Two-time Candidates winner and two-time World Championship runner-up Russia’s Ian Nepomniachtchi was ousted by young Indian Grandmaster Diptayan Ghosh at the ongoing FIDE Chess World Cup 2025 in Goa. Shortly after his defeat on Wednesday, Nepomniachtchi was seen rushing out of the official hotel. He later posted on social media that India is “one of those places that you won’t regret leaving.”
Nepomniachtchi also criticised FIDE and the playing conditions in Goa, prompting a response from former Indian No. 1 Pentala Harikrishna. “He has been criticising a lot of things lately, but it would be better if he clearly pointed out what he dislikes, rather than making statements that are open to numerous interpretations and speculation,” Harikrishna told The Indian Express from Goa.
“When you don’t like something, and if it can be improved or if it’s perhaps not as it appears, it can be discussed and rectified. That’s not an issue,” he added.
Despite the growing popularity of chess worldwide and in India, the sport remains far from a lucrative investment. While prize pools are increasing and tournament standards are gradually improving, organising top-level events remains challenging.
Harikrishna noted that events like the Chess World Cup are incredibly difficult to fund and organise. He suggested that if Nepomniachtchi had issues, he should have approached FIDE directly.
“This is an event with a huge prize fund and high stakes. A lot of effort from various people goes into it. Organising an event at any level is not easy, and this is a World Cup… it’s incredibly hard to secure funding. So, it’s best to clearly state if there was an issue. Maybe he could have approached the organising committee or FIDE instead of making vague comments online,” he said.
Earlier, a dissatisfied Nepomniachtchi posted on his Telegram account: “I’d played in India before (in 2019 in Kolkata), so I had a good idea of what the conditions would be like. But FIDE, to its credit, managed to surprise me. There’s nothing to say about the chess aspect. One of those places that you won’t be sad to leave.”
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Notably, India hosted the 2022 Chess Olympiad in Mahabalipuram at short notice after FIDE moved the event from Russia due to the conflict in Ukraine. The Mahabalipuram Olympiad was widely regarded as one of the better events organised by FIDE in recent years.
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