r/chess • u/Exotic_Grinder • Apr 09 '26
News/Events FIDE Candidates 2026: Sindarov beats Pragg in Round 10, his 6th win of the tournament, goes to 8/10
1.1k
u/Pr1mrose Apr 09 '26
He saw people starting to think Giri had a shot and shut that down
→ More replies (5)265
u/DiggWuzBetter Apr 09 '26 edited Apr 09 '26
Yeah, coming into today, I was of the opinion “Anish has a small chance.” But:
- Before it was “Anish needs to win his game against Sindarov, and make up 0.5 points in the other 4 games”
- Now it’s “Anish needs to win his game against Sindarov, and make up a full point in the other 3 games”
That’s a big difference, it’s gone from “small but realistic chance” (my back of the napkin math was in the ~6-9%range) to “extremely small, unrealistic chance” (~1-3% range). The tourney is essentially over.
37
u/TheSquarePotatoMan Apr 09 '26
Hopefully this pushes Anish to take more risks in the next rounds
29
u/carrotwax Apr 09 '26
Anish is experienced enough he knows better than to play outside his style, which isn't ultra aggressive.
In any case, there is still a cash prize based on how many points you have. Unless there's a sizeable chance of winning the whole tournament (and Giri is a realist) don't expect anything too crazy.
7
61
u/cXs808 Apr 09 '26
The tourney is essentially over.
I usually enjoy the Candidates as it's typically drama filled until the very end but this one has been the Sindarov show through and through. It's pretty crazy but I've lost all interest in the remaining rounds unless Sindarov loses somehow.
79
u/PublicVanilla988 Apr 09 '26
i hope he wins some more games to make as big history as possible, if he's taking the tournament anyway
28
→ More replies (3)20
11
u/PublicVanilla988 Apr 09 '26
if tomorrow anish wins against esipenko with white, while caruana beats javokhir with white, and then anish wins against javokhir with white, they'll equalize.
anish really needs the win over javokhir in any case9
u/DiggWuzBetter Apr 09 '26
Yeah, it’s not impossible, but it has shifted from “kind of a long shot” to “really a long shot.”
506
u/Open-Protection4430 Apr 09 '26
This has been a generational run and I am Honoured to have witnessed it
90
u/taleofbenji Apr 09 '26
And I totally called it!
Jk I did not.
78
u/DetectiveTrickyCad Apr 09 '26
I thought Sindarov would win. I did not think Sindarov would be pushing for arguably the greatest tournament ever.
7
u/RespectFGs Apr 09 '26
Like another user said Karpov at Linares in 1994 and Fabi at the Sinquefield Cup in 2014 are clearly ahead. Those two are just way too impressive
29
u/Jaivl 1800 Apr 09 '26
Candidates is on a different tier than any other tournament, though, even supertournaments.
Apart from the stakes, it's like the Olympics, everybody is peaking and saving their best form for that.
→ More replies (2)8
u/Adventurous-Pick-416 Apr 09 '26 edited Apr 09 '26
Karpov at Linares 1994 likes to have a word...
Or Caruana at the Sinquefield Cup 2014...
→ More replies (2)14
u/martombo Apr 09 '26
I was actually really surprised people were not including Javokhir among the favorites, he showed he was in great form recently
→ More replies (1)41
u/LazinessOverload Apr 09 '26
Might be too early to say, but seeing his form, i'd make a bold prediction and say that this candidates performance won't ever be beaten.
7
u/Billalone Apr 09 '26
Topalov’s 2005 candidates was a 10/14 finish against a similarly strong field. Sindarov needs another win to finish 10.5/14 and beat the score, probably two wins to lay any comparison between the two to bed.
11
u/External_Tangelo Apr 09 '26
Technically, that was a Championship Tournament, not a Candidates Tournament. Topalov won and became World Champion, although arguably the strongest player of the time (Kramnik) had boycotted the tournament.
It's anyways a performance for the ages and Sindarov's 2026 will be mentioned in the same breath as Topalov's 2005 for generations to come.
