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Freestyle Grand Slam Tour Stage 1 SF: Keymer KOs Carlsen

13/02/2025 -

Vincent Keymer (GER) drew with Magnus Carlsen (NOR) to advance to the Finals of at Freestyle Grand Slam Tour Stage 1. The World no.1 got a chance in the endgame. However, the endgame expert had an off day, missed his chance and drew the game. Fabiano Caruana (USA) had the most exciting Semifinal match against Javokhir Sindarov (UZB). What seemed to be over by the second Classical game went on to Armageddon. Caruana managed to win the ultimate form of tie-breaker, although he could have finished things as early as second Classical game. Keymer and Caruana will clash in the Finals while Carlsen will battle Sindarov in the third place match. Finals Game 1 starts today from 1 p.m. local time, 5:30 p.m. IST. Photo: Lennart Ootes

ChessBase 18 and Mega 2025 are here

ChessBase 18 is an all-new program that helps you manage all your databases as an ambitious player. Mega Database 2025 has 11 million games with over 113,000 games annotated by masters. The cost of ChessBase 18 is Rs.4499/- and the cost of Mega Database 2025 is Rs.6499/- However, if you go for the combo the total amount comes to Rs.8999 (instead of 10,998/-) helping you save Rs. 1999/-.

ChessBase 18 + Mega 2025 Combo

Your chance to play IM Vantika Agrawal in a simul at Mumbai!

12/02/2025 -

On 15th of February, a very special event will take place at Atrium 5 in the Phoenix Marketcity Mall, Mumbai. Individual and Team Gold medalist at the Budapest Chess Olympiad 2024, IM Vantika Agrawal will give a simul! 15 players of varying rating levels will battle Vantika all at the same time. What an exciting opportunity - do you want to take part in this very special event? Read the article carefully for all the details and the form link which you have to fill up. The form closes on 13th February, 10 PM IST! Graphic: Anmol Bhargav

Joydeep Dutta wins 1st T-RERA Rating Open 2025

12/02/2025 -

FM Joydeep Dutta, IM Vikramaditya Kulkarni and Arpan Das scored an unbeaten 7.5/9 each at 1st T-RERA Rating Open 2025. Joydeep won the tournament due to better tie-break scores, Vikramaditya and Arpan were placed second and third respectively. The eventual champion, Joydeep drew with both runners-up. The total prize fund of the tournament was ₹230000. The top three prizes were ₹30000, ₹20000 and ₹15000 along with a trophy each respectively. The five-day nine round Rating Open tournament was organized by T-RERA, Agartala, Tripura at NSRCC in Agartala, Tripura from 30th January to 3rd February 2025. Joydeep won the first tournament triumph he played in 2025.

Freestyle Grand Slam Tour Stage 1 SF: Vincent Keymer stuns Magnus Carlsen

12/02/2025 -

Vincent Keymer (GER) stunned Magnus Carlsen (NOR) in the first game of the Semifinals at Freestyle Grand Slam Tour Stage 1. The Germany no.1 got an advantage early in the game. However, the World no.1 managed to equalize. Eventually, Carlsen made a positional inaccuracy which his opponent capitalized on and won the game. Javokhir Sindarov (UZB) missed a win against Fabiano Caruana (USA). The opportunity arose for the Uzbek in the endgame. He was unable to spot it and the game ended in a draw. Carlsen is in a must-win situation in the second Semifinals to force tie-breaks. Game 2 starts today from 1 p.m. local time, 5:30 p.m. IST. Photo: Abhyudaya Ram

Shaon Chowdhury dominates New Delhi Rating Open 2025

11/02/2025 -

Shaon Chowdhury scored an unbeaten 8.5/9 to win New Delhi Rating Open 2025. He finished a half point ahead of the rest. Mani Bharathy scored sole 8/9 to secure a second place finish. Eight players scored 7.5/9 each. Out of them, IM Ramnathan Balasubramaniam was placed third according to tie-breaks. He was only player to draw with the eventual champion, Shaon in the penultimate round. The top three finishers remained undefeated. The total prize fund of the tournament was ₹850000. The top three prizes were ₹71000, ₹51000 and ₹31000 along with a trophy each respectively. The five-day nine round Rating Open tournament was organized by Sara Foundation at Thyagraj Stadium in New Delhi from 31st January to 4th February 2025. This was Shaon's second rating tournament triumph of the year. Both of them occurred in Delhi.

