Phenomenal Praggnanandhaa clinches 2nd UzChess Cup Masters in thrilling Playoffs, now World #4 and India #1
It does not matter how many times you get knocked down. What matters is how many times you have the ability to get up and fight. R stands for Rameshbabu in Praggnanandhaa's name. However, in this tournament, he once again showed that it can be for 'Resilient' as he showed incredible resilience. He lost two games in-a-row in Round 5 and 6, won the last two rounds in a virtual must-win situation. In the Playoffs, twice he won must-win games against Javokhir Sindarov (UZB) with white and black pieces respectively. This triumph made Praggnanandhaa World no.4 and India no.1 in live ratings. His calmness and the ability to overcome adverse situation reminds one the character of Sripati Samanta written by Balai Chand Mukhopadhyay aka Bonoful. It was appreciated by the maestro, Vishy Anand too. GM Nikolas Theodorou (GRE) and GM Saparmyrat Atabayev (TKM) won the Challengers and Futures section. Shamsiddin Vokhidov's (UZB) victory over Ian Nepomniachtchi also marked the end of an era. There is no Russian in World Top ten. Photos: Shahid Ahmed
Resilient Praggnanandhaa finishes first with fantastic performance, Nikolas and Saparmyrat claim Challengers and Futures
Winning two Classical and then two in Playoff games, definitely makes R Praggnanandhaa the deserving champion. This is the third time he has won a strong super tournament via Playoff - 87th Tata Steel Masters in February, Superbet Chess Classic 2025 in May and now this. This triumph made him World no.4 and India no.1 which is definitely an icing on the cake. The top three prizes in Masters were - US$ 20000 + trophy, $15000 and $10000 each. GM Nikolas Theodorou (GRE) won the Challengers and GM Saparmyrat Atabayev (TKM) clinched the Futures.
Abdusattorov - Praggnanandhaa: 0-1
R Praggnanandhaa (2767) and Nodirbek Abdusattorov (UZB, 2767) are battling against each other for more than a decade since their childhood days. Out of the ten Classical rated games they have played against each other, Praggnanandhaa has scored three wins and the remaining seven ended in a draw. Praggnanandhaa has never lost a Classical battle against Abdusattorov. That statistic remained unchanged. A draw would have made Abdusattorov the champion of the tournament, but as Praggnanandhaa said in the post-tournament interview that, Abdusattorov is not someone who will take a draw as he loves to play fighting chess.
Instead of recapturing on f4, what White needed to do was push the rook away from b4 before it became a menace. 18.a3 Rbb8 19.Bxc6 would have been good for White. Instead, the game continued 18.gxf4? Rfb8 19.e5 Qf5 20.exd6 Bf6 21.Bb3 Qc5 22.Rfe1 Bxc3 23.bxc3 Qxc3 24.Qd3 Qa1+ 25.Kd2 Qf6 26.c3 Bf5 27.Qxf5 Rd4+! a very necessary check to ensure a doubled pawn on d-file and make d6-passed pawn toothless.
28.cxd4 Qxf5 although Black has material advantage and should win but White did not cave in easily. He put up a fight.
43...g6! was a nice finish. The reason behind this move is to free up the rook to move to b4, so that there is no back rank checkmate threat of Re8. 44.fxg6 Qc1+ 45.Kd3 Rb4 46.Re8+ Kg7 47.Rg8+ Kxg8 48.gxf7+ Kh7 49.f8Q Qxc4+ and it's over as queen loss or checkmate cannot be avoided.
The maestro Vishy Anand congratulated Praggnanandhaa
Vokhidov - Nepomiachtchi: 1-0
This is the first-ever Classical rated game between Shamsiddin Vokhidov (UZB, 2644) and Ian Nepomniachtchi (2757). The reigning World Blitz Cochampion went wrong early in the game when he played 15...d5
White already had an advantage after 15.Re2 d5? only worsened things for Black further. 16.exd6+- Rd8 17.Bd2 Bxd6 18.Qg3 0-0 19.Bc3 e5 20.fxe5 and White went on to convert his advantage into a win comfortably. This win ensured that there is no Russian in World Top ten for the first time in a long while.
