Tata Steel Chess 2026 Rounds 1–5: Three-Way Tie for First in Both Sections

Tournament Information

The Tata Steel Chess tournament is one of the longest-running chess tournaments in history. It has attracted the world's top players for decades and is currently celebrating its 88th edition. The Masters section pits 14 players in a big single-player round robin, setting the stage for exhilarating chess battles as the clash of styles and ratings makes for quite the spectacle. The Challengers section is similarly structured, and Tata Steel Chess also includes a well-attended Amateurs section.

Time control

The time control is 120 minutes for the first 40 moves, followed by an additional 30 minutes for the rest of the game. The game starts off with no increment, but on move 41, a 30-second increment is introduced.

Lichess Broadcast

The Lichess broadcast coverage can be found here.

Lichess Interviews

Check out our on-site player interviews on YouTube after every round!

Lichess Blogs

Lichess will write blog posts after rounds 5, 8, 11, and 13.

Annotations

GM Renier Castellanos Rodriguez will annotate the games of the Masters section and WGM Petra Papp will annotate the games of the Challengers section.

For this blog, GM Renier Castellanos Rodriguez has annotated the games GM Aravindh Chithambaram VR. vs. GM Hans Moke Niemann and GM Jorden van Foreest vs. GM Anish Giri.

For this blog, WGM Petra Papp has annotated the games IM Carissa Yip vs. GM Max Warmerdam and IM Faustino Oro vs. GM Erwin l'Ami.

Find all the annotations here.

Schedule

Masters Standings

Challengers Standings

Round 1

The first round was delayed because of a protest staged by Extinction Rebellion, which stated that "the action was meant to symbolize their rejection of fossil fuel sponsorship, citing Tata Steel’s lack of progress toward climate neutrality". The round started two hours after the scheduled time, with games going well into the evening.

GM Arjun Erigaisi vs. GM Praggnanandhaa R, 1-0

GM Arjun Erigaisi started off with a blast as he uncorked some very aggressive preparation against GM Praggnanadhaa R's Queen's Gambit Accepted. 10. Nh4 was already a rare move, with one very menacing threat: trapping Black's queen. Praggnanadhaa was able to avoid getting his queen trapped, but his king remained in the center; Arjun's play with the initiative was simply sublime, and Praggnanandhaa never had any chance to come back into the game.

GM Vincent Keymer vs. GM Anish Giri, 1-0

In another Queen's Gambit Accepted win, GM Vincent Keymer won abruptly against GM Anish Giri. Keymer had a pleasant position out of the opening, with potential to play on and grind out a win. As soon as Giri equalized and wrested the slight plus, though, he blundered a piece suddenly, losing one of his minor pieces to a rook fork.

GM Hans Moke Niemann vs. GM Vladimir Fedoseev, 1-0

GM Hans Moke Niemann; photo: Tata Steel Chess / Jurriaan Hoefsmit & Lennart Ootes

GM Hans Moke Niemann was another beneficiary of an early blunder as he won against GM Vladimir Fedoseev in just 16 moves. Niemann was very well-prepared in the Petrov, spending no time to play a novelty, 14. g3!. Fedoseev blundered immediately after said move, playing 14...Nxc5??, a tactic that is an idea in this position, but only theoretically at that point. Niemann punished Fedoseev's blunder, and Fedoseev resigned quickly, seeing no hope in saving the game.

Non-Decisive Games

The tragic game of the day was world champion GM Gukesh D's draw against GM Javokhir Sindarov, who defended tenaciously as Gukesh failed to convert a winning position. Meanwhile, GM Thai Dai Van Nguyen's Petrov went better than Fedoseev's as he had a sizable advantage against GM Jorden van Foreest, but van Foreest was able to find an activity-driven drawing sequence after Nguyen blundered away his advantage with 21...f6??. GM Aravindh Chithambaram VR. vs. Matthias Blübaum (game) and GM Yağız Kaan Erdoğmuş vs. GM Nodirbek Abdusasttorov (game) were rather quiet draws.

Round 1 Challengers

GM Bibisara Assaubayeva; photo: Tata Steel Chess / Jurriaan Hoefsmit & Lennart Ootes

The Challengers saw four decisive games: GM Erwin l'Ami vs. GM Aydin Suleymanli (game), GM Bibisara Assaubayeva vs. GM Andy Woodward (game), IM Eline Roebers vs. FM Vedant Panesar (game), and IM Lu Miaoyi vs. GM Max Warmerdam (game).