Shanghai and Chongqing to host 2025 FIDE Women’s World Championship Match

11/02/2025 -

The Women's World Championship Match will be played in Shanghai and Chongqing, China from 1st to 23rd April 2025. Just like the last time, the host cities will be exactly the same. The reigning four-time Women's World Champion, Wenjun Ju will face the winner of FIDE Women's Candidates 2024 - Zhongyi Tan. Wenjun's World Championship reign started in 2018 by winning against the 16th World Champion, Zhongyi. So it will be a rematch after nearly seven years, only this time it will be a 12-game match instead of 10. One thing is for sure, Women's World Champion title is not leaving China for the foreseeable future. Photo: FIDE

Freestyle Grand Slam Tour Stage 1: Sindarov eliminates Nakamura, joins Keymer, Caruana and Carlsen in SF

11/02/2025 -

Javokhir Sindarov (UZB) eliminated Hikaru Nakamura (USA) to advance to the Semifinals of Freestyle Grand Slam Tour Stage 1. The 44th Olympiad Gold medalist's brave decision to choose Nakamura has to be applauded. Despite being lost in three out of the four games, he defended well and manage to win the match. The reigning World Fischer Random champion, Nakamura appreciated his opponent's defensive skills. Magnus Carlsen (NOR) and Fabiano Caruana (USA) won their second game against Nodirbek Abdusattorov (UZB) and D Gukesh to advance to the next KO stage. Vincent Keymer (GER) drew with Alireza Firouzja (FRA) to setup a clash with Carlsen. Caruana will face Sindarov in the Semifinals. Game 1 starts today from 1 p.m. local time, 5:30 p.m. IST. Photo: Abhyudaya Ram

Debanjan Sinha wins 5th Navin Kumar Sinha Memorial Rapid Rating Open 2025

10/02/2025 -

Debanjan Sinha and IM Himal Gusain scored 8/9 each at 5th Navin Kumar Sinha Memorial Rapid Rating Open 2025. 14-year-old Debanjan won the tournament due to better tie-breaks, Himal was placed second. Debanjan's sole loss was against the top seed, Himal who remained undefeated. Arpan Das, Manindra Karjee, Tapan Badamundi and CM Anurag Jaiswal scored 7.5/9 each. The total prize fund of the tournament was ₹100000. The top three prizes were ₹20000 + trophy, ₹12000 and ₹7500 each respectively. The one-day nine round Rapid Rating Open tournament was organized by West Singhbhum District Chess Association at St. Xavier's Welfare Centre in Chaibasa, West Singhbhum, Jharkhand on 26th January 2025. The tournament was sponsored by Grih Laxmi Sales and Marketing. This was Debanjan's first rating tournament triumph of his career. Photo: Basant Khandelwal / West Singhbhum District Chess Association

Freestyle Grand Slam Tour Stage 1: Firouzja, Gukesh and Abdusattorov in a must-win situation

10/02/2025 -

Vincent Keymer (GER), Fabiano Caruana (USA) and Magnus Carlsen (NOR) have won their respective first game of the Quarterfinals at Freestyle Grand Slam Tour Stage 1. Firouzja's ambitious approach against Keymer did not work out. It only made his king more vulnerable. Hikaru Nakamura (USA) missed a great opportunity to win against Javokhir Sindarov (UZB). D Gukesh made a slight miscalculation, traded rooks at an inopportune moment and arrived at an inferior exchange down endgame. Nodirbek Abdusattorov (UZB) could not get out of the gate against Carlsen. All four matches continue with a second game of the Quarterfinals and reversed color. Game 2 starts today from 1 p.m. local time, 5:30 p.m. IST. Photo: Abhyudaya Ram

A tale of two brains: Wishful thinking vs deep calculation

09/02/2025 -

How many moves do you think grandmasters can calculate? It’s somewhere between ‘a lot’ and ‘are they even human’. Their brain works like a high-speed engine. They can see countless variations in seconds. They can spot traps before they even exist. And a Woodpusher? They might stare at the board, see one move ahead or maybe two on a good day, and hope for the best. This article explores the bizarre gap between ‘deep calculation’ and ‘let’s see what happens’.  

