 "Praggnanandhaa latest Indian knocked out of FIDE World Cup in Goa as Arjun, Pentala advance")
R Praggnanandhaa became the latest Indian to bow out of the 2025 FIDE World Cup after losing to Russian Grandmaster Daniil Dubov in the fourth-round tie-breaks on Thursday. Praggnanandhaa’s exit from the tournament leaves Arjun Erigaisi and Pentala Harikrishna as the only Indians still in the fray out of the 24 at the start of the competition.
Arjun and Pentala, meanwhile, progressed to the fifth round after defeating veteran Hungarian GM Peter Leko and Sweden’s Nils Grandelius respectively. Indian No 1 Arjun, who currently is the host nation’s best hope for a top-three finish at the World Cup, won both 15+10 tie-breaks against his 46-year-old opponent to sail into the pre-quarterfinals with a 3-1 victory.
Another member of India’s golden generation bites the dust in Goa
Pentala, on the other hand, won the decisive second tie-break game while playing as white against Grandelius. The 39-year-old GM from Andhra Pradesh’s Guntur thus completed a 2.5-1.5 victory on Thursday with the first three games – including the two Classical matches – ending in a stalemate.
It was the other way round in third-seed Praggnanandhaa’s case, with the 20-year-old losing in 53 moves after running out of time while playing as white, despite having his queen on the board along with a rook and a bishop.
◽️ Praggnanandhaa R 0-1 ◾️ Daniil Dubov
— International Chess Federation (@FIDE_chess) November 13, 2025
Game 4 | Round 4 | FIDE World Cup
↔️ Game length: 53 moves
📖 Opening: Italian Game#FIDEWorldCup #Goa pic.twitter.com/Y7V5doXwzV
‘Pragg’ had finished runner-up in the 2023 edition of the World Cup, where he had lost to Magnus Carlsen in the final, and was expected to go the distance at the ongoing tournament that’s taking place at Resort Rio in North Goa’s Arpora.
With another route to qualifying for next year’s Candidates closed for him now, Praggnanandhaa’s only practical hope of challenging D Gukesh for his world title lies via the 2025 FIDE Circuit, in which he continue to top the standings.
Pranav V and Karthik Venkataraman were the other Indians eliminated in the fourth round, both playing out a draw in their first Classical game before losing the second. While Pranav was eliminated by Uzbekistan’s Nodirbek Yakubboev, Karthik had suffered a 1.5-0.5 loss against Vietnam’s Le Quang Liem.
The biggest shock of the tournament, however, was when Gukesh, who has had a turbulent run since being crowned the youngest chess world champion ever last December, bowed out after a third-round defeat at the hands of Germany's Frederik Svane.
Svane is among the players still in contention in Goa, moving into Round 5 after defeating Armenia’s Shant Sargsyan 2.5-1.5.
Armenian-American GM Levon Aronian and Mexico’s Jose Eduardo Martinez Alcantara were the only players to progress to the pre-quarterfinals without having to play the fourth-round tie-breaks.
 "‘Fully prepared for two-front war’: Khawaja Asif’s provocative claim as tensions flare with India and Afghanistan")
 "What are 2012 rules that regulate use of ammonium nitrate in India?")
 "Can masks protect people from Delhi's 'gas chamber'?")
 "Watch: Botswana's symbolic handover of 8 cheetahs to President Droupadi Murmu")
 "‘Fully prepared for two-front war’: Khawaja Asif’s provocative claim as tensions flare with India and Afghanistan")
 "What are 2012 rules that regulate use of ammonium nitrate in India?")
 "Can masks protect people from Delhi's 'gas chamber'?")
 "Watch: Botswana's symbolic handover of 8 cheetahs to President Droupadi Murmu")