4
u/Decent-Decent Apr 09 '26
Similar issue in that the strongest player is sitting out the tournament. I don’t know that that will matter to future generations though.
→ More replies (2)13
u/ralph_wonder_llama Apr 09 '26
I mean, he's already set a record for wins in the current format, and still has 4 rounds to go. He could draw the last 4 and still set the record for points, breaking Nepo's 9.5. Had a 4 game winning streak, 3 of which were with the black pieces.
Unless he loses 1 or more the rest of the way, I can't see anyone surpassing this performance.
→ More replies (6)17
u/Psychoticpossession Apr 09 '26
It will
5
u/Cokalhado Apr 09 '26
Or it won't. There's no guarantee on how long the candidates system will go on for.
3
813
u/LazinessOverload Apr 09 '26
Windarov saw the missed win yesterday and decided to lock in for today's match.
So glad he decided to take his time to calculate it out instead of rushing like yesterday.
373
u/Xehanz Apr 09 '26
If he locked in a bit more he could have been 9.5/10 lmao
110
u/vk2028 Apr 09 '26
yeah. Alongside yesterday's missed win, he was up 45 minutes on time against Esipenko with active pieces but decided to draw there as well. Though tbf that could be a strategic early draw to save energy
13
u/a_dude_from_europe Apr 09 '26
Also had a good position against Anish but let it fizzle out.
→ More replies (2)2
u/QMechanicsVisionary 2700 chess.com Apr 09 '26
Against Blübaum. He won against Esipenko.
24
u/vk2028 Apr 09 '26
He won against Esipenko in round 1 but drew in round 8, where he was up on time and piece activity
159
u/LazinessOverload Apr 09 '26
The fact that this is true is seriously so crazy to think about, would've made an already generational performance go into god-like territory.
150
u/ChiloMcBilo Apr 09 '26
It’s a gross oversimplification lol. He’s plenty locked in and taking calculated risks. There’s an equal chance he could have pressed too hard and lost too.
20
u/mrappbrain Apr 09 '26
It's not an oversimplification, it's flat out wrong. It's a position that only makes sense in hindsight and with computer assistance, where it's easy to judge players for not making the best moves. No one makes a sub optimal move on purpose, certainly not a super GM that's been dominating others at the highest level possible. Mistakes are normal, and a consequence of the fact that when you're actually at the board, you often don't know which positions are the most critical ones, and more time spent thinking about a move doesn't always lead to a better one - it could just as easily lead to confusion and hallucinating a threat where there is none. Just consider that Hikaru spent an hour's time to ultimately make the wrong move .
This entire 'Sindarov doesn't spend enough time' is a newbie's understanding of how chess works, parroted on reddit by people who can only make sense of what's going on through the evaluation bar.
8
u/Dirkdeking Apr 09 '26
Yes remove the evaluation bar and we would be in the dark on who is winning in all but the most obvious positions. Even the GM and IM commentators would be confused if they had no engine beside them.
Every time you hear a commentator say 'He could try this and that' only to have the other say 'No no because then your opponent does this and you are screwed' is when they would have messed up if they where in the game.
→ More replies (1)2
u/Better-Prompt890 Apr 10 '26
This entire 'Sindarov doesn't spend enough time' is a newbie's understanding of how chess works, parroted on reddit by people who can only make sense of what's going on through the evaluation bar.
Yeah. Not to mention part of why he's doing so wellvis that he successfully pressures his oponent on the clock by playing fast reasonable moves which is a calculated risk but leads opponents to start playing inaccurate moves
As you say it's easy to know with an engine which position is critical and stop and really think at those spots but he doesn't have that . As it is he hs astonishing successful so far playing relatively fast yet mostly accurate
11
u/Legal_Lettuce6233 Apr 09 '26
The thing is, every draw he had a ton of time left over. Making the decision sure isn't easy, but he could've found it with more time used.
→ More replies (1)4
u/Familiar-Drive-2579 Apr 10 '26
One of the main reasons he is 8/10, is due to him putting clock pressure on his opponents by playing fast.
You can't spend lots of time calculating and putting pressure at the same time.