Sindarov - Parham: 0.5-0.5
Javokhir Sindarov (UZB, 2710) and Parham Maghsoodloo (IRI, 2691) faced each other six times in Classical rated games. Both players scored two wins each and the remaining two ended in draws. Their seventh game also ended in a draw.
Rapport - Yakubboev: 0.5-0.5
The sole Classical battle between Richard Rapport (HUN, 2714) and Nodirbek Yakubboev (UZB, 2659) occurred at the same event last year. It ended in a draw. Their rematch also had the same outcome.
Arjun - Aravindh: 0.5-0.5
World no.3, Arjun Erigaisi (2782) and World no.11, Aravindh Chithambaram (2749) played half a dozen Classical games versus each other. They share the win, draw and loss record equally. Arjun had advantage but it fizzled out and the game ended in a draw.
What is the most unique form of additional prize you have ever seen at a strong chess tournament? IM Saidakbar Saydaliev (UZB) scored 4.5/9 to finish fifth in the Futures event. Apart from receiving $1000 as his prize, he also won Free pizza for a month from Dominos in Tashkent, Uzbekistan.
For more Round 9, Playoff, Masters, Challengers, Futures and Open Prize distribution ceremony photos, please click at the respective links. Interviews with the Challengers and Futures champion, GM Shamsiddin Vokhidov (UZB), organizing team member, commentator and venue tour will be published soon. Stay tuned.
Replay live stream
Replay Masters Playoff games
Replay Challengers Round 9 games
Replay Futures Round 9 games
Time Control
90 minutes for the first 40 moves + 30 minutes for the rest of the game with 30 seconds increment starting from move one in Masters. For Challengers, Futures and Open, the time control is 90 minutes + 30 seconds increment.
Prizes
The total prize fund is US$ 121500. Masters has $80000, Challengers $25000, Futures $11500 and Open $5000.
Masters Round 9 results
| Bo. | No. | Rtg | White | Result | Black | Rtg | No. | PGN | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 5 | 2767 | GM | Abdusattorov, Nodirbek | 0 - 1 | GM | Praggnanandhaa, R | 2767 | 10 | |||
| 2 | 6 | 2644 | GM | Vokhidov, Shamsiddin | 1 - 0 | GM | Nepomniachtchi, Ian | 2757 | 4 | |||
| 3 | 7 | 2710 | GM | Sindarov, Javokhir | ½ - ½ | GM | Maghsoodloo, Parham | 2691 | 3 | |||
| 4 | 8 | 2714 | GM | Rapport, Richard | ½ - ½ | GM | Yakubboev, Nodirbek | 2659 | 2 | |||
| 5 | 9 | 2782 | GM | Erigaisi, Arjun | ½ - ½ | GM | Aravindh, Chithambaram Vr. | 2749 | 1 |
Standings after Round 9
| Rk. | SNo | Name | FED | Rtg | Pts. | TB1 | TB2 | TB3 | TB4 | TB5 | w-we | K | rtg+/- | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 10 | GM | Praggnanandhaa, R | IND | 2767 | 5,5 | 2 | 25,25 | 4 | 1 | 3,5 | 0,41 | 10 | 4,1 | |
