The 2026 Tata Steel Masters in Wijk aan Zee saw a commanding performance from Nodirbek Abdusattorov, who claimed outright victory with nine points from 13 games. It’s a pity, then, that the young Uzbek won’t be competing in the upcoming Candidates Tournament – the event that will determine Gukesh’s next world championship challenger. Abdusattorov’s recent form would put him among the favourites in Cyprus in April. In December, he won both the London Chess Classic and silver at the World Blitz Championships in Qatar. With his dominant display in Wijk aan Zee, he ascends to world no. 5 in the live rating list. But since he failed to peak in the qualifiers, he will remain on the sidelines.
His younger compatriot Javokhir Sindarov, however, will be playing. The 20-year-old earned his Candidates spot by winning the 2025 World Cup. At Wijk he finished just half a point behind Abdusattorov on 8.5/13, suggesting he could be a dangerous outsider in Cyprus. This one-two finish, after their stunning Olympiad victory in 2022, highlights the remarkable rise of Uzbek chess.
Both stylish wins below came against the German grandmaster Matthias Bluebaum, himself a surprise qualifier for the Candidates tournament. Despite these losses, Bluebaum finished on a very respectable 7/13, ahead of the reigning world champion, Gukesh, who scored just 6.5.
Abdusattorov has a two-pawn deficit here, but his pieces are poised for action. The immediate 32 R1xf6 falls short: 32…gxf6 33 Qf2 Qd6! is a cool defence, intending 34 Rxf6 Re1+.
N. Abdusattorov-M. Bluebaum
Tata Steel Masters, Wijk aan Zee 2026
Instead: 32 Ncb5! Qc4 Or 32…Qd8 33 Nc6 Bxc6 34 Qxe5 Bxb5 35 R1xf6 gxf6 36 Rxf6 is crushing. 33 R1xf6 gxf6 34 Qf2! Much stronger than 34 Rxd7 Qf1+ 35 Kh2 Rg8 when Black is the one making threats to the king. Qc1+ 35 Kh2 Qg5 36 Rxd7 Black’s kingside is shattered, so the threats stemming from Nb5-d6 are too strong. Re4 37 Nd6 Qe5+ 38 g3 Qxd4 39 Nxe4 Qxf2+ 40 Nxf2 Rc8 41 Rxb7 Rc2 42 Kg1 Rxa2 43 Ng4 Black resigns as his loose pawns will drop off soon.
In the diagram below, the tempting 24…Qxh3+ 24 Kg1 Qg3+ 25 Kh1 is only a draw, since 25…g5 26 Rh2 covers the threats.
M. Bluebaum-J. Sindarov
Tata Steel Masters, Wijk aan Zee 2026
But Sindarov found a beautiful shot in 24…Nd3!! which breaks the defence by first deflecting the rook from the second rank. 25 Rxd3 25 Bxd3 Qxd2 wins further material, since the bishop and knight are both loose. Qxh3+ 26 Kg1 Qg3+ 27 Kh1 g5! White resigns as there is no good answer to Re6-h6 mate.
Comments