Nodirbek Abdusattorov and Vladimir Fedoseev emerged as the winners in round 2 of the 88th Tata Steel Chess Tournament 2026, joining Hans Moke Niemann and Arjun Erigaisi in a three-way tie for the lead on 1.5 points. Abdusattorov defeated Praggnanandhaa after a critical endgame mistake, while Fedoseev rebounded from a round 1 loss to beat Vincent Keymer. Several other games ended in draws, maintaining a competitive field.
The 88th Tata Steel Chess Tournament 2026, held in Wijk aan Zee, saw intense action in round 2 on January 18, 2026. Round 1 leader Hans Moke Niemann drew quickly against Matthias Bluebaum in a semi-Tarrasch, repeating moves after 28. Arjun Erigaisi also drew a long Queen's Gambit against Thai Dai Van Nguyen, where Nguyen pressed but could not convert.
Nodirbek Abdusattorov capitalized on Praggnanandhaa's poor form, winning in a game starting with 1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.Nc3 h6. Praggnanandhaa's 42...Rg2? miscalculation led to a decisive rook and pawn endgame loss for him, dropping him to 0 points. Meanwhile, Vladimir Fedoseev overcame his round 1 disaster, defeating Vincent Keymer in a Nimzo-Indian. Keymer's 16...b6? allowed a tactical advantage, and despite 27...g5?!, Fedoseev won a pawn and the game.
Draws dominated the rest: Yagiz Kaan Erdogmus and Chithambaram VR. Aravindh split the point in a 46-move Sicilian, with Erdogmus missing a win. Gukesh's ambitious 3.h4 against Jorden Van Foreest's King's Indian/Gruenfeld ended in a 33-move repetition after 14.Bg5?!. Anish Giri escaped with a draw against Javokhir Sindarov, who should have won after Giri's 22.b4? and 39.c5?, but blundered with 41...a5? instead of 41...f6.
Standings after round 2: Niemann, Erigaisi, and Abdusattorov lead at 1.5 points; Erdogmus, Aravindh, Keymer, Sindarov, Van Foreest, Nguyen, Gukesh, Fedoseev, and Bluebaum at 1 point; Giri at 0.5; Praggnanandhaa at 0. In the Challengers, 15-year-old Lu Miaoyi leads with 2/2. Round 3 pairings include Aravindh-Abdusattorov and Niemann-Erdogmus on January 19 at 1pm GMT.