| 2 | 5 | GM | Abdusattorov, Nodirbek | UZB | 2767 | 5,5 | 0,5 | 22,50 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 0,41 | 10 | 4,1 | |
| 3 | 7 | GM | Sindarov, Javokhir | UZB | 2710 | 5,5 | 0,5 | 22,25 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 1,20 | 10 | 12 | |
| 4 | 9 | GM | Erigaisi, Arjun | IND | 2782 | 5 | 0 | 21,50 | 2 | 2 | 3 | -0,29 | 10 | -2,9 | |
| 5 | 3 | GM | Maghsoodloo, Parham | IRI | 2691 | 4,5 | 1,5 | 20,50 | 2 | 1 | 3,5 | 0,44 | 10 | 4,4 | |
| 6 | 8 | GM | Rapport, Richard | HUN | 2714 | 4,5 | 1 | 18,75 | 2 | 2 | 2,5 | 0,12 | 10 | 1,2 | |
| 7 | 2 | GM | Yakubboev, Nodirbek | UZB | 2659 | 4,5 | 0,5 | 19,50 | 2 | 1 | 2,5 | 0,89 | 10 | 8,9 | |
| 8 | 6 | GM | Vokhidov, Shamsiddin | UZB | 2644 | 4 | 0 | 16,50 | 2 | 1 | 2,5 | 0,60 | 10 | 6 | |
| 9 | 4 | GM | Nepomniachtchi, Ian | FID | 2757 | 3,5 | 0 | 16,00 | 0 | 0 | 3 | -1,46 | 10 | -14,6 | |
| 10 | 1 | GM | Aravindh, Chithambaram Vr. | IND | 2749 | 2,5 | 0 | 11,25 | 0 | 0 | 1,5 | -2,32 | 10 | -23,2 |
Playoff Stage 1 Double Round Robin results
| Round 1 on 2025/06/27 at 16:00 | ||||||||||||
| Bo. | No. | Rtg | White | Result | Black | Rtg | No. | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 2767 | GM | Abdusattorov, Nodirbek | ½ - ½ | GM | Sindarov, Javokhir | 2710 | 3 | |||
| 2 | 1 | 2767 | GM | Praggnanandhaa, R | 0 | bye | 0 | -1 | ||||
| Round 2 on 2025/06/27 at 16:00 | ||||||||||||
| Bo. | No. | Rtg | White | Result | Black | Rtg | No. | |||||
| 1 | 1 | 2767 | GM | Praggnanandhaa, R | 1 - 0 | GM | Abdusattorov, Nodirbek | 2767 | 2 | |||
| 2 | 3 | 2710 | GM | Sindarov, Javokhir | 0 | bye | 0 | -1 | ||||
| Round 3 on 2025/06/27 at 16:00 | ||||||||||||
| Bo. | No. | Rtg | White | Result | Black | Rtg | No. | |||||
| 1 | 3 | 2710 | GM | Sindarov, Javokhir | 1 - 0 | GM | Praggnanandhaa, R | 2767 | 1 | |||
| 2 | 2 | 2767 | GM | Abdusattorov, Nodirbek | 0 | bye | 0 | -1 | ||||
| Round 4 on 2025/06/27 at 16:00 | ||||||||||||
| Bo. | No. | Rtg | White | Result | Black | Rtg | No. | |||||
| 1 | 3 | 2710 | GM | Sindarov, Javokhir | ½ - ½ | GM | Abdusattorov, Nodirbek | 2767 | 2 | |||
| 2 | 1 | 2767 | GM | Praggnanandhaa, R | 0 | bye | 0 | -1 | ||||
| Round 5 on 2025/06/27 at 16:00 | ||||||||||||
| Bo. | No. | Rtg | White | Result | Black | Rtg | No. | |||||
| 1 | 2 | 2767 | GM | Abdusattorov, Nodirbek | 1 - 0 | GM | Praggnanandhaa, R | 2767 | 1 | |||
| 2 | 3 | 2710 | GM | Sindarov, Javokhir | 0 | bye | 0 | -1 | ||||
| Round 6 on 2025/06/27 at 16:00 | ||||||||||||
| Bo. | No. | Rtg | White | Result | Black | Rtg | No. | |||||
| 1 | 1 | 2767 | GM | Praggnanandhaa, R | 1 - 0 | GM | Sindarov, Javokhir | 2710 | 3 | |||
