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Five-time world champion Viswanathan Anand discusses after his game with Arjun Erigaisi at the Tata Steel India chess tournament. (Express Photo by Partha Paul)

Why Viswanathan Anand never fell into the trap of retirement

January 14, 2026 8:25 am

Five-time world chess champion only plays occasionally, but is finding it increasingly difficult to watch from the sidelines as the competitive urge rears its head

Magnus Carlsen taking on world champion Gukesh D at the Norway Chess tournament in 2025. (PHOTO: Norway Chess via Michal Walusza)

Magnus Carlsen will play at Norway Chess classical this year as event moves to Oslo from Stavanger

January 13, 2026 6:19 pm

Carlsen has taken part in each of the 13 Norway Chess editions and has won seven of them.

Carissa Yip and Wesley So claimed the Tata Steel Chess India blitz titles in Kolkata. (Express Photo by Partha Paul)

Tata Steel Chess India: American double delight as Carissa Yip and Wesley So win Blitz titles while Arjun Erigaisi fades

January 12, 2026 12:54 pm

Vantika Agrawal finishes second in the women's event after impressive comeback while Nihal Sarin was runner-up in the Open segment

India's R Praggnanandhaa thinks about his next move during a game in Tata Steel Chess India in Kolkata. (Express photo by Partha Paul)

'I haven't played up to my best': Praggnanandhaa's assessment of his form; Eyes reboot for 2026 Candidates

January 11, 2026 6:36 pm

After non-stop board play in the second half of 2025, Pragg is looking forward to two months of preparation heading into Candidates

How a ‘fed up’ Viswanathan Anand planned his return to competitive circuit and nearly clinched the Tata Steel Rapid title in Kolkata

January 11, 2026 10:38 pm

While Anand revealed he hadn’t done any specific preparation for this event in his busy schedule, the work he had done in October and November was still helping him

Tata Steel Chess: Nihal Sarin battles through grief – wins Rapid title a day after grandfather's death

January 10, 2026 1:45 pm

Grandmaster was persuaded by mother to stay and play and clinches crown ahead of Viswanathan Anand.

In the mid-1980s, the race to become India's first Grandmaster was at its peak. There were only two contenders: Barua and a teenager from Chennai named Viswanathan Anand. (Photo Credit: Vivek Sohani)

Dibyendu Barua: The Chess pioneer who battled Viswanathan Anand in race to be India's first Grandmaster

January 09, 2026 11:52 pm

Dibyendu Barua, who rose from adversity, is now a tournament organiser himself and giving back to the game as an omnipresent figure at Tata Steel Chess India

Viswanathan Anand takes on Arjun Erigaisi at the Tata Steel Chess India Rapid and Blitz tournament in Kolkata. (Photo: Lennart Ootes)

Kolkata comes alive as Anand and Arjun deliver a classic at Tata Steel Chess India Rapid and Blitz

January 09, 2026 8:51 am

When the game's "mad man" faced off against the “lightning kid”, chaos was almost a given.

Jan Henric Buettner on FIDE Freestyle World Championship: 'We see ourselves as the Formula One of chess'

January 09, 2026 10:04 am

Jan Henric Buettner, the German billionaire entrepreneur behind the ambitious Freestyle Grand Slam Tour, revealed to this newspaper how the months-long feud with FIDE was finally resolved as the Freestyle Chess World Championship was announced.

India's Arjun Erigaisi in action against Levon Aronian at Las Vegas Freestyle Grand Slam semifinal. (Freestyle Chess/Lennart Ootes)

Freestyle Chess organisers and FIDE bury hatchet to announce FIDE Freestyle Chess World Championship

January 08, 2026 12:49 am

FIDE said that six players have already qualified for the eight-player event, based on their results during the 2025 Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Tour. This includes Magnus Carlsen and Arjun Erigaisi. Freestyle Chess nominated Hans Niemann as a wildcard while FIDE's