GM Javokhir Sindarov is guaranteed at least a playoff to win the 2026 FIDE Candidates Tournament after a 35-minute draw vs. GM Hikaru Nakamura put him two points clear with two rounds to go. GM Anish Giri came agonizingly close to moving within 1.5 points before his upcoming clash with Sindarov in round 13, but let GM Wei Yi escape in 77 moves. All games were drawn, with GM Andrey Esipenko vs. GM Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu a well-played game from a wild opening, and GM Matthias Bluebaum unable to get revenge on the one person to beat him in Cyprus—GM Fabiano Caruana. Â
A thunderous round 12 of the 2026 FIDE Women’s Candidates ended with three decisive results. GM Zhu Jiner beat GM Vaishali Rameshbabu to catch her in the lead on seven points, GM Bibisara Assaubayeva defeated GM Kateryna Lagno to slip a half-point behind, and GM Tan Zhongyi scored her first win of the event against GM Divya Deshmukh. The only draw was Anna Muzychuk vs. GM Aleksandra Goryachkina, where the former let slip a winning position by allowing a stalemate trick in the rook endgame.
Round 13 is on Tuesday, April 14, starting at 8:45 a.m. ET / 14:45 CEST / 6:15 p.m. IST.
FIDE Candidates: Sindarov A Draw From Glory
There was just one quick draw, but for a second day in a row all games were ultimately drawn in the Open FIDE Candidates.
Candidates Round 12 Results
That’s great news for Sindarov, who needs at most a single draw in the remaining two rounds to become the next world championship challenger for GM Gukesh Dommaraju.Â
Candidates Standings After Round 12
This was the first day of the 2026 Candidates when a winner could be decided, but Sindarov, after surviving his toughest test yet against Caruana in round 11, was in no mood to light the board on fire.
Sindarov ½-½ Nakamura
As Sindarov explained after the draw against Nakamura: “I checked today every tricky line, but if Hikaru will play some popular line, I think in every line I’ll go to some forcing draw. This was my plan for today!”
What we got was a Catalan-style position with mass exchanges and queens off by move 15. By move 33, after just 35 minutes had elapsed, the players had made a draw by repetition.
A huge smile from Sindarov as he makes an effortless draw vs. Nakamura — if Giri loses today Javokhir wins the #FIDECandidates with 2 rounds to spare! https://t.co/gRnDlqv8RI pic.twitter.com/l3qe2lpvc2
— chess24 (@chess24com) April 12, 2026
When it was suggested this might be the fastest game ever in the Candidates, Nakamura pointed out he’d done exactly the same against runaway leader GM Ian Nepomniachtchi in the same round 12 in Madrid in 2022, back then playing the infamous 14-move Berlin draw. Asked if he was upset with the outcome, Nakamura responded: “Why would I be upset? I’m playing with the black pieces and I’ve nothing to play for!”
Nakamura talked about how he hasn’t been close in Cyprus, and that even if a couple of things had gone his way, he’d be on only +1 by now. He was full of praise for Sindarov, who’s cruising on an unbeaten +6: “His first game against Esipenko was very shaky, but ever since it’s been very smooth, and he deserves to be where he’s at. He’s played better than every other player combined—no one else has been even close!”
He’s played better than every other player combined—no one else has been even close!
—Hikaru Nakamura on Javokhir SindarovÂ
The game might have been low in content, but Nakamura still made his daily recap.
That draw meant that the situation was very clear for Giri. A loss to Wei would hand Sindarov the coveted spot as world championship challenger, while a win would cut the gap to 1.5 points and mean that if Giri won in round 13 he’d go into the final round trailing by only half a point. That’s almost what we got, but Wei escaped with a draw, so the tournament isn’t technically over but Sindarov is incredibly close.
Wei ½-½ Giri
This game got off to a dream start for Giri, with Wei sacrificing a pawn early in the opening, and although he won it back, it was at the price of a very unpleasant position.