| 2 | 2 | 2767 | GM | Abdusattorov, Nodirbek | 0 | bye | 0 | -1 | ||||
Standings after Playoff Double Round Robin
| Rk. | SNo | Name | FED | Rtg | TB1 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | GM | Praggnanandhaa, R | IND | 2767 | 2 | |
| 2 | GM | Abdusattorov, Nodirbek | UZB | 2767 | 2 | ||
| 3 | GM | Sindarov, Javokhir | UZB | 2710 | 2 |
Playoff Stage 2 Round Robin results
| Round 1 | ||||||||||||
| Bo. | No. | Rtg | White | Result | Black | Rtg | No. | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 2767 | GM | Praggnanandhaa, R | ½ - ½ | GM | Abdusattorov, Nodirbek | 2767 | 3 | |||
| 2 | 1 | 2710 | GM | Sindarov, Javokhir | 0 | bye | 0 | -1 | ||||
| Round 2 | ||||||||||||
| Bo. | No. | Rtg | White | Result | Black | Rtg | No. | |||||
| 1 | 1 | 2710 | GM | Sindarov, Javokhir | 0 - 1 | GM | Praggnanandhaa, R | 2767 | 2 | |||
| 2 | 3 | 2767 | GM | Abdusattorov, Nodirbek | 0 | bye | 0 | -1 | ||||
| Round 3 | ||||||||||||
| Bo. | No. | Rtg | White | Result | Black | Rtg | No. | |||||
| 1 | 3 | 2767 | GM | Abdusattorov, Nodirbek | 0 - 1 | GM | Sindarov, Javokhir | 2710 | 1 | |||
| 2 | 2 | 2767 | GM | Praggnanandhaa, R | 0 | bye | 0 | -1 | ||||
Final standings after Playoff Stage 2
| Rk. | SNo | Name | FED | Rtg | TB1 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | GM | Praggnanandhaa, R | IND | 2767 | 1,5 | |
| 2 | 1 | GM | Sindarov, Javokhir | UZB | 2710 | 1 | |
| 3 | 3 | GM | Abdusattorov, Nodirbek | UZB | 2767 | 0,5 |
Challengers Round 9 results
| Bo. | No. | Rtg | White | Result | Black | Rtg | No. | PGN | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 5 | 2370 | IM | Tokhirjonova, Gulrukhbegim | ½ - ½ | GM | Hong, Andrew | 2589 | 10 | |||
| 2 | 6 | 2539 | GM | Vakhidov, Jakhongir | 0 - 1 | GM | Madaminov, Mukhiddin | 2536 | 4 | |||
| 3 | 7 | 2594 | GM | Abasov, Nijat | ½ - ½ | GM | Sivuk, Vitaly | 2522 | 3 | |||
| 4 | 8 | 2634 | GM | Ivanchuk, Vasyl | 1 - 0 | IM | Suyarov, Mukhammadzokhid | 2490 | 2 | |||
| 5 | 9 | 2630 | GM | Ma, Qun | 0 - 1 | GM | Theodorou, Nikolas | 2613 | 1 |
Final standings
| Rk. | SNo | Name | FED | Rtg | Pts. | TB1 | TB2 | TB3 | TB4 | TB5 | w-we | K | rtg+/- | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | GM | Theodorou, Nikolas | GRE | 2613 | 6,5 | 0 | 27,50 | 5 | 2 | 2,5 | 1,19 | 10 | 11,9 | |
| 2 | 4 | GM | Madaminov, Mukhiddin | UZB | 2536 | 6 | 0 | 23,50 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1,72 | 10 | 17,2 | |
| 3 | 3 | GM | Sivuk, Vitaly | SWE | 2522 | 5,5 | 1 | 22,00 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 1,41 | 10 | 14,1 | |
| 4 | 8 | GM | Ivanchuk, Vasyl | UKR | 2634 | 5,5 | 0 | 24,75 | 4 | 3 | 2,5 | -0,08 | 10 | -0,8 | |