ChessBase 18: New functions in the reference search

09/02/2025 -

ChessBase 18 has many spectacular new features, but also hidden innovations: The new superpower in the reference search provides knowledge you need: Do you know the best way to prepare your team-mates for a team match? How do you find typical draw variations? Which opening variations are currently played in amateur chess? Chief developer Matthias Wuellenweber shows interesting innovations in the ChessBase 18 reference search. Check out the tutorial and grab ChessBase 18 if you haven't yet. Photo: ChessBase

Freestyle Grand Slam Tour Stage 1: Caruana handpicks World Champion Gukesh as his Quarterfinals opponent

09/02/2025 -

Alireza Firouzja (FRA) scored an unbeaten 3/4 on the second day to top Freestyle Grand Slam Tour Stage 1. He was on the verge of beating Magnus Carlsen (NOR) in Round 7. However, he missed it and the game ended in a draw. Firouzja defeated the sole leader Javokhir Sindarov (UZB) in Round 9 to finish first in the Round-Robin stage. The ranking in the round-robin stage does not have a lot of consequence, except for choosing their opponent. The winner gets a choice from the bottom four out of top eight, then runner-up picks from the remaining three and so on. Thus, the QF lineup turned out to be: Firouzja - Vincent Keymer, Sindarov - Hikaru Nakamura, D Gukesh - Fabiano Caruana and Magnus Carlsen - Nodirbek Abdusattorov. Quarterfinals Game 1 starts today from 1 p.m. local time, 5:30 p.m. IST. Photo: Lennart Ootes

Diptayan Ghosh best at 29th Hit Open 2025

08/02/2025 -

GM Diptayan Ghosh scored an unbeaten 8/9 to win 29th Hit Open A (>1600) 2025. He finished a staggering one and a half point ahead of the rest. FM Dejan Omorjan (SRB), GM Matej Sebenik (SLO) and FM Rudi Olenik Campa (SLO) scored 6.5/9 each. They were placed second, third and fourth respectively according to tie-breaks. The top three prizes were €1000, €750 and €500 each. The eight-day nine-round Swiss League Rating Open tournament was organized by Chess club Nova Gorica, Slovenia at Perla, Resort & Entertainment in Nova Gorica, Slovenia from 24th to 31st January 2025. This is the second tournament Diptayan played this year and he won it in a dominant fashion. Photo: RTV Slovenia

Freestyle Grand Slam Tour Stage 1: Carlsen slayers Caruana and Sindarov emerge coleaders

08/02/2025 -

Freestyle Grand Slam Tour Stage 1 is off to a great start. Fabiano Caruana (USA) and Javokhir Sindarov (UZB) have emerged coleaders 4.5/5. Both of them defeated the Magnus Carlsen (NOR). Vladimir Fedoseev (SLO) was the only other player to beat the World no.1. Alireza Firouzja (FRA) is at a full point behind the leaders at 3.5/5 each. He is the only player who managed to beat the World Champion, D Gukesh. Nodirbek Abdusattorov (UZB) has made a 50% start 2.5/5. Carlsen, Gukesh, Hikaru Nakamura (USA) and Vincent Keymer (GER) are at 2/5 each. Round 6 starts today from 1 p.m. local time, 5:30 p.m. IST. Photo: Abhyudaya Ram

Aravindh Chithambaram keeps climbing, becomes World no.21

07/02/2025 -

The FIDE Rating list for February 2025 does not reflect a lot of change as Tata Steel Tournament was in progress. So, the list is unable to show the changes for Arjun Erigaisi, D Gukesh, R Praggnanandhaa, Divya Deshmukh and R Vaishali. However, two Indians gained significant places. Aravindh Chithambaram continues his climb to the top. He gained 2.9 Elo rating points to move to 2729 and World no.21. Among the Indian Women, WGM Rakshitta Ravi gained 44.6 Elo rating points to break into World top 100 among Women for the first time with a career high rating 2365. She is now World no.77 among Women. Photo: Anmol Bhargav

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