“The perfect sacrifice is every chess player’s dream,” says Grandmaster Krishnan Sasikiran in the description of his Fritz Trainer! But when exactly is a sacrifice perfect? How can you correctly assess and evaluate sacrifice ideas, and how can you handle them when complications arise? The Grandmaster from India now wants to show ambitious chess players […]
Monthly Archives: November 2025
FIDE has announced that the World Women’s Team Championship will take place in Linares, Spain, from 17 to 24 November. The event will feature 12 national teams, including China, India, the United States and the host nation Spain. With top players such as Hou Yifan, Carissa Yip and Sarasadat Khademalsharieh expected to compete, the championship […]
Tension ran high in Goa on Thursday as the second round of the 2025 FIDE World Cup came to an end with a marathon day of tiebreaks. While several favourites advanced smoothly – including Nodirbek Abdusattorov, Shakhriyar Mamedyarov and Vidit Gujrathi – a string of surprises kept spectators on edge. Lorenzo Lodici’s victory over Hans […]
Himank Ghosh conducted an interview with Vincent Keymer for ChessBase India after his victory over Vladislav Kovalev secured his place in the third round. Keymer said he was satisfied with his performance, but admitted, “There is pressure, especially the pressure I put on myself!”
The first major upsets of the 2025 FIDE World Cup occurred on Wednesday in Goa, as three players rated over 2700 were eliminated from the competition. Wesley So, Ian Nepomniachtchi and Aravindh Chithambaram were all knocked out by lower-seeded opponents – Titas Stremavicius, Diptayan Ghosh and Karthik Venkataraman, respectively. With 37 matches already decided, the […]
In recent decades, the number of draws in international correspondence chess tournaments has increased significantly due to the tools used, and it is now approaching 100%. Venceslav Rutar of Slovenia has therefore proposed an alternative tiebreak system, as not all draws are the same. This system is now set to be tried in a correspondence […]
GM Dorian Rogozenco demonstrates how to filter and analyse games by rating, year, and tournament to see which openings are currently popular and successful – without needing multiple databases. Rogozenco shows practical shortcuts and explains how to use live updates and tournament selections to instantly study what top grandmasters are playing right now. The episode […]
The World Cup entered a new phase on Tuesday in Goa, as chess heavyweights joined the field and the competition intensified. With the arrival of the top 50 seeds, 64 games were played in round two’s first day, producing 21 decisive results. Many top players began cautiously, but some struck quickly — among them Wei […]
Naroditsky’s tragic passing, details still unclear, though with serious allegations levelled at a now-named former top player, invites us to look beyond the parish pump of chess. FIDE itself states in connection with the case: ‘Human life and dignity are fundamental values shared by all of us. While we hold deep respect and love for […]
After a long break from competitive play, GM Jon Speelman returned to the board with three intense games in quick succession – each offering instructive lessons and a few painful oversights. In his latest column, he revisits the most critical moments from these battles, including a London League clash against Jonathan Parker and two 4NCL […]