Tata Steel Chess 2026: GM Nodirbek Abdusattorov and GM Andy Woodward Win

Tournament Information

The Tata Steel Chess tournament is one of the longest-running chess tournaments in history. It has attracted the world's top players for decades and is currently celebrating its 88th edition. The Masters section pits 14 players in a big single-player round robin, setting the stage for exhilarating chess battles as the clash of styles and ratings makes for quite the spectacle. The Challengers section is similarly structured, and Tata Steel Chess also includes a well-attended Amateurs section.

Time control

The time control is 120 minutes for the first 40 moves, followed by an additional 30 minutes for the rest of the game. The game starts off with no increment, but on move 41, a 30-second increment is introduced.

Lichess Broadcast

The Lichess broadcast coverage can be found here.

Lichess Interviews

Check out our on-site player interviews on YouTube after every round!

Lichess Blogs

Lichess will write blog posts after rounds 5, 8, 11, and 13.

Annotations

GM Renier Castellanos Rodriguez will annotate the games of the Masters section and WGM Petra Papp will annotate the games of the Challengers section.

For this blog, GM Renier Castellanos Rodriguez has annotated the games GM Yağız Kaan Erdoğmuş vs. GM Vladimir Fedoseev and GM Arjun Erigaisi vs. GM Nodirbek Abdusattorov.

For this blog, WGM Petra Papp has annotated the games GM Daniil Yuffa vs. GM Vasyl Ivanchuk and GM Andy Woodward vs. GM Erwin l'Ami.

Find all the annotations here.

Masters Standings

Challengers Standings

Round 12

GM Nodirbek Abdusattorov vs. GM Matthias Blübaum, 1-0

In the ever deceptively tame Exchange Variation of the Queen's Gambit Declined, GM Nodirbek Abdusattorov came very well-prepared, putting immense pressure on GM Matthias Blübaum right from the opening. Blübaum committed the first large mistake on move 14, forcing Abdusattorov's d-pawn to lurch diagonally forward, whereafter it was steadily supported by the f-pawn. Abdusattorov retained good control over the position, but soon the advantage started slipping away as Blübaum's pieces came to life. In a critical position, though, Blübaum played 31...Qc7??, a blunder which allowed White to have a crushing attack. Abdusattorov played with great precision, converting in electrifying style.

GM Nodirbek Abdusattorov; photo: Tata Steel Chess / Lennart Ootes

GM Vincent Keymer vs. GM Thai Dan Van Nguyen, 1-0

In the opening, GM Vincent Keymer decided to transpose from the Petrov into the Exchange French Defense; with both openings known for their drawish reputations, Keymer went on to prove that his choice against GM Thai Dai Van Nguyen was not a mere meek draw offer. Nguyen went for the first imbalance, fianchettoing his bishop, and then it was Keymer's turn to go for an imbalance as, on move 21, he gave up two of his minor pieces in exchange for two pawns and a rook. The resulting endgame was technically winning, but it required precision; Keymer was up to the task and converted with no issues.

We caught up with GM Vincent Keymer after his win:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2b6i0THvuS0

GM Yağız Kaan Erdoğmuş vs. GM Vladimir Fedoseev, 1-0

Coming into the round, out of six Black games, GM Vladimir Fedoseev had been tested in the Petrov Defense in four out of his six games. Perhaps influenced by Fedoseev's quick loss in round 1 against GM Hans Moke Niemann, GM Yağız Kaan Erdoğmuş also decided to test Fedoseev in his chosen 1. e4 defense for the tournament. Erdoğmuş's choice turned out to be a wise one as he was able to slowly gain control over the position, enticing Fedoseev to commit weaknesses on the kingside. With Fedoseev's position crumbling, Erdoğmuş found brilliant and highly incisive tactics to clinch the game.

GM Renier Castellanos Rodriguez has annotated this game for you to learn from:

We caught up with GM Yağız Kaan Erdoğmuş after his win:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u5LQ0SpxI6s

Non-Decisive Games

GM Hans Moke Niemann survived a scare against world champion GM Gukesh D, in a game where both sides sacrificed pieces after misevaluating the resulting positions. GM Arjun Erigaisi also survived a dangerous position against GM Jorden van Foreest, while GM Aravindh Chithambaram VR. and GM Anish Giri played a topsy-turvy game where both White and Black had winning chances. Meanwhile, tournament co-leader GM Javokhir Sindarov played a very quick draw against GM Praggnanandhaa R.

