosted a major FIDE-rated Rapid tournament, but the wait is finally over! 1st CastleMasters International Open Rapid FIDE-rated Chess Tournament 2026 is set to take place on 21st and 22nd November 2026 at the campus of Satya School, Sector 49, Gurugram. The total prize fund is ₹7,00,000. Register Fast!

The November 2026 FIDE rating list is out. Nihal Sarin gained 11 rating points at the European Chess Club Cup and climbed to a career-best World No. 19. India has 13 players in the Open Top 100 and 11 players in the Women's Top 100. Koneru Humpy remains the top Indian woman at World No. 9. Here is a look at the biggest rating and ranking changes among Indian players this month.

FM Sarbartho Mani scored one of the biggest wins of his career. In the 2nd round of the 1st Chola Chess GM 2026, Sarbartho defeated GM Dimitris Alexakis with the white pieces in an exciting game. Sarbartho was in a bad position, but he kept fighting, and Dimitris over-pressed and lost the game. In other important clashes, GM Aravindh Chithambaram defeated GM Sandipan Chanda on the top board. FM Samyak Dharewa scored his second consecutive win after defeating GM Ethan Vaz with white pieces. Read what happened in Round 2 in this report. Photos: Devansh Singh

Twelve years ago, a college student in Charlotte with an economics degree and no business plan asked his local chess community for $10,000 to open a chess club. They gave him $30,000. Today the Charlotte Chess Center teaches 2,500 children a week, runs more rated tournaments than there are days in the year, and hosts Judit Polgar, Peter Leko and Boris Gelfand as camp trainers. Sagar Shah travelled to Charlotte for the Daniel Naroditsky Memorial and sat down with founder Peter Giannatos to understand exactly how it was built.

1st Chola Chess Open International Grandmasters (Above-2250) Chess Tournament 2026 kicked off today at the Welcomhotel by ITC in Chennai. It is one of India's strongest open tournaments, as the average rating of the tournament is 2412. It's a nine-round classical tournament with 34 Grandmasters and 21 International Masters participating. The total number of players is 86, and all of them are titled players, which shows the strength of this tournament. Read what happened in Round 1 in this report. Photos: Devansh Singh

CM Gaurav Zagade, a chess coach and psychologist from Pune, has written a book titled "The Right Way to Support: A Practical Guide to Chess Parenting, Psychology & Child Development." The book explains how parents can support their children through the challenges of competitive chess. In this article, we explore what it has to offer.

IM Suyog Wagh scored an unbeaten 8/9 points to win the 2nd Shivbhumi Blitz Rating Chess Tournament 2026. Three players, including IM Suyog Wagh, IM Akshay Borgaonkar, and FM Viresh Sharnarthi, scored 8/9 points to finish in the top 3 places according to tiebreak scores. Shivbhumi Shikshan Trust organised this one-day blitz rating tournament in Aaroh Garden, Pune, on 18th October. The total prize fund was ₹50,000. The top 3 prizes were ₹10,000, ₹7,000, and ₹5,000, along with trophies. Photo: Tournament Committee

IM Mandar Pradip Lad of Goa scored a perfect 9/9 to win the 9th Late Shri Chandrakant Naik Memorial Rapid Rating Tournament 2026. This was his 4th Consecutive title win after winning the previous three editions. Another impressive stat was Mandar's score, as he scored a perfect score in all 4 editions. Devesh Anand Naik scored 8/9 points to finish in second place, while Abhishek Patil scored 7.5/9 points to finish third. The total prize fund of the tournament was ₹1,00,000, and the top 3 prizes were ₹20,000, ₹12,000, and ₹8,000, along with trophies. Photos: FA Tanishq Kavlekar/Quepem Taluka Chess Association

