Four Indian Grandmasters eye Esports World Cup glory in Paris

Paris: Indian Grandmasters Nihal Sarin, Aravindh Chithambaram, Pranesh M and Arjun Erigaisi are set to battle it out against a tough field, including world number one Magnus Carlsen, in the chess competition of the Esports World Cup, to be held here from August 11 to 15.

Nihal, Aravindh, and Pranesh, representing esports and gaming content powerhouse S8UL Esports, will be joined by Grandmaster Arjun Erigaisi, who will compete under the banner of Gen.G Esports.

Together, they will be eyeing a share of the USD 1.5 million (Rs 14.2 crore) prize pool against an elite field led by defending champion Carlsen (Team Liquid).


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He will be joined by Hikaru Nakamura and Alireza Firouzja (Team Falcons), Nodirbek Abdusattorov (Natus Vincere), Hans Moke Niemann (GodLike Esports), alongside several other Grandmasters from around the world.

Nihal, Pranesh and Arjun secured direct qualification to the Group Stage through their performances in the Champions Chess Tour (CCT) 2025-2026, while Aravindh earned his place through DreamHack Atlanta earlier this year and will begin his campaign in the Play-In stage.

This marks a significant milestone for Indian chess at the EWC. Last year, Nihal and Arjun were the only Indians to compete in the tournament.

Nihal, who qualified through the Last Chance Qualifier (LCQ), reached the quarterfinals, while Arjun, who qualified through the Champions Chess Tour (CCT), finished fourth.

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This year, the number of Indian participants has doubled, making it the country's largest-ever chess contingent at the event.

Returning after its debut last year, the Chess competition at EWC 2026 will feature a revised two-phase format.

The first phase, new to the tournament, is the Play-In stage, featuring nine players who qualified through the Last Chance Qualifier (LCQ) and DreamHack Atlanta.

These players will compete in a double-elimination bracket, with each match consisting of two games.

The top performers from the Play-In stage will advance to the Group Stage, where they will join those who qualified directly through the CCT and other qualifying events.

The 16-player Group Stage will be divided into two groups of eight, with each group following a double-elimination format featuring two-game matches. The top four players from each group will advance to the Playoffs.

The Playoffs will follow a single-elimination format, with four-game matches in the quarterfinals and six-game matches in the semifinals.

The winner of this year's tournament will be decided after a Grand Final contested over three sets.