Chess at Esports World Cup 2026: Grandmasters Arjun Erigaisi and Nihal Sarin set to face off in all-Indian Group Stage opener

The Group Stage of Chess at the Esports World Cup (EWC) 2026 gets underway today, with 16 of the world’s leading players beginning their campaigns for the title and a share of the $1.5 million (~INR 14.3 crore) prize pool. The groups are as follows:

Group A

Arjun Erigaisi – Gen.G Esports

Nihal Sarin – S8UL Esports

Nodirbek Abdusattorov – Natus Vincere

Pranesh M – S8UL Esports

Jan-Krzysztof Duda – Weibo Gaming

Benjamin Bok – Team MGD1

Alireza Firouzja – Team Falcons

Wei Yi – Team Nemesis

Group B

Magnus Carlsen – Team Liquid

Andrey Esipenko – Virtus.pro

Hikaru Nakamura – Team Falcons

Alexey Sarana – Fnatic

Hans Moke Niemann – GodLike Esports

Ian Nepomniachtchi – Aurora Gaming

Denis Lazavik – AG.AL

Sina Movahed – Team Stallions

In Group A, India’s only Chess representatives at EWC 2025, Grandmasters Arjun Erigaisi and Nihal Sarin, will take on each other in a repeat of last year’s Group Stage opener, while another Indian Grandmaster, Pranesh M, will begin his campaign against Uzbekistan’s Nodirbek Abdusattorov. Elsewhere, Polish Grandmaster Jan-Krzysztof Duda will face Benjamin Bok, who qualified through the India Rising qualifier. EWC 2025 runner-up Alireza Firouzja will take on Wei Yi, who secured his place through the Last Chance Qualifier and Play-Ins, in another rematch of last year’s Group Stage.

Group B features defending champion Magnus Carlsen of Team Liquid, who will begin his title defence against Andrey Esipenko, who advanced through the Play-Ins. American speed-chess icon Hikaru Nakamura will face Alexey Sarana, who is making his EWC group stage debut. Hans Moke Niemann, representing Indian organization GodLike Esports, takes on Ian Nepomniachtchi, who reached the EWC Playoffs last year. The group’s remaining opening match will see tournament’s group stage debutants Denis Lazavik and Sina Movahed face each other.

The Group Stage will take place on August 12 and 13, with matches consisting of two games played under a 10-minute time control with no increment. An Armageddon game will serve as the tiebreaker when required, with players competing in double-elimination brackets under the same match format. The top four players from each group will advance to the Playoffs.

The Playoffs will take place on August 14 and 15 and will feature a single-elimination bracket. The quarterfinals will be played over four games, followed by six-game semifinals, while the Grand Final will be decided through a best-of-three sets format. The first two sets will consist of four games each, with a potential third and final set comprising two games.

S8UL Esports’ Aravindh Chithambaram, bowed out during the Play-Ins and took home $23,000 (~INR 21.9 lakh) for his performance at EWC 2026