Praggnanandhaa bounced back in style after a tough first day at the Clutch Chess Champions Showdown 2026. On the second day, when the stakes were higher than on day one, Praggnanandhaa scored 4 wins, drew 1 game, and lost only 1 game, taking a sole lead with 11 points. Pragg scored 1 win against Sindarov and Fabi and two wins against Nakamura. The stakes are even higher on day 3 as each win counts for 3 points. Can Pragg take it across the finish line? Watch the 7th round at 12 pm Local Time/ 10:30 pm IST on ChessBase India YouTube. Photo: Lennart Ootes

What if the training came first, and the fee was left to the player afterwards? GM Shyam Sundar's Elite Adult Masterclass at Chess Thulir has no fixed fee: players contribute after the sessions according to what they can afford and consider apt. The first edition is online on November 2, 3 and 4, 2026, from 8 to 10 p.m. IST, for players aged 20+ with a minimum rating of 2300+. It is an initiative built around training quality, trust and access for ambitious adults.

Hikaru Nakamura is back on board after quite some time, and he came back in style after getting an early lead on the 1st day of the Clutch Chess Champions Showdown 2026. The format of Clutch Chess is pretty simple: on the 1st day, players will get 1 point for a win; on the second day, 2; and on the third day, 3. After completing 3 rounds on the 1st day, Hikaru Nakamura is leading with 4 points, Javokhir Sindarov is in 2nd place with 3.5 points, Fabiano Caruana is in 3rd place with 2.5 points, and Praggnanandhaa is currently in last place with 2 points. The 4th round will start at 12 pm Local Time/ 10:30 pm IST. Photo: Crystal Fuller

Eleven-year-old Roman Shogdzhiev has earned his second grandmaster norm after scoring 6/9 at the Serbian Super League, where he represented Partizan Belgrade. The Russian youngster gained 26 rating points and now needs one more norm to secure the GM title. With eight months remaining to break Abhimanyu Mishra's age record, Shogdzhiev has a realistic chance of becoming the youngest grandmaster in history. Photo: Eteri Kublashvili

The 2nd Ken Chess Solving Cup, held in Ichalkaranji, Kolhapur, brought together chess enthusiasts across different experience levels to test their analytical skills. The event marked another step towards promoting chess solving and building a vibrant community of solvers across Kolhapur district, Maharashtra.

The Queen's Gambit Declined is a very solid opening that begins with 1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6. Now the most common reply to this is 3.Nc3 and there are many moves that can be played here for Black, but GM Arjun Kalyan, one of the assistant coaches/seconds of the Indian women's team at the Chess Olympiad 2026, recommends the very interesting 3...h6!?

Can a comic book turn a little chess learner into a bigger dreamer? Shreyas, a seven-year-old who began learning chess in March 2026, might say yes. This parent’s review of ChessPa Meets Guki: The Golden Boy explores why the Gukesh comic has remained Shreyas’ favourite, and what a young reader took away from the journey of a little boy who became World Champion.

IM Sharan Rao scored a perfect 10/10 points to win the Fagernes Autumn Open 2026 Chess Tournament. Sharan was the clear favourite in the field, starting as the top seed, and he finished the tournament with 10 consecutive wins. Stanislav Hohelj of Ukraine scored 7.5/10, and Martin Andersen of Norway scored 7/10 to finish in second and third place. The top three prizes were €500, €300, and €200. Photo: Henrik Sjøl

CM Siddhant Salunke of Pune scored an unbeaten 8.5/9 points to finish a full point ahead of the remaining field to win the 1st Shivbhumi International Open FIDE Rapid Rating Chess Tournament. Eight players scored 7.5/9 points; FM Viresh Sharnarthi and CM Shlok Sharnarthi secured 2nd and 3rd place according to tiebreak scores. Shivbhumi Shikshan Trust organised this two-day rapid rating tournament in Aaroh Garden, Pune, from 17th to 18th October. Photo: Tournament Committee

A reliable laptop has become an important part of a chess player’s training. It can make it easier to attend online classes, analyse games, work with databases and prepare for opponents. In this year’s ChessBase India YouTube Members Laptop Program. These funds were collected between 1st April 2025 and 31st March 2026, and the total amounts to Rs. 7,79,477.3. Seven players are receiving laptops to support their chess journeys.