FIDE World Cup: Uzbekistan emerges as biggest challenge to young Indian prodigies in coming years

Uzbekistan has finally found a Candidates participant. It is neither their obvious choice and biggest hope Nodirbek Abdusattorov, but the flamboyant 19-year-old Sindarov, who has set the chess world ablaze in recent times.

By beating Yakubboev 1.5-0.5 in the tiebreaks, Sindarov earned his place alongside Fabiano Caruana, Anish Giri, Matthias Bluebaum and Wei Yi at the Cyprus event.

Reaching the final is already a historic achievement for Sindarov, and he could achieve even bigger glory if he manages to pierce the formidable Chinese defence of Wei Yi to become the first Uzbek World Cup winner. At the same time, the world has not ended for Yakubboev, who will now play Russia’s Andrey Esipenko in the third-place playoff for the third and final reserved Candidates spot.

India has always been a special place for Uzbek chess. In 2022, a team led by Abdusattorov toppled an Indian ‘B’ team — featuring D. Gukesh, R. Praggnanandhaa, Nihal Sarin and Raunak Sadhwani — denying glory to the host nation to win the Olympiad gold in Mahabalipuram.

Also, individuals like Abdusattorov have constantly challenged the authority of World Champion Gukesh. Now the success of Sindarov and Yakubboev at the World Cup clearly indicates that Uzbek players will be the biggest roadblock for Indian prodigies in years to come.

Only five Uzbek players featured in the 2025 FIDE Chess World Cup, but two of them reached the semifinals. For India, the initial contingent was 24 players, yet none managed to reach the final four. Arjun Erigaisi made the deepest run, reaching the quarterfinals before being knocked out by Wei Yi.

Gen-Next emerges

For more than two decades, Uzbek chess was spearheaded by the legendary Rustam Kasimdzhanov, a FIDE World Champion and Asian Champion. It was only in 2021 that the world got its first glimpse of the new generation emerging from the Central Asian nation.

At the FIDE World Rapid and Blitz Championship in Warsaw, the then 17-year-old Abdusattorov became the youngest-ever World Rapid Champion, finishing ahead of Magnus Carlsen and Ian Nepomniachtchi. He reached new heights, maintaining his pursuit of a Candidates spot. With a world ranking of No. 4 and a peak rating of 2765, it seemed he was destined for greatness and was the natural successor to carry Kasimdzhanov’s legacy forward.

However, destiny had different plans, choosing Sindarov instead. After Abdusattorov failed to qualify for the 2024 Candidates by a whisker, his momentum stalled. Taking the mantle, Sindarov zoomed ahead, mastering one of the trickiest formats — the knockouts — to confirm his own qualification for the Candidates, which potentially allows him to challenge Gukesh’s Classical World Championship crown.

Sindarov has shown serious improvement over the past year. Since October 2024, he has jumped from an Elo rating of 2668 to 2725. His impressive runs in the Freestyle event and the Esports World Cup 2025 hinted that something special was on the horizon.

There is a strong possibility that two Uzbeks could qualify for the Candidates, with a far-fetched scenario for a third. This could happen if Yakubboev beats Esipenko, and if Abdusattorov wins the 2025 London Chess Classic, and the 2025 World Rapid and Blitz Championship.

Although improbable, an Abdusattorov charge would potentially deny Praggnanandhaa a Candidates spot via the FIDE Circuit, meaning that after three Indians (Gukesh, Praggnanandhaa and Vidit Gujrathi) featuring in the previous event, there could be none in the Cyprus one.