| 5 | 10 | GM | Hong, Andrew | USA | 2589 | 4,5 | 0 | 17,50 | 3 | 1 | 1 | -0,49 | 10 | -4,9 | |
| 6 | 9 | GM | Ma, Qun | CHN | 2630 | 4 | 0,5 | 16,50 | 1 | 1 | 2 | -1,53 | 10 | -15,3 | |
| 7 | 2 | IM | Suyarov, Mukhammadzokhid | UZB | 2490 | 4 | 0,5 | 15,25 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0,34 | 10 | 3,4 | |
| 8 | 7 | GM | Abasov, Nijat | AZE | 2594 | 3,5 | 0 | 15,00 | 1 | 0 | 1,5 | -1,55 | 10 | -15,5 | |
| 9 | 5 | IM | Tokhirjonova, Gulrukhbegim | UZB | 2370 | 3 | 0 | 13,75 | 0 | 0 | 1,5 | 0,80 | 10 | 8 | |
| 10 | 6 | GM | Vakhidov, Jakhongir | UZB | 2539 | 2,5 | 0 | 10,75 | 1 | 1 | 1 | -1,81 | 10 | -18,1 |
Futures Round 9 results
| Bo. | No. | Rtg | White | Result | Black | Rtg | No. | PGN | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 5 | 2515 | GM | Ruck, Robert | ½ - ½ | IM | Saydaliev, Saidakbar | 2450 | 10 | PGN | ||
| 2 | 6 | 2490 | GM | Abdisalimov, Abdimalik | 0 - 1 | GM | Atabayev, Saparmyrat | 2517 | 4 | PGN | ||
| 3 | 7 | 2588 | GM | Pichot, Alan | ½ - ½ | GM | Sychev, Klementy | 2513 | 3 | PGN | ||
| 4 | 8 | 2489 | GM | Chatalbashev, Boris | ½ - ½ | IM | Begmuratov, Khumoyun | 2470 | 2 | PGN | ||
| 5 | 9 | 2474 | GM | Nigmatov, Ortik | 1 - 0 | GM | Alekseev, Evgeny | 2520 | 1 | PGN |
Final standings
| Rk. | SNo | Name | FED | Rtg | Pts. | TB1 | TB2 | TB3 | TB4 | TB5 | w-we | K | rtg+/- | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 | GM | Atabayev, Saparmyrat | TKM | 2517 | 6 | 0 | 24,25 | 4 | 2 | 2,5 | 1,29 | 10 | 12,9 | |
| 2 | 9 | GM | Nigmatov, Ortik | UZB | 2474 | 5,5 | 0 | 25,00 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 1,39 | 10 | 13,9 | |
| 3 | 1 | GM | Alekseev, Evgeny | ISR | 2520 | 5 | 0,5 | 21,50 | 2 | 0 | 2,5 | 0,26 | 10 | 2,6 | |
| 4 | 3 | GM | Sychev, Klementy | FID | 2513 | 5 | 0,5 | 21,25 | 2 | 0 | 2,5 | 0,36 | 10 | 3,6 | |
| 5 | 10 | IM | Saydaliev, Saidakbar | UZB | 2450 | 4,5 | 0,5 | 20,50 | 2 | 0 | 2,5 | 0,73 | 10 | 7,3 | |
| 6 | 8 | GM | Chatalbashev, Boris | DEN | 2489 | 4,5 | 0,5 | 19,25 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0,19 | 10 | 1,9 | |
| 7 | 2 | IM | Begmuratov, Khumoyun | UZB | 2470 | 4 | 0,5 | 18,50 | 1 | 0 | 3 | -0,04 | 10 | -0,4 | |
| 8 | 7 | GM | Pichot, Alan | ESP | 2588 | 4 | 0,5 | 15,75 | 2 | 1 | 1,5 | -1,67 | 10 | -16,7 | |
| 9 | 6 | GM | Abdisalimov, Abdimalik | UZB | 2490 | 3,5 | 0 | 15,75 | 2 | 0 | 2 | -0,84 | 10 | -8,4 | |
| 10 | 5 | GM | Ruck, Robert | HUN | 2515 | 3 | 0 | 13,25 | 0 | 0 | 2 | -1,67 | 10 | -16,7 |
Schedule
Every day from 19th to 26th June 2025, the round starts at 3 p.m. local time, 3:30 p.m. IST. Only the last round will start at 11 a.m. local time, 11:30 a.m. IST.
Links
Uzbekistan Chess Federation: Telegram, fb page and youtube
