Chess
Praggnanandhaa wins FIDE Circuit 2025, qualifies for 2026 Candidates Tournament
The Chennai Grandmaster sealed his Candidates berth after finishing the season atop the FIDE Circuit standings.
Praggnanandhaa made an error by pushing his d-pawn on the 14th move and was under time pressure till Dubov failed to find a move that could have given him a winning advantage. (Photo credit: Grand Chess Tour/Twitter)
R. Praggnanandhaa has clinched the FIDE Circuit 2025 title, securing his place in next year’s Candidates Tournament as India’s lone male representative.
The Chennai Grandmaster maintained a consistent lead in the circuit standings since May, when he overtook Ding Liren, and held firm through the final month despite late challenges from the field.
By November, several of his closest competitors, Anish Giri, Fabiano Caruana, Matthias Bluebaum and Javokhir Sindarov, had already qualified for the 2026 Candidates through other pathways. With Vincent Keymer inactive in classical events for the remainder of the year, only Nodirbek Abdusattorov retained a theoretical chance of catching Praggnanandhaa via the points-rich London Chess Classic Elite.
Strong London finish seals qualification
To secure his qualification independently of the upcoming FIDE Rapid and Blitz Championships, Praggnanandhaa entered the London Chess Classic Open at the last moment.
He delivered under pressure, scoring 7/9, tying for first place and earning 8.17 circuit points.
Abdusattorov produced a standout performance in the Elite section, achieving one of the highest tournament performance ratings in chess history and collecting 19.62 points, but Praggnanandhaa’s cumulative tally remained unreachable.
The 20-year-old capped a prolific season in classical chess, winning the Tata Steel Masters, Superbet Chess Classic Romania, UzChess Cup Masters and the London Chess Classic Open. He also recorded runner-up finishes at the Stepan Avagyan Memorial and placed 12th at the Sinquefield Cup before exiting the FIDE World Cup in the fourth round.
Seven of the eight Candidates spots are now filled, with Wei Yi and Andrey Esipenko among the qualifiers alongside Giri, Caruana, Bluebaum and Sindarov. The final berth will be determined via the six-month average rating route as outlined in FIDE’s qualification handbook.
The Candidates Tournament will take place in March–April 2026. Meanwhile, India will have three representatives in the Women’s Candidates: Divya Deshmukh, Koneru Humpy and R. Vaishali.
