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FIDE Rating list September 2026: Praggnanandhaa back in the top 10

by Rasika Ratnaparkhi - 01/09/2026

The September 2026 FIDE rating list is out. Praggnanandhaa has returned to the World Top 10 after seven months. India has 15 players in the Open Top 100 and 11 players in the Women’s Top 100. Several Indian women have also made notable gains, including Deekshitha Modipalli and Kalyani Sirin. Here’s a look at the biggest rating and ranking changes among Indian players this month.

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Pragg returns to the top 10 after seven months

Open: Fifteen Indians in the Top 100

In the September 2026 FIDE rating list, Praggnanandhaa and Arjun are the only Indians in the top 10 in the Open category. The 15 Indians in the top 100 are: Praggnanandhaa R (World no. 8), Arjun Erigaisi (World no. 9), Viswanathan Anand (World no. 14), Nihal Sarin (World no. 25), Gukesh D (World no. 32), Vidit Gujrathi (World no. 33), Pranav V (World no. 41), Aravindh Chithambaram (World no. 42), Pranesh M (World no. 44), Pentala Harikrishna (World no. 67), Murali Karthikeyan (World no. 68), Aryan Chopra (World no. 70), Raunak Sadhwani (World no. 72), Leon Luke Mendonca (World no. 85) and Abhimanyu Puranik (World no. 98).

Pragg has moved from World No. 12 to No. 8. His Classical rating increased from 2750 to 2761, Rapid from 2701 to 2730, and Blitz from 2707 to 2712. He is now India's No. 1 player and returns to the World Top 10 after seven months. | Photo: Lennart Ootes

Arjun Erigaisi remains World No. 9, with his Classical, Rapid and Blitz ratings unchanged. | Photo: Michal Walusza

Nihal Sarin remains World No. 25, with his Classical, Rapid and Blitz ratings unchanged. | Photo: EWC

World Champion Gukesh is ranked World No. 32 in September, down one place from August. | Photo: Tushar Damor

Karthikeyan Murali saw one of the biggest drops among Indians, falling from World No. 48 in August to No. 68 in September. | Photo: Niklesh Jain

Aryan Chopra has made a significant jump, moving from World No. 87 to No. 70. His Classical rating also increased from 2637 to 2646. | Photo: Niklesh Jain

Praggnanandhaa, Arjun, Anand and Nihal are the Indians in the World Top 30 in the classical format. | Source: FIDE

These are the fifteen Indians in the World Top 100 in the classical format. | Source: FIDE

Rapid Top 100 Players September 2026. | Source: FIDE

Blitz Top 100 Players September 2026. | Source: FIDE

Women: Eleven Indians in the Top 100

There are eleven Indian women in the world's top 100. They are: Koneru Humpy (World No. 9), Divya Deshmukh (World No. 13), R Vaishali (World No. 16), Deekshitha Modipalli (World No. 23), Harika Dronavalli (World No. 25), Kalyani Sirin (World No. 45), Vantika Agrawal (World No. 50), Pratitee Bordoloi (World No. 51), Savitha Shri B (World No. 60), Rakshitta Ravi (World no. 74) and Padmini Rout (World No. 98).

Koneru Humpy's Classical rating dropped from 2524 to 2509, while her Rapid rating went from 2436 to 2435 and Blitz rating from 2398 to 2386. | Photo: Lennart Ootes

Divya Deshmukh did not play any tournament in August, so her rating and ranking remain unchanged. | Photo: Lennart Ootes

Vaishali moves to World No. 16 from 14, with a classical rating of 2469. | Photo: Lennart Ootes

Deekshitha Modipalli has made a big jump in the rankings. She entered the World Top 25 at No. 23. Her Classical rating increased from 2157 to 2454, while her Rapid rating rose from 1786 to 1888 and her Blitz rating from 1711 to 1806.

Harika Dronavalli's performance at the Asian Women Blitz Chess Championship 2026 increased her Blitz rating from 2343 to 2355.

Kalyani Sirin has entered the World Top 50, with her Classical rating rising from 2217 to 2401. | Photo: Shahid Ahmed

Pratitee had a major jump in her classical rating, gaining 141 points in a single month and reaching 2393. Her rapid rating also improved by 44 points, while her blitz rating dropped by 21 points. | Photo: Tushar Damor

Savitha Shri B. moves up to World No. 60, rated 2382. | Photo: Atharva Godbole

Padmini Rout is ranked World No. 98 in September, down from 88 in August. Her classical rating went from 2351 to 2344. | Photo: Pavel Dvorkovich

Humpy, Divya, Vaishali, Deekshitha and Harika are the Indians in the World Top 30 in classical format. | Source: FIDE

These are the eleven Indians in the World Top 100 in classical format. | Source: FIDE

Rapid Top 100 Women Players September 2026. | Source: FIDE

Blitz Top 100 Women Players September 2026. | Source: FIDE

Countries

India continues to hold the World No. 2 position in terms of the average rating of the top ten players in the Open category. India is behind the USA by 20 Elo points.

India is ranked no. 2 in the Top Federation list in Open. | Source: FIDE

The picture is similar in the women's section, where India remains second in the world. China continues to lead the standings, with a 53-point advantage over the Indian squad.

China leads the Women's category, with India close behind in second. | Source: FIDE

China continues to lead the Mixed category, with India holding on to second place. The gap between the two nations currently stands at 6 Elo points.

India remains at no.2 in the Top Federations Mixed. | Source: FIDE

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