The Asian Nations Chess Cup 2026 Starts Today at the Sheraton Abu Dhabi

Players were getting ready for the final round, and Viresh was sitting at the board, chatting with his friends. He asked me, "Did you check the norm situation?" I told him yes. He then asked whether a draw would be enough. I began to worry as I knew a draw wouldn't cut it and would leave him stuck at a 2599 performance rating. But should I tell him the news just two minutes before the game?

GM V. Pranav is the FIDE World Junior Blitz Champion 2026! The 20-year-old from Chennai scored 10.5/13 in Al Ain, UAE, finishing a full point clear of the field and adding the blitz crown to the rapid silver he won earlier in the week. In the Girls section, WGM Valeria Kleymenova took the title with 10/13, while WIM Aamuktha Guntaka finished fourth and IM Savitha Shri seventh for India.

The Total Chess Pilot begins in Budapest on the 10th of November 2026 and runs till the 20th. Twenty-four players, three time controls, four groups, six knockout brackets and a prize fund of USD 650,000. Almost everyone we have spoken to in the last few days has had the same reaction: it sounds exciting, but how does it actually work? Here is the whole format, in the order in which it will unfold, with the four questions we keep hearing answered along the way.

Opening Preparation to End the Tournament?? GM Pranesh M. defeated GM Iniyan Panneerselvam in the final round of the 1st Chola Chess Open International Grandmasters Chess Tournament 2026 to clinch the title. The tournament was a huge success, with 9 out of 86 players scoring their Norms. 1 Grandmaster, 7 International Masters, and 1 Woman International Master norm were secured. FM Aadik Lenin from Kerala scored his final IM Norm to get the International Master Title. The most shocking and cheering result was IM Viresh Sharnarthi defeating GM Leon Mendonca with black pieces on demand to score his 2nd GM Norm in 10 days. Read the final report. Photos: Devansh Singh

IM Anuj Shrivatri of Madhya Pradesh won the 7th ASEAN Plus Individual Open Chess Championship and earned the Grandmaster title. After losing the first game, Anuj scored 7/8 points to win the tournament. With this, India gained its 100th Grandmaster, and Madhya Pradesh got its first. Huge congratulations to Anuj and his family on this achievement!

We learn about many incredible chess talents in India every day. Many players stand on podiums, holding their glistening trophies and adding norms to their bags. One of them is Nivedita VC. Born in 2011, Nivedita is a Woman FIDE Master with a long list of achievements. Let's take a look at her journey!

In just a few hours, one of India's strongest open tournaments will conclude, but not without an exciting last-round fight. After the penultimate round, the biggest news is Aadik Lenin becoming India's latest IM after scoring his final IM norm with a round to spare. IM Viresh Sharnarthi needs to win against GM Leon Mendonca with the black pieces to secure his 2nd GM norm. Almost 9 more IM norms are expected, depending on the results. The final round will start at 10 am IST on 7th November. Photos: Devansh Singh

The fight for norms is getting intense at the 1st Chola Chess GM 2026. On the top board, S.L. Narayanan defeated Pranesh M to gain the sole lead. FM Sarbartho Mani is getting back in shape; he defeated GM Sayantan Das with white pieces. This was Sarbartho's 2nd win against a Grandmaster in classical chess, and with this win he moves to 4/7 points. FM Avirat Chauhan is also playing great chess, and he defeated IM Aradhya Garg in an exciting clash. In other games, most of the favourites won. The penultimate round will start on 6th November at 2 PM IST. Photos: Devansh Singh

India won ten medals across the Rapid and Blitz events at the 4th Asian Chess Championship for Players with Disabilities 2026 in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. Sharon Rachel Aby won gold in the Girls Under-20 category in both Rapid and Blitz, while Nishan Mondal added a third gold in the Boys Under-20 Rapid. Sarthak Singh, Ezhilarasi G and Durkasri M also won medals in both formats. Read the full report. Photo: Tamizharasan Murugan

