February 2025 | Tata Steel Europe
Nineteen-year-old Indian grandmaster Praggnanandhaa R captured the title after an exciting tiebreak against the youngest-ever and reigning World Chess Champion, Gukesh Dommaraju at the 87th edition of the Tata Steel Chess Tournament in Wijk aan Zee.
Spectacular Start with Gukesh vs. Giri
The tournament began with a bang: the reigning world champion Gukesh took on Dutch grandmaster and 2023 Tata Steel Champion Anish Giri in the opening round. In a nerve-wracking game, Giri seemed to be on his way to victory, but Gukesh managed to turn the game around after capitalising on a blunder by Giri with brilliant defensive play, gaining a decisive advantage. This spectacular start set the tone for an intense battle for the title over the following two weeks.
Dramatic Final
The tournament saw Gukesh in the lead for a long time. In the final weekend, however, Praggnanandhaa managed to equalise. Both players finished with 8½ points from 13 games, which led to a decisive blitz tiebreak, where the games lasted only minutes compared to the hours during the regular rounds of the tournament. In this playoff, Praggnanandhaa showed his great skill and defeated Gukesh 2-1 after a 0-1 deficit, securing the title.
Tournament director Jeroen van den Berg praised Praggnanandhaa’s performance:
“What a great performance by Praggnanandhaa. The hundreds of spectators in the hall and thousands of fans online got to see an unprecedented, exciting finale. As a 16-year-old talent, Praggnanandhaa finished 12th in our tournament three years ago, 9th the following year, and last year 7th. I didn’t expect him to continue his upward trend so quickly, but in his fourth appearance in the Masters, he now takes the title.”
Bringing Chess to the community
The Tata Steel Chess Tournament goes beyond just chess for amateurs and professionals. It organised numerous events this year for and in cooperation with the local community before and during the tournament; such as a festival for families and youth, and simultaneous chess for local primary schools.
Taking the tournament to millions
With a large global audience eager to follow the Tata Steel Chess Tournament, the organisation partnered with Chess.com to provide a complete livestream, including commentary and analysis throughout the event.
To cater to the rapidly growing Indian chess fanbase, this year, the tournament invited Indian International Master Sagar Shah to Wijk aan Zee. Sagar, through his company ChessBase India, hosted a live show covering all Indian players in the tournament. He also gave the fans an exclusive behind-the-scenes look during the tournament.
With these partnerships, the Tata Steel Chess Tournament has been able to reach millions of chess fans worldwide. The tournament will return to Wijk aan Zee from 16 January – 1 February 2026.
- Kevin Heg
A tournament to remember
