Team Goemkarponn
PANAJI: Indian Grandmasters Surya Shekhar Ganguly, Raunak Sadhwani, and Karthik Venkatraman advanced to the second round, while M Pranesh progressed after a draw, as the FIDE World Cup 2025 delivered another thrilling day of chess action in Goa on Sunday. IM Aronyak Ghosh produced the day’s biggest surprise, defeating Poland’s GM Mateusz Bartel to take the match into a tiebreak.
Veteran Surya Shekhar Ganguly used all his experience to outclass Azerbaijan’s Ahmadzada in 28 moves. Playing black, the 42-year-old capitalised on his opponent’s aggressive approach, launching a precise kingside attack to seal victory and become the first Indian to enter the second round. Ganguly will now face GM Maxime Vachier-Lagrave of France.
Karthik Venkatraman, who drew his opening game with Cuba’s GM Roberto Garia Pantoja, forced his opponent’s resignation in 39 moves to set up an all-Indian second-round clash with GM Aravindh Chithambaram.
Raunak Sadhwani, 19, bounced back strongly after a shaky start. Having drawn the first game against South Africa’s FM Daniel Barrish, the youngster played confidently with black pieces to win in 39 moves and book his spot in the next round.
Meanwhile, M Pranesh, also 19, played solidly to secure a draw against Kazakhstan’s Satbek Akhmedinov after 36 moves in a rook-pawn endgame, ensuring his progress without taking risks.
The FIDE World Cup 2025, featuring 206 players from 82 nations, follows a single-elimination format, with the winner lifting the Viswanathan Anand Cup, named in honour of the Indian chess legend.
IM Aronyak Ghosh kept his campaign alive with a spirited comeback. After losing the first game, he dominated the middle game against GM Bartel and converted his advantage in 41 moves to force a tiebreak.
Four other Indians Raja Rithvik R, Diptayan Ghosh, Lalit Babu MR, and Narayanan SL will also play tiebreaks after drawing their respective matches.
In the women’s section, wildcard entrant Divya Deshmukh bowed out 0.5–1.5 to Greece’s GM Stamatis Kourkoulos-Arditis, despite fighting hard in a marathon 73-move encounter.