Judit: “Wei Yi does not look happy!”
David: “Fantastic preparation from Giri!” https://t.co/RT7wlwARM4#FIDECandidates pic.twitter.com/411rpKQ2K6
— chess24 (@chess24com) April 12, 2026
The game developed into a thriller, with Wei correctly sacrificing the exchange just when it looked on the surface that he might be losing a piece.
28.Rxd5! was a saving resource for Wei, but finding it left him down to under nine minutes for 12 moves. In the nerve-wracking run-up to the time control, he went astray and would have been busted if Giri had played 32…Qe3! instead of 32…Qc5?!.
Giri thinks 12 minutes before playing 32…Qc5?! instead of the winning 32…Qe3! https://t.co/dMYbHQGgm2#FIDECandidates pic.twitter.com/aImBCwJ2uL
— chess24 (@chess24com) April 12, 2026
Giri had been choosing between those options but had missed the power of a dagger-like …f3 pawn push to blow open the black king. Giri noted that Wei pointed out that option after the game.
Wei’s time management was perilous, but with 40.Bf4 he reached the time control with one second to spare.
The drama continued unabated after the players gained 30 minutes on their clocks, with Wei oscillating between brilliancies and inaccuracies that gave Giri more chances to break through. The Dutch number-one told FM Mike Klein: “It was very annoying because I think I was winning at various points. I didn’t quite see a forced win, or to be fair, I thought at various points what I did is a forced win, so that is the issue.”
A well-timed …h5 push was perhaps the best chance, but in the end the game finished abruptly when Giri stumbled into a draw by repetition on move 77.
IS IT A DRAW?!? ANISH CAN’T BELIEVE IT 😲😲😲 pic.twitter.com/7J0NjIb9j8
— Chess.com (@chesscom) April 12, 2026
“I hope it’s a draw in the end because otherwise it will be really embarrassing!” said Giri, and though it was very drawish in an ideal world, he would have continued applying pressure to Wei for many more moves.
That fascinating struggle is our Game of the Day, which GM Dejan Bojkov has analyzed below.
Giri noted, “It was really important to win this game for the chance to actually win the tournament,” since even if he beats Sindarov in round 13, he now needs Wei to beat Sindarov with the black pieces in the final round as well. Giri told WIM Charlize van Zyl: “Wei Yi’s opening repertoire is very solid, and Wei Yi likely does not have the weapons to play for a win. I can even tell you how that game will end already. That’s an issue.”
Wei Yi likely does not have the weapons to play for a win.
—Anish Giri on Wei playing Black vs. Sindarov in the final round
Klein tried to get Giri to reveal the exact moves of that game, but Giri only offered to write them down to be opened only after the game!Â
The action elsewhere had no impact on the winner of the FIDE Candidates, but the four players were all ready for a fight.
The #GreatBluebaumStreak was revised down from 14 wins to 14 draws after round one, and then a loss to Caruana in round five was another blow, but that’s been Bluebaum’s only loss of the event. Revenge against the U.S. Champion in round 12 would have meant Bluebaum was unbeaten in mini-matches, but in the end Caruana held a tricky position where he looked destined to drop a pawn.
Bluebaum remains winless, as does Esipenko, who successfully navigated some wild preparation by Praggnanandhaa but couldn’t convert it into more than a very well-played draw.
So the status quo at the bottom of the table remained unchanged, but all eyes in Tuesday’s round 13 will be on Giri vs. Sindarov. Giri must win to stop Sindarov from clinching the tournament with a round to spare.
Candidates Round 13 Pairings
FIDE Women’s Candidates: Zhu Catches Vaishali, Muzychuk Lets Win Slip
We were very close to all four games being decisive in the Women’s tournament.
Women’s Candidates Round 12 Results
Zhu caught Vaishali with a win, but could easily have been joined by Muzychuk as well. Just two points separate first and last places.