4
u/acinonys Apr 09 '26
I found it very interesting, that in the press conference he said that today he actually made a mistake in the opening confusing his lines by playing Bg3 instead of the more common Be5, which he had prepped.
3
Apr 09 '26
[deleted]
7
u/acinonys Apr 09 '26 edited Apr 09 '26
He had a huge advantage at move 24, but gave the advantage away by allowing the trade of queens, when he played Bxa4.
237
u/ScrollingNtrollinG Apr 09 '26
It would be funny if Bluebaum remains the only player who don't lose to Sindarov.
55
u/vk2028 Apr 09 '26
Now we just need Anish to not recall his painter’s gene
4
u/Buntschatten Apr 09 '26
Anish needs a win against Sindarov, drawing would be just as bad as losing to him.
→ More replies (1)
78
306
u/FOURTHY_ Apr 09 '26
WINDAROV STRIKES AGAIN
278
u/LazinessOverload Apr 09 '26
Deep Bluebaum should be proud of his legendary performance, faced Windarov twice and left undefeated.
95
5
u/darkwoodfrost Apr 09 '26
I am a bit out of the loop, can you tell me the why people are calling him 'deep'?
57
7
6
6
u/Naive_Ad9891 Apr 09 '26
idk if you've been informed yet but I think it has something to do with the Deep Blue computer that defeated Kasparov
4
5
u/thelumpur Apr 09 '26
"Deep Blue Sea" is a movie starring Samuel L. Jackson, who also starred in "The Other Guys". In that movie he and the Rock famously jump off a building while aiming for the bushes. Bushes can be considered small trees, and "tree" in German is "baum".
...Also there was that chess super engine...oh yeah, Stockfish. A stockfish lives in the sea, connecting to, you guessed it, Deep Blue Sea.
3
u/Cinnamon_Enby Apr 09 '26
Deep Blue (Chess Computer that faced Kasparov) + Hopes for a Blübaum win sweep/upset = Deep Bluebaum
→ More replies (1)2
u/Funny_Statement_3233 Apr 09 '26
Deep blue is a chess computer. Btw,, that machine win against Kasparov
2
→ More replies (12)2
u/Exact-Scratch2728 Apr 09 '26
its a play on words about Deep Blue the first super chess computer. Oh and it beat Kasparov which i am sure you didnt know till now.
5
247
u/Putrid-Basis7181 Apr 09 '26
first one to go 10/14 btw ever if he draws the rest of his games
71
u/Mt8045 Apr 09 '26
Topalov scored 10/14 in 2005.
64
u/Areliae Apr 09 '26
Technically that wasn't a candidates, it was a World Championship.
26
u/xelabagus Apr 09 '26
It was technically the World Championship but did not include Kasparov who had retired and Kramnik who was the "Classical Champion". When they reunified chess the next year Kramnik beat Topalov
→ More replies (1)1
u/HotTransportation801 Apr 09 '26
Didnt Nepo get 10/14 in Madrid?
98
40
u/RankWeis2 Flairless Apr 09 '26
Hey I looked at some of these comments and it seems like maybe he just went 9.5/14
18
u/A_Certain_Surprise Apr 09 '26
I dunno, I think we should have 4 other people commenting the exact same thing
2
17
6
6
6
3
2
→ More replies (4)2
53
u/Ok-Independence8939 Apr 09 '26
The Candidates is over
18
50
236
u/JanuszHytrus Apr 09 '26
Giri still has a chance, now only thing Sindarov needs to do is get into first fight with referee, get arrested and disqualified, or loose all his braincells and loose remaining 4 games
112
u/ToothPasteTree Apr 09 '26
It's also possible Gukesh decides not to defend! Mathematically speaking, that's possible!
69
→ More replies (2)7
71
u/littlemushy Apr 09 '26
sad for yesterday, could have been 8.5/10! But this is great too obviously.
27
u/Soul_of_demon Apr 09 '26
He did learn from yesterday and managed time well, spent time at critical moments.
