No gain in Al Ain!

The Al Ain Classic 2015 was won by the Chinese GM Wang Hao with a fantastic score of 8.5/9. 29 Indians participated in this event including top players like Abhijeet Gupta, Deep Sengupta, Lalith Babu, Vaibhav Suri and many more GMs. However the best we would muster was Vaibhav's 21st place with a score of 5.5/9. It was surely not a tournament meant for Indians players as no one could achieve anything special. We give you an overview of the Indian players and have some superb analysis of selected games by IM Prathamesh Mokal.

Revisiting the 2015 National Premier Championship (1)

Indians rock at the Qatar Masters 2015!

The Qatar Masters 2015 was won by Magnus Carlsen. But what happened to the 28 Indian participants who went to Doha to play in this super strong event. Suffice it to say that we came back with some huge accomplishments. A top ten finish, two GM norms, four IM norms, two players completing their IM titles and some truly exquisite games of chess. We bring to you exclusive pictures, analysis, videos and a complete overview of the Indian performance in Doha!

Blind chess in India (1)

In the past few days, we had actively reported the National-B for the Blind held in Manipal. Ever since its inception, the AICFB has never charged entry fees from any of the participants in any tournament organized by them. Nor does the government support blind chess in India. How does the system work? In the first part, we bring you a report on the status of blind chess in India detailing the problems our visually impaired friends face.

2nd Johor International Open 2015

The 2^nd Johor Open International Chess Festival took place from December 13, 2015, to December 23, 2015. The chess festival included one classical event, one blitz event and four back to back rapid events. The Johor Open is annually held in conjunction with Penang Heritage Chess Festival. IM Srinath Narayanan missed the Penang tournament due to the floods that ravaged his city; however, he made it in time for the Johor Open. In his report, Srinath shares his impressions of the tournament with you.

IIFL Wealth Mumbai International Open 2016

If the litterateurs had to come up with an elegant synonym for 'anomaly', they could very well anoint it as 'mumbai'. On January 28, IIFL Wealth, in association with the Indian Chess School, welcomes you to Bombay for the IIFL Wealth Open and IIFL Wealth Juniors Tournament, which is on its way to being crowned the highest prize-money junior tournament in chess history. An invitation.

Manipal 09: Soundarya wins the Nat-B title; Stany takes the Open

The All India Chess Federation for the Blind (AICFB), in association with the Manipal University, hosted the National B Chess Championship for the Blind at T.M.A. Pai Hall in Manipal, a picturesque educational hub in Udupi, Karnataka. The Manipal University organized this tournament along with an Open rating tournament, with a simple idea of building an audience for this sport, where the visually challenged player can truly play at a relatively higher level, compared to other games. A pictorial report.

New Year 2016 Puzzle

As the year 2015 comes to an end ChessBase India leaves you with a hard nut to crack. The study which we ask you to solve in this article took IM Sagar Shah 24 days to work out the entire solution. We hope that you will not only enjoy the process of solving the problem but also fare much better than what he did!

Manipal 05-08: Kishan, Soundarya lead Nat-B; Stany on 8.0/8

The All India Chess Federation for the Blind (AICFB), in association with the Manipal University, is hosting the National B Chess Championship for the Blind at T.M.A. Pai Hall in Manipal, a picturesque educational hub in Udupi, Karnataka. At the end of the penultimate round, Kishan Gangolli of Karnataka leads the National B for the Blind along with Soundarya Pradhan, while IM G.A. Stany has all but sealed his victory with a perfect 8.0/8. A pictorial report.

Manipal 03+04: Top seeds have smooth sailing

The second day of the National-B for the Blind was good for the top-two seeds, who won their games without much difficulties. The third seed Krishna Udupa, though, tasted defeat in the third round. In the FIDE Open, a handful of experienced players were held to draws by their young lower-rated opponents. We bring you a pictorial report from Manipal.

Manipal 01+02: National-B for the Blind gets underway

Manipal is a modern day seat of learning in India, with its stature as the country's leading educational hub growing exponentially day by day. The All India Chess Federation for the Blind, in association with the Manipal University, is hosting the National B Championship for the Blind, which got underway on 26 December 2015. To make this celebration of chess complete, the University is also organizing an Open FIDE tournament alongside the National B, with a simple idea of promoting the game. ChessBase India brings you an illustrated report.

Qatar 05: India vs. India?!

Quite a few games today were between Indians themselves. There were no friendly draws as the players chose to fight to the bitter end. Surya Shekhar Ganguly defeated Englishman David Howell to lead the Indian contingent with 4.0/5. A detailed report with some beautiful pictures, games, tactics and more!

Qatar 04: Youngsters have a field day

The youngsters of the Indian contingent had a lucky day as many of them escaped from bad positions to earn draws, or as in the case of Vignesh NR, even win, against Wei Yi! Vaishali R. finally opened her account, however, her senior state-mate GM Venkatesh's woeful run continued. A complete report with loads of pictures, games, analysis, and a video report.

Qatar 03: bad day for the top half

The Indians in the top half of the tournament standings had an uneventful day. Sethu and Harika crumbled in the face of their higher rated opponents. Many settled for draws with those rated lower than them, except Adhiban, who even lost. Nevertheless, Sasikiran held Karjakin, and Shardul settled for a draw with Hou Yifan. IM Vignesh NR beat GM Bartel, who is rated 200 points above him. The star attraction of the day was the legendary Spanish playmaker Xavi Hernandez, who visited the tournament. A complete report with pictures, games and video interviews.

Qatar 02: Aravindh misses his chance

A very solid day for the Indians as a number of players settled for draws in the second round of the Qatar Masters Open, 2015. Magnus Carlsen escaped Aravindh, who botched up his position in time-trouble. Don't feel pity -- can you guess how much time he spent on his fourth move? Among the women, Harika held the world's strongest female Hou Yifan to a draw. A complete report with pictures, annotations and video interviews.