Round 2

GM Vladimir Fedoseev vs. GM Vincent Keymer, 1-0

GM Vladimir Fedoseev recovered brilliantly from his round 1 loss by playing a model Nimzo-Indian Defense against GM Vincent Keymer, where Fedoseev's positional advantage only kept growing. Fedoseev maneuvered his pieces well in the opening, achieving a much better position as Keymer could not find the precise defensive setup. As Keymer's light-squared bishop was locked in, Keymer tried to develop it with 16. b6?!, but Fedoseev was ready with the amazing positional piece pseudo-sacrifice, 17. Nd5!. Fedoseev then proceeded to convert brilliantly.

GM Nodirbek Abdusattorov vs. GM Praggnanandhaa R, 1-0

GM Praggnanadhaa R's 4...h6 in the Queen's Gambit Declined was already a rare line, which GM Nodirbek Abdusattorov seemed to be well-prepared for. Both players played the opening relatively quickly, later on spending some time navigating the complexities of a rather stable middlegame. Abdusattorov remained slightly better, and with his rook becoming active after 31. Rc7, Praggnanandhaa had to find precise defensive moves to stave off White's initiative. With 31...d4?, Praggnanadhaa allowed Abdusattorov to gain a large advantage, which he went on to blunder on a couple of moves later with 35. Ra8?!. Praggnanandhaa then blundered on move 42, playing 42...Rg2 instead of the more accurate 42...Ke6!. After Praggnanandhaa's blunder, Abdusattorov put on a stunning endgame display,
winning on the 60th move.

We caught up with GM Nodirbek Abdusattorov after his win:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vl7Qtde2Gvo&list=PLe5ZNOR8Ttm2FTx0OYOUFfISs-tdCViO3&index=12

Non-Decisive Games

From left to right: GM Aravindh Chithambaram VR., GM Yağız Kaan Erdoğmuş, and WIM Fiona Steil-Antoni; photo: Tata Steel Chess / Jurriaan Hoefsmit

GM Javokhir Sindarov, who drew after having been lost in round 1, drew after having been winning, twice, against GM Anish Giri. The first blunder which gave away the advantage was 23...Ne2+, a move which the players in fact both laughed about, while the second blunder was in a king and pawn endgame, when Sindarov played 41...a5?? in mere seconds. GM Yağız Kaan Erdoğmuş was winning against GM Aravindh Chithambaram VR., after the latter's novelty surprised Erdoğmuş, but only on the clock, for Erdoğmuş played with stunning precision in an opening he was not familiar with. Alas for Erdoğmuş, he missed just one move that would have applied pressure on Black's position, and the game saw a forcing line which ended in a draw. GM Arjun Erigaisi was in some trouble against GM Thai Dai Van Nguyen, but defended well, while GM Gukesh D vs. GM Jorden van Foreest (game) and GM Matthias Blübaum vs. GM Hans Moke Niemann (game) were rather tame draws.

Round 2 Challengers

IM Carissa Yip; photo: Tata Steel Chess / Jurriaan Hoefsmit

The Challengers saw four decisive games: GM Andy Woodward vs. IM Eline Roebers (game), IM Carissa Yip vs. GM Max Warmerdam (game), FM Vedant Panesar vs. IM Lu Miaoyi (game), and IM Faustino Oro vs. GM Erwin l'Ami (game).

WGM Petra Papp has annotated Yip's and Oro's games for you to learn from:

We caught up with GM Andy Woodward, IM Carissa Yip, and IM Faustino Oro after their wins:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8M1S8moD2Yg&list=PLe5ZNOR8Ttm2FTx0OYOUFfISs-tdCViO3&index=14

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m3LpZuzNaLo&list=PLe5ZNOR8Ttm2FTx0OYOUFfISs-tdCViO3&index=13

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L3whhvBuczE&list=PLe5ZNOR8Ttm2FTx0OYOUFfISs-tdCViO3&index=11

Round 3

GM Vincent Keymer vs. GM Matthias Blübaum, 0-1

In the battle of the German national team, GM Matthias Blübaum was able to get the better of GM Vincent Keymer in a very one-sided game. Keymer's undoing was creative play, where he kept his king in the center, trying to start an attack against Blübaum's king. Keymer's king was the more unsafe king, though, and Blübaum played with tremendous precision to win the game in rapid fashion.

