Two 20-year-olds, R Praggnanandhaa and Javokhir Sindarov, stole the show on the first day of the three-week Candidates tournament with sparkling wins.
Praggnanandhaa, playing with white pieces, outplayed Dutchman Anish Giri with the Grand Prix Attack, sacrificing a pawn and improving his Queen. He slowly turned the screws, forcing Giri to burn through his clock and eventually securing a win.
Sindarov, in red-hot form, came from behind to beat Andrey Esipenko in a crazy time scramble. The 2025 World Cup winner Uzbeki was worse through most part of the game but managed to turn the tables and secure a winning position.
Fabiano Caruana also won in the battle between rating favourite Americans, beating Hikaru Nakamura in 83 moves.
The Candidates tournament is known for its unpredictable nature, and the first round was no exception. Players like Mattias Bluebaum, who drew against Wei Yi, are already joking about their chances of sweeping the tournament.
In the Women's Candidates, all four games were drawn, with Vaishali R and Divya Deshmukh managing to secure half points from difficult positions.
