Prateek Tanmay
4 min readChennaiJul 19, 2026 09:48 PM IST
Sometimes in chess, a draw can feel like a lot more. Or a lot less. A day after world champion D Gukesh was left miffed with a draw against Dmitry Andreikin, the 20-year-old looked a relieved man after splitting points against arch-rival Nodirbek Abdusattorov. Finally, Chennai’s new favourite chess son was smiling after three unhappy days in his hometown.
The Chennai Grand Masters in 2023 was Gukesh’s first decisive step towards the world championship title, but in three rounds this year he had suffered only disappointment, with a loss to Alireza Firouzja, and draws against Nihal Sarin and Andreikin. However, splitting a point with the dangerous Abdusattorov would have brought a semblance of relief.
That is why, after three and a half hours of chess, Gukesh agreed to spend time in the fan zone, obliging them with autographs and fans.
With games starting at 3 pm, not many fans had been able to make it for previous rounds, but Sunday was different. Hundreds of fans flocked to the ground floor fan zone, for two reasons. The first was former world champion Viswanathan Anand making an appearance for commentary duties. The other was the blockbuster clash between Gukesh and Abdusattorov.
On Saturday, a smiling Abdusattorov had waltzed into the media room after his third round game and said how he was bracing himself for a ‘big fight’ with the Indian. The duo have a storied rivalry, having fought tooth and nail in some nail-biters that inevitably turned in the Uzbek’s favour.
“When we play against each other, there’s always going to be some drama. An interesting game for sure. I don’t remember us playing a calm, boring game. So I expect a crazy game,” he had said.
Over the course 2026, the duo had faced off twice already in classical tournaments. Abdusattorov had prevailed both times, first at the Tata Steel Masters in January and then at Prague Masters in March. The first reversal had been particularly heartbreaking for the Indian, after an uncharacteristic blunder.
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On Sunday, however, there was not much drama. The clash ended in a stalemate in 41 moves. Playing with black pieces in a game where the Queen’s Gambit Declined made an appearance, Gukesh first nullified his opponent’s slight edge out of the opening before shutting the door on any fresh chances. Both players had nearly 98 percent accuracy in the game.
As the duel entered the middle game phase, the conversation on the chess.com commentary inevitably turned to the upcoming world championship match between Gukesh and Uzbek challenger Javokhir Sindarov, primarily because Abdusattorov had told media that he would be a part of his compatriot’s team. With the kind of intrigue that exists around world championship prep, Gukesh’s mentor Anand was asked if there was a chance we were seeing some ideas for the world championship being tested in Chennai.
“So little is known (about what’s going on behind the scenes). For all you know, Gukesh is probably doing it himself (testing the waters with his world championship ideas). And Nodirbek could be playing Sindarov’s prep and nobody would know,” Anand said.
The draw meant Gukesh is half a point behind Abdusattorov in the standings, but in a three-way tie for the last spot in the eight-player field. With all four games ending in draws on Sunday, the leaderboard remained unchanged with Firouzja half a point ahead of India’s Arjun Erigaisi at the top.