A day filled with some heartbreaks and upsets! The biggest news of the day was GM Pranesh M defeating GM Leon Mendonca to gain the sole lead. FM Aarit Kapil was on the verge of defeating GM Surya Shekhar Ganguly, but he missed his chance, and the game ended in a draw. It was his 5th draw against a Grandmaster. FM Aadik Theophane Lenin scored his highest-rated classical win, beating GM Dimitris Alexakis. FM Madhesh Kumar S. defeated IM Apoorv Kamble in an exciting battle. With just three rounds to go, the battle for scoring norms is getting intense; stay tuned. Photos: Devansh Singh

Here is a job opening you don't see every day. A chess academy is looking for someone to run the whole show, and that person does not need to know how the knight moves! GM Swapnil Dhopade, India's 40th Grandmaster, is hiring a full-time CEO for Chess Pathshala, at Rs.70,000 to Rs.80,000 per month plus a profit share linked to the academy's growth.

Shah Moxit J scored 8.5/9 to win the 2nd Nihar Seva Foundation International Rapid Rating Chess Tournament 2026. ACM Arvind Iyer and FM Jaiveer Mahendru scored 8/9 to finish second and third, respectively. The one-day event was held on 1 November at Sama Indoor Sports Complex in Vadodara. It featured nine rounds of rapid chess and a prize fund of ₹3,00,000, with ₹32,000 awarded to the winner. Photos: Maulik Raval.

IM Kashish Manoj Jain won the 2nd G. H. Raisoni Memorial Solapur International FIDE Rapid Rating Chess Tournament with 8.5/9 points. Manas Gaikwad finished second with 8/9, while Shriraj Bhosale took third with 7.5/9. Organized by the Kalpana Prakash Welfare Foundation in association with G. H. Raisoni and Champ Chess School, the event drew 247 players from Maharashtra, Karnataka and Telangana. The total prize fund was ₹2,00,000, with ₹31,000 and a trophy for the winner. Photos: Pavan K. Rathi.

More than 200 families and groups have raised around Rs. 2.5 crore to support 20 young Indian chess prodigies, including World Champion Gukesh, Praggnanandhaa and Vaishali. ChessBase India caught up with Satya Prabhakar of Group e4 at the 1st Chola Chess GM Tournament in Chennai. He spoke about how Group e4 began, how it supports young players, and the role of Chola Chess in Indian chess.

Six rounds, six wins! GM V. Pranav leads the FIDE World Junior Rapid Championship 2026 in Al Ain by a full point, with the last three rounds to be played today. GM Prraneeth Vuppala is in the chasing pack on 5/6. Let's have a look at how Pranav got here, including a lovely little idea against the second seed that you can try to solve yourself.

11-year-old Ved Phaur scored 6.5/9 to win bronze at the 13th IBCA World Junior Chess Championship 2026 in Crete, Greece. He joins Darpan Inani, Soundarya Pradhan and Aryan Joshi among India's medallists at the event. His achievement also raises a question: how can India help its visually impaired players continue training and competing internationally? This article looks at Ved's performance and the need for sustained support for blind chess in India.

What an eventful day it was at the 1st Chola Chess GM 2026. 11-year-old FM Aarit Kapil is on a dream run; He held 4 Grandmasters to a draw in the first 4 games. In the 5th round, he defeated GM Shyaam Nikhil with the black pieces. FM Yohan Tarala scored his highest-rated classical win against GM Dimitris Alexakis. FM Madhvendra Pratap Sharma defeated IM Apoorv Kamble, FM Adhiraj Mitra defeated IM Suyog Wagh, and FM Madhesh Kumar defeated IM Benjamin Defromont. GM Leon Mendonca has emerged as the Sole leader with 4.5/5 after defeating Samvel Ter-Sahakyan. Photos: Devansh Singh

While watching The Big Bang Theory because it's exam season, Netflix is extra attractive right now. My eyes landed on the 3D chess set, and a question popped into my head: if Sheldon Cooper faced Magnus Carlsen in a chess match, who would win? And would they even get past arguing over the rules?

Chennai has given GM Alisher Suleymenov a title and a reason to return. After winning the 1st Chola Chess International GM Round Robin earlier this year, the Kazakh grandmaster is back for the 1st Chola Chess GM 2026. In this interview with Devansh Singh, he recalls beating a 12-year-old Gukesh and explains why he considers Javokhir Sindarov the favourite in the World Championship match. He also speaks about his ambitions in chess and the importance of staying psychologically strong.

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