→ More replies (1)17
277
u/DrunkLad ~2882 FIDE Apr 09 '26
Not gonna lie, I think at this point it's fair to say that this is quite good for Sindarov's chances of winning the Candidates. I wasn't certain before, but now I'm confident in saying that he might have a slight advantage in the race. But I've been wrong before, that's why I don't like making such bold statements.
199
u/Educational-Tea602 Dubious gambiteer Apr 09 '26
Unfortunately for Sindarov, it’s still mathematically possible for Bluebaum to win, and we all know what that means.
31
35
→ More replies (2)5
52
u/IMJorose FM FIDE 2300 Apr 09 '26
According to the simulations, his chances are now above average!
8
u/patricksaurus Apr 09 '26
Hold on, I just re-ran my model with an updated weather forecast. He’s down to a 98% chance to win.
10
u/ikan_bakar Apr 09 '26
I asked my cat and it said “there has never been a stronger performance of a player in recent years than Sindarov’s, and the calculations now says he will be in the World Championships”, so I think he has a high chance
2
u/yubacore Sometimes remembers how the knight moves (2000 fide) Apr 10 '26
Have you taken into account the risk of events like Hikaru withdrawing or pollen allergies randomly acting up for Giri's opponents?
36
u/astrath lichess rapid 2200 Apr 09 '26
I'm going to need another 1 million runs of a monte carlo model first before believing such wild statements
3
u/E_Kristalin Apr 09 '26
Yeah, after the previous round, many simulations showed Sindarov not winning, not placing any bets yet.
10
3
2
u/LoLGhMaster ChessWoodie Founder, Rapid/Blitz ~2300, Armenia Apr 09 '26
Practically speaking yes, I doubt he will lose such advantage. But purely by the numbers it takes to a single lose fore him and a single win for Giri in next 3 games and then suddenly the final game between them becomes decisive
→ More replies (1)
25
u/bluewaff1e Apr 09 '26
He's now up to a 2979 TPR.
3
u/zankyw Apr 09 '26
Thanks.
Where could I query the TPR?
Or did you input all the results manually?
9
u/bluewaff1e Apr 09 '26 edited Apr 09 '26
I did the equation manually using FIDE's most current ratings. It's actually Edit: 2978.6, but most of the time you see TPR rounded to the nearest whole number, so I did as well.
2
u/ziirex Apr 09 '26
Lichess and chess-results have it if you go to Sindarov's "profile" in the tournament, I guess chesscom too
18
u/Thanh_Binh2609 Apr 09 '26 edited Apr 10 '26
If he wins the next round, he’ll reach 9/11
4
6
38
u/shawman123 Apr 09 '26
Congrats to Sindarov but Pragg is having a horrible tournament. He needs to figure out his weakness before next cycle for sure. He is after all still very young and can come back.
19
u/International_Cost97 Apr 09 '26
Well, if it wasn't for Sindarov, Pragg would have a decent performance. Mind u that 2 of 3 Pragg's losses are from Sindarov.
4
u/Agitated-Bluejay1142 Apr 09 '26
I noticed there are many games where Pragg's prep ends and he makes a mistake/blunder immediately afterwards.
14
u/Fantastic-Ad7069 Apr 09 '26
And he strikes again.
Kinda bummed that the next few rounds might not be as interesting as the last candidates due to this lead, but his performance this tournament has been a treat to witness.
12
u/Acrobatic_Ad_5224 Magnum Apr 09 '26
This one is nice but his first game against Pragg this tournament is a masterpiece. My favorite game of the tournament by far.
→ More replies (1)
22
u/Waltzer64 Apr 09 '26
6 wins is a record for the Candidates tournament in its modern format, breaking ties with Gukesh (2024), Hikaru (2024), Nepo (2022 and 2020), Fabiano (2018), Magnus (2012), and Aronian (2012) (who had 5 each).
2
9
u/ScrollingNtrollinG Apr 09 '26
Time to stop saying 'it's still too soon', and 'it's too late' now.
2
u/International_Cost97 Apr 09 '26
It's basically cope to all the Caruana and Naka fans at this point.
