The 19-year-old chess prodigy sealed his victory with a commanding performance at the London Chess Classic Open, capping off a stellar year and punching his ticket to the tournament that will decide the next challenger for the world championship.
Praggnanandhaa's triumph is the result of a dominant season where he consistently outperformed rivals in elite events. He took the lead in the FIDE Circuit race in May and never looked back. His remarkable 2025 campaign includes first-place finishes at the Tata Steel Masters, the Superbet Chess Classic Romania, the UzChess Cup Masters, and the London Chess Classic Open. He also placed second in the Stepan Avagyan Memorial and was among the top finishers at the Sinquefield Cup. By scoring 7 out of 9 points in a strong field at the London Classic, he collected the crucial circuit points needed to finish at the summit of the leaderboard with 115.17 points.
The Road to Cyprus: A Star-Studded Field
Seven of the eight players for the Candidates 2026 have now been confirmed. Joining Praggnanandhaa are:
Fabiano Caruana (2024 FIDE Circuit winner)
Anish Giri (2025 FIDE Grand Swiss winner)
Matthias Blübaum (2025 FIDE Grand Swiss runner-up)
Javokhir Sindarov (2025 FIDE World Cup winner)
Wei Yi (2025 World Cup runner-up)
Andrey Esipenko (2025 World Cup third place)
The eighth and final spot will be awarded based on rating. It will go to the player with the highest six-month average standard FIDE rating from August 2025 to January 2026, provided they have played at least 40 eligible games. This rating qualification has been a topic of discussion, leading FIDE to implement partial changes to the system in October 2025.
Indian Chess Power on Full Display
Praggnanandhaa's qualification continues a period of unprecedented success for Indian chess. He follows in the footsteps of legends Viswanathan Anand and the current World Champion, D Gukesh. Notably, Gukesh does not need to qualify for the Candidates; as the reigning champion, he is already seeded directly into the 2026 World Championship match, where he will defend his title against the winner of the Candidates Tournament.
The Indian contingent is even stronger in the women's section. Three Indian players—Divya Deshmukh, Koneru Humpy, and R. Vaishali—have already qualified for the Women's Candidates 2026, which will be held alongside the men's event.
What Comes Next
The Candidates Tournament 2026 is scheduled for March 28 to April 16, 2026, at the Cap St. Georges Hotel and Resort in Pegeia, Cyprus. It will be an eight-player, double round-robin tournament where each participant faces all others twice. The sole winner earns the right to challenge World Champion Gukesh for the chess crown later in 2026.
Praggnanandhaa's consistent excellence over the past year has not only made him the best performer on the FIDE Circuit but has also set the stage for a high-stakes showdown in Cyprus, where he will aim to become the next Indian challenger for the world title.
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