Four Indian grandmasters chase Esports World Cup chess title in Paris

PARIS: Indian chess is sending its biggest-ever squad to the Esports World Cup, and the pieces are in place for a serious title challenge. Four Indian grandmasters will compete in the chess tournament at EWC 2026 in Paris from August 11 to 15, with a $1.5 million, or roughly Rs 14.2 crore, prize pool up for grabs.

Nihal Sarin, Aravindh Chithambaram and Pranesh M will represent S8UL Esports, while Arjun Erigaisi will compete under Gen.G Esports.

The quartet will face an elite international field, including defending champion Magnus Carlsen of Team Liquid, as well as Hikaru Nakamura and Alireza Firouzja of Team Falcons. Natus Vincere’s Nodirbek Abdusattorov and GodLike Esports’ Hans Moke Niemann are also among the leading contenders.

India doubles its EWC representation

The Indian contingent has doubled from last year’s edition, when only Nihal and Arjun competed.

Nihal qualified through the Last Chance Qualifier last year and reached the quarterfinals, while Arjun, who earned his place through the Champions Chess Tour, finished fourth.

This time, Nihal, Pranesh and Arjun have secured direct qualification to the Group Stage through their performances in the Champions Chess Tour 2025-26. Aravindh earned his spot through DreamHack Atlanta earlier this year and will begin his campaign in the Play-In stage.

The four players will be aiming to turn India’s growing presence into its first EWC chess title.

The chess competition returns with a revamped two-phase structure.

The opening Play-In stage features nine players who qualified through the Last Chance Qualifier and DreamHack Atlanta. They will compete in a double-elimination bracket, with each match consisting of two games.

The strongest performers will then join the directly qualified players in a 16-player Group Stage. The field will be split into two groups of eight, with each group following a double-elimination format.

The top four players from each group will advance to the Playoffs. The quarterfinals will feature four-game matches, while the semi-finals will be played over six games.

The title will ultimately be decided in a Grand Final contested across three sets, putting endurance and consistency alongside tactical skill.

With four Indian grandmasters in the field, India enters the Paris tournament with its deepest EWC chess contingent yet. After last year’s quarterfinal and fourth-place finishes, the target is now considerably bigger: putting an Indian name at the top of the EWC chess standings.