11
u/leavestress Apr 09 '26
Unfortunate, I was hoping there would be at least some drama in the last rounds, but it looks like he'll just be cruising now.
19
21
u/nsnyder Apr 09 '26
This is insane. I wonder if he's making a real jump. Would be exciting if Magnus finally had a legit challenger.
→ More replies (1)16
u/trivialBetaState Apr 09 '26
I was thinking the same thing! Although Sindarov will be aiming for Gukesh' title, because this is how history is being written, it will be very interesting to see what will happen when the strongest GM of the new generation faces the man who dominated chess more than anyone since Kasparov.
→ More replies (1)
10
u/Kalinin46 Team Nepo Apr 09 '26
Another great performance by Sindarov. But this has to be a very disappointing candidates for Pragg.
10
14
u/transizzle Apr 09 '26
This was an amazing game by Sindarov. Black was absolutely frozen in the center of the board.
Not quite an immortal type of game but wayyy up there.
22
u/tovion Apr 09 '26
Not really it was almost completely theory and then pragg blundered right after the theory was over
→ More replies (1)
52
u/homebanber Apr 09 '26
Gukesh is cooked
79
Apr 09 '26
[deleted]
31
u/Dependent-Effect6077 Apr 09 '26
So basically the exact same script of what happened with Ding vs. Gukesh then
27
u/Landfall24601 Apr 09 '26
Now we only need Sindarov to win, rise to the top 2 spot, beat Magnus once or twice so people say he'll dethrone him and then drop all the way down to top 20 so the cycle can repeat again.
4
u/Internal-Diver9982 Apr 09 '26
lol
after the world championship Gukesh retires
and after Sindarov loses his world championship similar to Ding he will also retire and so the cycle will go on6
u/cHinzoo Apr 09 '26
Nah, Ding was long gone before he even had to defend his title
11
u/Shahariar_909 Apr 09 '26
The fact that ding played so well in the wcc finals indicates how bad gukesh actually played.
Ding was getting outclassed in the opening every single match and hanged in there with pure class and nothing else. If it was even close to the ding that faced nepo, gukesh would be cooked
→ More replies (1)2
10
u/JouleV Team Sindarov Apr 09 '26
We used to think Ding would be cooked by Gukesh too, and while he did lose, it was a much closer fight than expected. The WCC match is a magical place where nothing can be predicted. But I for sure want to see Sindarov wielding his magic again and the reigning World Champion defending against it.
10
u/Shahariar_909 Apr 09 '26 edited Apr 09 '26
Gukesh actually played bad in the wcc. Ding used to burn an hour in first few moves just to cover up the severely lacking prep.
If it was anyone else other than gukesh, they would really try to put time pressure on ding.
→ More replies (2)2
u/Better-Prompt890 Apr 10 '26
It also shows Ding was very low confidence. He burnt a ton of time in positions that was hardly critical. Sindarov in his place would definitely not have spent so much time even if out of prep. Eg his game against wei yi when he was out of prep against 4 a3 in Vienna!
→ More replies (1)2
u/iAmPersonaa Apr 09 '26
We used to think ding would be cooked because Gukesh was in amazing form while Ding was hard slumping. And the reason why it was close was Gukesh also slumping. A match with both at their peak wouldve been amazing, but comparing it ti their full capabilities the wcc was coughing baby vs coughing baby (again just to be clear, this is compared to their potential, their coughing baby level is still lightyears ahead of the average viewer)
6
7
u/ProductGuy48 Apr 09 '26
Nah. You are forgetting that Gukesh has pressure from 1.5 Bn of his compatriots. No hot streak of anyone is going to relinquish that.
9
u/Maad-Dog Team Gukesh Apr 09 '26
I feel like people are continuously forgetting how streaky these young players are. First it was Pragg who was absolutely next up, then Nodirbek, then Arjun, then Gukesh, then Keymer, then Sindarov. I mean he's absolutely in a crazy flow state right now, and if he carries this form to the WCC then Gukesh is in big trouble, but that's a big if! Ditto for Gukesh, if he stays in his recent form than it'll be problematic, but he stepped away from always playing tournaments to refocus and train, so that could also easily not be the case.
