Stern test awaits Praggnanandhaa at Candidates

The FIDE Candidates tournament 2026 begins in Paphos, Cyprus, on Saturday. Eight elite chess players each in the Open and women’s sections will battle it out over 14 rounds to identify the challenger to the World champions.

R. Praggnanandhaa is the only Indian in the open event, which is a mix of experience and youth. He will be eager to go all the way and earn a shot at his compatriot D. Gukesh in the championship match later in the year.

However, it will be a tough task in a field that includes Americans Hikaru Nakamura and Fabiano Caruana, China’s Wei Yi, Dutchman Anish Giri, German Matthias Bluebaum, Uzbek Javokhir Sindarov and Russian Andrey Esipenko.

The 20-year-old Praggnanandhaa, making his second appearance in the event, has won a number of elite invitational and open tournaments over the past two years, and could be a dangerous customer if he hits the right notes.

Rating-wise Nakamura and Caruana may be the best in the field but the rest including Praggnanandhaa will fancy their chances.

The women’s tournament, being held simultaneously, will feature R. Vaishali and the fast-rising Divya Deshmukh alongside former World champion Tan Zhongyi, Kateryna Lagno, Aleksandra Goryachkina, Zhu Jiner, Bibisara Assaubayeva and Anna Muzychuk, a late replacement for Koneru Humpy. The Indian ace decided not to travel owing to safety concerns in the wake of the West Asia conflict.

Humpy’s withdrawal does rob the tournament of some of its class but there is still enough quality to provide intense contests. Vaishali, who performed brilliantly in the previous Candidates, has matured into an elite competitor and will be among the contenders if she starts well.

The tactically sharp Divya, the youngest player in the fray and the World Cup winner, will expect to put up a stiff fight.