Women’s Candidates Standings After Round 12
With two rounds remaining, the Women’s Candidates is still an open race. It’s conceivable that we may see rapid and blitz tiebreaks, if the 14 classical rounds end with a tie for first.
Vaishali 0-1 Zhu
Zhu understood the stakes going into this game. Even with the black pieces, she said at the press conference, “If I make a draw, I don’t have any chance.” She scored in what she considered to be a must-win game, where the nerves were amplified by time trouble ahead of move 40.
The Indian grandmaster took the game to unusual territory with 5.cxd3, doubling her pawns, but with the plan of 9…b6 and 10…c5, Black emerged from the opening with a comfortable position. Judging by the game, Black’s position seemed easier to play, and the advantage on the clock exacerbated the difficulty of White’s position, which collapsed.
Zhu, who has made just four draws in 12 rounds, is now one of the frontrunners. The two leaders were nearly joined by Muzychuk, until an 11th-hour mistake on move 65.
Muzychuk ½-½ Goryachkina
It was the biggest turnaround of the day, in a game that for hours looked surely decisive in Muzychuk’s favor. Goryachkina had chances to draw a pawn-down rook endgame, but after 37…Rc6?, Muzychuk showed no mercy. She went on to find five only moves to retain the winning advantage starting on move 43, and everything was going right.
In the mop-up phase of the game, Muzychuk’s final task was to eliminate the black pawns, and the only factor in Goryachkina’s favor was that her opponent had one minute on the clock. With eight seconds left and ticking, Muzychuk made a single move that reversed the hours of effort.
She would have joined the leaders, but she’s still a half-point behind and very much in the race. There’s another player on 6.5 points, too, Assaubayeva, who scored her first-ever classical win against Lagno.
Assaubayeva 1-0 Lagno
Assaubayeva essayed an uncommon pawn sacrifice in the Italian Opening, though Lagno declined to take it and instead played against an isolated d-pawn. White then sacrificed her b-pawn later to gain plenty of space on the kingside, while also admitting at the press conference, “It’s very dangerous for my king position.”
Indeed, White’s exposed king got caught in the danger zone, but Lagno, in a winning position, had about six minutes against 14 when the game turned around. Twice she allowed the winning move e7, and White found it the second time.
The Kazakh GM explained her thoughts going into the round: “The tournament wasn’t going easy for me, and at some moment it was really hard for me to continue to play, but fortunately my mom is here and she helped me a lot. I don’t know what I would do without her here.”
Assaubayeva has breathed new life into her tournament, though she isn’t thinking so much about the big picture. She said at the press conference, “I just want to finish two games in good style and we will see what will happen.”
Divya 0-1 Tan
The former world champion doesn’t have a mathematical chance of winning the tournament, but she did score her first win of the event. She is now tied with Divya on five points in last place. It’s a tough second half to the tournament for Divya, who’s lost three out of the last four games.
After a favorable transformation of the central pawn structure, Tan achieved play on one goal: pressure against the backward e-pawn and maybe hope, later, of opening the kingside with …g6. Methodically, the Chinese grandmaster marched her king to the other side of the board, maximized pressure on the e-file, and then pried open the king with the decisive 57…g6!.Â
Looking ahead to Tuesday, one may be tempted to call Vaishali “injured” after a loss. But she’s shown time and again that she can bounce back with streaks of wins. She’ll have the black pieces against Tan, while Zhu will have White against Goryachkina, who just barely escaped a third loss.
The two players on 6.5 points will also face off, with Assaubayeva having the white pieces against Muzychuk.
FIDE Women’s Candidates: Round 13 PairingsÂ
NM Anthony Levin contributed to this report.
You can watch the 2026 FIDE Candidates Tournament on Chess24’s YouTube and Twitch channels. The games can also be followed from our Events Page.Â
The FIDE Candidates Tournament is the most important FIDE tournament of the year. In the Open and Women’s events, eight players play each other twice for the right to challenge the FIDE World Champions Gukesh Dommaraju and Ju Wenjun to a match for the title.
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