GM Javokhir Sindarov; photo: Tata Steel Chess / Lennart Ootes

Round 12 Challengers

The Challengers saw four decisive games: GM Bibisara Assaubayeva vs. GM Max Warmerdam (game), IM Eline Roebers vs. IM Lu Miaoyi (game), IM Carissa Yip vs. GM Daniil Yuffa (game), and GM Marc'Andria Maurizzi vs. GM Aydin Suleymanli (game).

GM Vasyl Ivanchuk vs. IM Faustino Oro; photo: Tata Steel Chess / Lennart Ootes

Round 13

Standings After Round 12

GM Arjun Erigaisi vs. GM Nodirbek Abdusattorov 0-1

GM Arjun Erigaisi was ready to fight and channeled his gambit spirit in full force against GM Nodirbek Abdusattorov. The Evans Gambit was on the cards, but Abdusattorov was not perturbed and played an equalizing line. Arjun's risky idea almost paid off, though, as he was better after Abdusattorov mixed up his moves. Arjun soon started going astray, though, and it was all one-way traffic for Abdusattorov.

GM Renier Castellanos Rodriguez has annotated this game for you to learn from:

We caught up with GM Nodirbek Abdusattorov after his win:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NPO2-kaAQ3g

GM Thai Dai Van Nguyen vs. GM Javokhir Sindarov 0-1

GM Thai Dai Van Nguyen's game against GM Javokhir Sindarov can be summed up with two words and one concept that haunts every chess player: time pressure. Sindarov's aggressive opening choice in the King's Indian Defense was effectively neutralized by Nguyen, when the remainder of the game saw Nguyen being slightly better. However, Nguyen was using up too much time, and by move 37, Sindarov tragically blundered with 37...Bf6??. Nguyen, though, only had 26 seconds left to make 3 moves, and thus was not able to capitalize on Sindarov's blunder. After that, Sindarov was pressing, but Nguyen held the fort, up until he blundered, again in time trouble, in a complex, difficult endgame.

GM Vladimir Fedoseev vs. GM Aravindh Chithambaram VR. 1-0

GM Vladimir Fedoseev had a better position out of the opening against GM Aravindh Chithambaram VR. The game had its twists and turns, but Fedoseev was never significantly worse. One blunder in time pressure on move 38, however, sealed the deal for Aravindh as Fedoseev found a beautiful tactic to win a piece and the game.

Non-Decisive Games

GM Jorden van Foreest was close to winning against GM Praggnanadhaa R, but ultimately could not drive home the full point; GM Gukesh D and GM Vincent Keymer was less clear as both sides had chances to play for more. GM Anish Giri and GM Hans Moke Niemann played a quick draw in a theoretical line of the Ruy Lopez, and so too did GM Matthias Blübaum and GM Yağız Kaan Erdoğmuş in the Semi-Slav Defense.

Round 13 Challengers

Standings After Round 12

Going into the final round of the tournament, and with the tiebreak rules making it so that only one player qualifies to next year's Masters, with a win and the other two players in 1st drawing, GM Vasyl Ivanchuk would have won the Challengers. Ivanchuk did win his game, and while GM Aydin Suleymanli lost, GM Andy Woodward won, making him the winner of the 2026 Tata Steel Challengers.

WGM Petra Papp has annotated Woodward vs. l'Ami and Yuffa vs. Ivanchuk for you to learn from:

We caught up with GM Andy Woodward after his win:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qHSsy0zxamA

GM Vasyl Ivanchuk; photo: Tata Steel Chess / Lennart Ootes

Other Games

Other decisive games included GM Aydin Suleymanli vs. GM Velimir Ivić (game), IM Lu Miaoyi vs. IM Carissa Yip (game), and FM Vedant Panesar vs. GM Bibisara Assaubayeva (game). IM Faustino Oro vs. GM Marc'Andria Maurizzi (game) and GM Max Warmerdam vs. IM Eline Roebers (game) were draws.

Amateurs

IM Christian Gloeckler won the Amateurs section with an amazing score, finishing on 8.5/9, 1.5 points ahead of IM Henry Edward Tudor.

We caught up with IM Christian Gloeckler after his win:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uh40xstU11I