World champion D Gukesh drew his first two games at the Tata Steel Chess Masters in Wijk aan Zee, starting with a hard-fought stalemate against Javokhir Sindarov and followed by a pragmatic draw versus Jorden van Foreest. The tournament, delayed by environmental protests, saw strong performances from Indian players like Arjun Erigaisi, who defeated R Praggnanandhaa in Round 1. These results keep Gukesh undefeated but winless as he begins a crucial year ahead of defending his title.
The Tata Steel Chess Masters 2026 kicked off in Wijk aan Zee, Netherlands, on January 18, following a delayed start due to protests by environmental activists. The world's oldest super tournament featured intense competition among top grandmasters, with Indian players making headlines in the opening rounds.
In Round 1, top seed Arjun Erigaisi secured a convincing victory over compatriot R Praggnanandhaa in just 32 moves. Facing the Queen's Gambit Accepted, Praggnanandhaa erred early in the middlegame, leaving his king vulnerable in the center. Erigaisi capitalized with precise calculation, damaging the weakened position and claiming the win. Meanwhile, world champion D Gukesh, playing black against World Cup winner Javokhir Sindarov of Uzbekistan, opted for the Queen's Gambit Declined. Gukesh unleashed a stylish queen sacrifice on move 39, gaining a knight and rook advantage while holding an edge from move 38. By move 42, evaluations suggested Sindarov was on the brink of defeat, with Gukesh's rooks chasing the Uzbek's king. However, Sindarov's resourcefulness shone through; on move 70, he found a lucky break, leading to a draw after 78 moves—the longest game of the day. Gukesh appeared shellshocked at the result, having defended his title in December 2025 after a below-par year.
Other Round 1 highlights included Hans Moke Niemann of the United States defeating Vladimir Fedoseev of Slovenia in 16 moves after exploiting an early tactical blunder, and Vincent Keymer of Germany beating Anish Giri of the Netherlands. Draws featured Aravindh Chithambaram versus Matthias Bluebaum (41 moves, Catalan Opening), Jorden van Foreest versus Thai Dai Van Nguyen, and Yagiz Kaan Erdogmus versus Nodirbek Yakubboev. Erigaisi, Keymer, and Niemann led with one point, half a point ahead of Gukesh and others.
Round 2 saw Gukesh, playing white against Dutch grandmaster Jorden van Foreest, initially signal aggression with 14. Bg5, avoiding a knight exchange. However, facing Van Foreest's passed pawn on the a-file, Gukesh chose pragmatism over complication, agreeing to a draw. Unlike the frustrating Round 1, where he shushed murmuring fans and alerted the arbiter, Gukesh seemed content with the result. Now winless but undefeated after two rounds, the 19-year-old from Chennai faces heightened scrutiny in this first classical event of 2026. Historically, Tata Steel has tested Gukesh: he missed the 2024 title in blitz tiebreaks to Wei Yi and lost the 2025 edition to Praggnanandhaa in tiebreaks after a joint lead.