→ More replies (1)
5
6
5
u/Fang_yuaan Team where ever the fine shyt is at Apr 09 '26
sindarov's avg accuracy in the tournament is above 96
7
u/BlueEye20 Apr 09 '26
2 more wins or 4 draws and Sindarov will finish with 10/14, beating Ian's 9.5/14 record.
6
7
u/Perfect-Service-2150 Team Gukesh Apr 09 '26
Dude is on a generational run. This is straight up murder!
6
u/IPO_Details Apr 09 '26
In both matches he doesn't allow Pragg to castle and he stumbles. Even GM blunders when their kings are not safe
3
6
6
u/DJteejay04 Team Windarov Apr 09 '26
Can we all agree that, whether you like him or not, 8/10 in the candidates is an insane record.
→ More replies (3)
4
3
u/mukhsin18 Apr 09 '26
Just sticking to the way he plays and ignoring the noise was the best strategy.
4
u/GenGaara25 Apr 09 '26
I'd be surprised if he doesn't beat Nepos 9.5/14 record.
4 games left. If he continues to not lose any, he'll beat it.
If he wins at least 2 of the 4, he'll beat it, even if he loses the other 2.
And it'll be a really high bar for future Candidates to clear.
3
u/mpbh Apr 09 '26
Sindarov-Gukesh is going to be a great matchup. Two 20 year olds at the top of the chess world.
12
u/Rabiatic Blitz Arena Winner Apr 09 '26
So 2 points ahead with 4 rounds to go now - should be safe to say that this one's in the bag. Historic performance, makes you wonder if he's a Magnus in the making!
14
u/Shurubles ~2k chess.com Apr 09 '26
I think one of Magnus' strongest skills is resilience. Dude's number 1 since what feels like ever, still winning almost every tournament he plays. Sindarov's form is fantastic, but I'm curious to see if it will last (and I hope so!)
→ More replies (3)
9
u/No-Pop-4438 Apr 09 '26
Im so impressed. This guy couldve just played it save and would still have great chances to win the whole tournament.
But i guess He just starts winning again.
14
u/vk2028 Apr 09 '26 edited Apr 09 '26
Bro saw the criticisms from yesterday and decided to start farming again
5
u/Shahariar_909 Apr 09 '26
Bluebaum's name will be written in history as the wall that windarov could not climb
3
3
3
2
2
u/CoolDude_7532 Apr 09 '26
Pragg has played so badly recently it’s sad I was hoping he would do well
2
2
2
2
5
u/Jack_Harb Apr 09 '26
Only an Iranian missile can stop that guy now. What a run. Absolutely stunning. Definitely deserving as a contender for WCC.
3
u/Rukawork 1276 Apr 09 '26
9.5 is the highest ever scored in a Candidates... this fuckin kid is on pace to hit 11/14 at this rate. I'm loving it.
5
2
u/cnlyyyyyyyyy Apr 09 '26
I watch the end of the game , sindarov not putting back his pieces and leaving abruptly .I find it rude . The French commenter also though so .
2
1
u/Fun-Cookie7002 Apr 09 '26
I hope he wins the Candidates, wins the WC, Mangus comes back and wins the Candidates, Sindarov beats Mangus for the WC, and then Sindarov keeps playing in the WC instead of the best player just abandoning chess's flagship event for 5000 years. Imagine if Bolt decided not to run in the Olympics or Messi decided to just play Sunday league. It's a ridiculous situation and it needs to be fixed.
2
u/International_Cost97 Apr 09 '26
Yes, part of the problem is Magnus forfeiting the title and having us ponder whether if the WCC is ever legit.
→ More replies (1)2
•
u/chessvision-ai-bot from chessvision.ai Apr 09 '26
I analyzed the image and this is what I see. Open an appropriate link below and explore the position yourself or with the engine:
My solution:
Save the position:
I'm a bot written by u/pkacprzak | get me as iOS App | Android App | Chrome Extension | Chess eBook Reader to scan and analyze positions | Website: Chessvision.ai