An Exciting Lineup Of Players At Tata Steel Chess India Tournament
The Tata Steel Chess India Rapid & Blitz Open tournament will take place at Kolkata’s Dhono Dhanyo Auditorium from January 7–11, 2026. This year, a former World Champion and other top Grandmasters will compete. Magnus Carlsen won the Open category’s Rapid and Blitz, while Aleksandra Goryachkina won the Women’s category’s Rapid, and Kateryna Lagno won the Blitz.
The players for this year’s tournament are:
| Open Category | Women’s Category |
| Viswanathan Anand Arjun Erigaisi Nihal Sarin Wesley So Wei Yi R. Praggnanandhaa Volodar Murzin Hans Niemann Vidit Gujrathi Aravindh Chithambaram | Aleksandra Goryachkina Kateryna Lagno Divya Deshmukh Vaishali R. Nana Dzagnidze Harika Dronavalli Carissa Yip Stavroula Tsolakidou Vantika Agrawal Rakshitta Ravi |
After a six-year hiatus, former five-time World Champion Viswanathan Anand will be back in action at the Tata Steel Chess India. Anand will face elite players this year, including the youthful brigade from India, many of whom he has trained extensively and who have had a significant influence on the global chess scene.
The lineup for the first round of Rapid is mentioned below.
OPEN
VISWANATHAN ANAND VS WESLEY SO
WEI YI VS NIHAL SARIN
ARAVINDH CHITHAMBARAM VS R PRAGGNANANDHAA
ARJUN ERIGAISI VS VIDIT GUJRATHI
HANS NIEMANN VS VOLODAR MURZIN
WOMEN
RAKSHITTA RAVI VS ALEKSANDRA GORYACHKINA
CARISSA SHIWEN YIP VS STAVROULA TSOLAKIDOU
DIVYA DESHMUKH VS HARIKA DRONAVALLI
NANA DZZAGNIDZE VS KATERYNA LAGNO
VANTIKA AGARWAL VS VAISHALI R
Viswanathan Anand said, “After a six-year hiatus, I am thrilled to be returning to Tata Steel Chess India as a player. The rise of skilled players throughout the nation, particularly in India, has significantly altered the chess landscape during this time. I am thrilled to take up the young chess prodigy’s challenge in this prestigious Indian tournament”.
| Tata Steel Chess India 2026 | |
| DATES | January 7 -11, 2026 |
| VENUE | Dhono Dhanyo Auditorium, Kolkata |
| FORMAT | 10 Player Round Robin |
| PRIZE FUND | $ 41,500 for both Open and Women category |
Tata Steel Chess India has developed into a significant event on the world chess calendar. It is much more than just a competition now.
For more details, visit: www.tatasteelchess.in
Priyanka Dutta