We caught up with GM Matthias Blübaum after his win:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lylTBK1sWFY&list=PLe5ZNOR8Ttm2FTx0OYOUFfISs-tdCViO3&index=10

GM Jorden van Foreest vs. GM Anish Giri, 1-0

In another battle of compatriots, it was again the lower rated of the pair who won the encounter as GM Jorden van Foreest defeated GM Anish Giri. In a Najdorf, van Foreest's inventive knight maneuver with Nb3-Nc1-Na2-Nb4 followed by Ncd5 allowed van Foreest to achieve a very powerful positional bind. Giri was not yet significantly worse, for he played rather precisely, but soon enough the position got out of hand as van Foreest's pressure on the g7-pawn proved to be too tough for Giri to handle. With precise endgame play, van Foreest converted his advantage in exemplary fashion.

GM Renier Castellanos Rodriguez has annotated this game for you to learn from:

We caught up with GM Jorden van Foreest after his win:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6o_FvJSyswo&list=PLe5ZNOR8Ttm2FTx0OYOUFfISs-tdCViO3&index=9

Non-Decisive Games

GM Arjun Erigaisi played a very imaginative game against world champion GM Gukesh D, in the same line that he used to win against GM Praggnanadhaa R; after some adventures, both players saw no better course of action than to repeat moves, agreeing to a draw on move 34 after a peculiar rook dance. Meanwhile, GM Praggnanandhaa R was pressing a symbolic advantage against GM Thai Van Dan Nguyen, but Nguyen was playing perfect chess, and the game ended in a logical draw. GM Aravindh Chithambaram VR. vs. GM Nodirbek Abdusattorov (game), GM Hans Moke Niemann vs. Yağız Kaan Erdoğmuş (game), and GM Javokhir Sindarov vs. GM Vladimir Fedoseev (game) were calm draws.

Round 3 Challengers

GM Vasyl Ivanchuk; photo: Tata Steel Chess / Lennart Ootes

The Challengers saw six decisive games and just one draw: GM Erwin l'Ami vs. GM Daniil Yuffa (game), IM Lu Miaoyi vs. GM Andy Woodward (game), IM Eline Roebers vs. GM Aydin Suleymanli (game), GM Velimir Ivić vs. GM Vasyl Ivanchuk (game), GM Andy Woodward vs. IM Carissa Yip (game), and GM Max Warmerdam vs. FM Vedant Panesar (game).

Round 4

GM Aravindh Chithambaram VR. vs. GM Hans Moke Niemann, 0-1

The game of the day had to be GM Hans Moke Niemann's win over Aravindh Chithambaram VR., where the former sacrificed a queen to push through his passed pawn, later on pseudo-sacrificing a couple of rooks as well. With 14. f5, Aravindh signaled his intention to play on the kingside, so Niemann needed to create counterplay on the queenside lest he have to deal with a checkmated king. Niemann's piece play and activity on the queenside was superb, wresting the initiative from Aravindh and pushing through with his passed b-pawn. A few sacrifices later, Aravindh had to resign.

GM Renier Castellanos Rodriguez has annotated this game for you to learn from:

We caught up with GM Hans Moke Niemann after his win:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=27g3btwH_NI&list=PLe5ZNOR8Ttm2FTx0OYOUFfISs-tdCViO3&index=7

GM Matthias Blübaum vs. GM Javokhir Sindarov, 0-1

The King's Indian Defense is a rare guest at the top levels of chess, mainly owing to its risky nature. After three draws, GM Javokhir Sindarov clearly wanted to fight, and what better way to do it than against a fellow FIDE 2026 candidate. As in any KID, the engine's evaluation was approaching +1, but with engines' preferences for space, that was not the entire story just yet. After a series of logical moves, Blübaum decided to capture on a4, accepting Sindarov's pawn sacrifice. Unfortunately for Blübaum, 17. Nxa4?(!) was a blunder, allowing Black to get the initiative. In what was now an equal position, Blübaum blundered again, losing the game after 24. Qc5??, whereafter Sindarov could drum up a mating attack.

We caught up with GM Javokhir Sindarov after his win:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FAXHyASqWuA&list=PLe5ZNOR8Ttm2FTx0OYOUFfISs-tdCViO3&index=8

GM Nodirbek Abdusattorov vs. GM Thai Dai Van Nguyen, 1-0

GM Nodirbek Abdusattorov; photo: Tata Steel Chess / Lennart Ootes

GM Nodribek Abdusattorov was not objectively better against GM Thai Dai Van Nguyen in the Petrov, but he had a solid plan while Nguyen had to find concrete moves to keep Abdusattorov's advantage from blossoming. Abdusattorov's Nb3-Na1-Nc2 maneuever worked out well, for it was this very knight that would trade itself off on move 32 for its counterpart, allowing Abdusattorov to enter into a winning queen endgame. With a king walk toward the queenside, Abdusattorov converted his advantage into a full point soon after.

