What started as an event full of hope for Indians has given a reality check after the first four rounds and 32 fighting games across the open and women’s sections at the Candidates Tournament 2026 in Cyprus. The three Indians in the fray – R Praggnanandhaa, R Vaishali, and Divya Deshmukh -– have endured a battling start. While none of them had entered as overwhelming favourites of the 14-round tournament, the standings on the first rest day reflect just how tough the challenge has been.
Praggnanandhaa started his campaign on a perfect note. Riding on an extraordinary opening preparation against Dutchman Anish Giri, the 2023 World Cup finalist landed a huge blow with the white pieces to begin his campaign with a win. His game against Wei Yi in the second round ended in a draw, but Pragg once again showcased brilliant preparation against the Chinese grandmaster.
It was the third round that came as a shocker for Pragg, where he was outplayed by his longtime childhood rival, Javokhir Sindarov of Uzbekistan. Sindarov, the youngest player in the field this time, has set the stage alight with his performances. He took down Andrey Esipenko, beat Pragg with the black pieces, and overcame the most experienced player, Fabiano Caruana, to already build a full-point lead over his closest American rival. Pragg is fourth in the standings with 2 points, already trailing by 1.5 points to Sindarov.
For top Indian trainer Srinath Narayanan, things are still not hopeless, but he isn’t fully convinced of Pragg’s chances. “It’s far from hopeless. The Candidates rarely gets decided so early. But at the same time, the performance so far hasn’t given the impression that Pragg is going to be an overwhelming favourite or dominate the field,” he told The Indian Express.
Pragg’s elder sister, Vaishali, also has 2 points, but in a much more contrasting fashion. She has been a solid defender and has played clean games; the only worrying sign has been her game management. She came under time pressure against Bibisara Assaubayeva and Divya before squeezing out draws. She remains the lone Indian yet to lose a game in this event.
Vaishali remains the lone Indian yet to lose a game at the Candidates. (Photo Credit: Michal Walusza/FIDE)
Srinath defended her time management skills. “Yes, she stumbled a bit against Divya in time trouble. But she also came back in that same time phase. She found a good resource before the 40th move in that same sequence. So it’s not as one-sided as it looks,” he said.
For Divya, the first phase of the event has perhaps been the most disappointing by her own standards. After playing a flawless draw against Ukraine’s Anna Muzychuk in the opening round, Divya had good chances to convert her game against Vaishali but failed. She was also tested heavily by Aleksandra Goryachkina, but there she showed great resilience, mounting a comeback to somehow force a draw. Her defences finally shattered against Zhu Jiner in the fourth round, just before the rest day, leaving her at the bottom of the standings with 1.5 points.
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Divya Deshmukh had good chances to convert her game against Vaishali but failed. (Photo Credit: Michal Walusza/FIDE)
The women’s section remains a much more level playing field, with tighter games. Bibisara and Muzychuk are in joint lead with 2.5 points each, but the entire field is separated by just one point.
Srinath named Caruana and Bibisara as his early picks for favourites ahead of the fourth round, but with a big caveat when the American was tied for the lead with Sindarov. Srinath noted that in a long tournament like the Candidates, players can lose steam, while there also remains a significant chance for a comeback. He also named Hikaru Nakamura as someone who would do well as the event progressed, citing his style of play and the general trend that he needs time to get settled.
Srinath’s assessment proved correct almost instantly when his favourite, Caruana, stumbled in the very next round against an impressive Sindarov, who is playing some of the best chess of his life.
“When I say Fabiano and Bibisara, it does come with massive terms and conditions applied, and with a very, very low percentage of them being run as favourites. It’s a long event, and people will find their form and momentum as the tournament progresses. And equally, a player who is showing a lot of convincing form can also die down in the second half and play much weaker,” he said.
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R Praggnanandhaa
Round 1: Win vs Anish Giri
Round 2: Draw vs Wei Yi
Round 3: Loss vs Javokhir Sindarov
Round 4: Draw vs Matthias Blübaum
R Vaishali
Round 1: Draw vs Bibisara Assaubayeva
Round 2: Draw vs Divya Deshmukh
Round 3: Draw vs Anna Muzychuk
Round 4: Draw vs Aleksandra Goryachkina
Divya Deshmukh
Round 1: Draw vs. Anna Muzychuk
Round 2: Draw vs. R Vaishali
Round 3: Draw vs. Aleksandra Goryachkina
Round 4: Loss vs. Zhu Jiner