Non-Decisive Games

GM Arjun Erigaisi was close to winning against GM Anish Giri, but the endgame was rather tricky and required extreme accuracy, which Arjun was not able to maintain. In a similar vein, GM Vladimir Fedoseev missed one chance against GM Jorden van Foreest, with equality otherwise all the way through. GM Gukesh D vs. GM Praggnanandhaa R (game) and GM Yağız Kaan Erdoğmuş vs. GM Vincent Keymer (game) were stable draws.

Round 4 Challengers

IM Faustino Oro; photo: Tata Steel Chess / Lennart Ootes

The Challengers saw six decisive games and just one draw: GM Aydin Suleymanli vs. IM Lu Miaoyi (game), GM Andy Woodward vs. GM Max Warmerdam (game), IM Faustino Oro vs. IM Eline Roebers (game), GM Marc'Andria Maurizzi vs. GM Velimir Ivić (game), GM Vasyl Ivanchuk vs. GM Erwin l'Ami (game), and IM Carissa Yip vs. Vedant Panesar (game).

We caught up with GM Aydin Suleymanli after his win:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XXm-QIIqOzI&list=PLe5ZNOR8Ttm2FTx0OYOUFfISs-tdCViO3&index=6

Round 5

GM Javokhir Sindarov vs. GM Yağız Kaan Erdoğmuş, 1-0

GM Javokhir Sindarov won a second game in a row after GM Yağız Kaan Erdoğmuş allowed Sindarov's heavy pieces to run amok. Erdoğmuş was back in the game after some inaccuracies by Sindarov and good defense by himself, though; however, in a drawn rook endgame, Erdoğmuş blundered, allowing Sindarov's pawn to queen.

GM Thai Dai Van Dan vs. GM Gukesh D, 0-1

GM Gukesh D; photo: Tata Steel Chess / Lennart Ootes

GM Thai Dai Van Dan had a fine position out of the opening, a Queen's Indian Defense, against world champion GM Gukesh D. With a weak pawn on c4, though, Nguyen found his light-squared bishop to be more passive than Gukesh's dark-squared bishop. After Gukesh's dark-squared bishop attacked White's f2-pawn, Nguyen soon blundered, losing the exchange and soon after, the game.

GM Arjun Erigaisi vs. GM Vladimir Fedoseev, 0-1

GM Arjun Erigaisi was much better out of the opening against GM Vladimir Fedoseev, but a series of inaccuracies allowed Fedoseev to get back into the game. Arjun remained better for quite some time; however, after choosing to keep his king in the center, the position was very dangerous to play, and just one seemingly innocuous move, 30. Ba2??, was enough to allow Black to crash through and swarm White's king.

GM Vincent Keymer vs. GM Aravindh Chithambaram VR., 1-0

In the Sämisch variation of the Exchange Queen's Gambit Declined, GM Vincent Keymer navigated the complications against a well-prepared GM Aravindh Chithambaram VR. very well. Keymer had a slight plus, but he had at one point allowed an equalizing move in 21...Rg7. Aravindh failed to find said move, though, granting White a solid center after 22. f4. Aravindh was not yet lost, but the position was very difficult for Black, and Keymer slowly improved his position, eventually winning on move 36.

We caught up with GM Vincent Keymer after his win:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aFjB7m_RP3M&list=PLe5ZNOR8Ttm2FTx0OYOUFfISs-tdCViO3&index=5

Non-Decisive Games

In the battle of the leaders, GM Hans Moke Niemann was pressing a slight advantage against GM Nodirbek Abdusattorov (game); similarly, GM Jorden van Foreest was better against GM Matthias Blübaum (game). Meanwhile, GM Anish Giri was winning for one move against GM Praggnanadhaa R, but could not find said winning move (game).

Round 5 Challengers

The Challengers saw four decisive games: GM Velimir Ivić vs. IM Carissa Yip (game), FM Vedant Panesar vs. GM Andy Woodward (game), IM Lu Miaoyi vs. IM Faustino Oro (game), and IM Eline Roebers vs. GM Daniil Yuffa (game).

We caught up with IM Carissa Yip, IM Faustino Oro, and IM Eline Roebers after their wins:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cxxaIS1hxKw&list=PLe5ZNOR8Ttm2FTx0OYOUFfISs-tdCViO3&index=1

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kyCvbw7hyYg&list=PLe5ZNOR8Ttm2FTx0OYOUFfISs-tdCViO3&index=3

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MLTjf_HrxBk&list=PLe5ZNOR8Ttm2FTx0OYOUFfISs-tdCViO3&index=4