13 out of 32 games end decisively
Round three of the FIDE World Cup began on Friday in Goa, with 64 players still in contention for the title. The opening day of the round featured 13 decisive results, while the remaining encounters ended in draws. Out of those 13 wins, 8 went to the higher-rated player, and 5 to their lower-rated opponents - including one particularly notable upset.
The day's standout result came from Peruvian-born grandmaster Jose Martinez, now representing Mexico, who defeated eighth seed Nodirbek Abdusattorov with the black pieces. Playing a line of the Philidor Defence, Abdusattorov obtained a promising position after (correctly) sacrificing the exchange for activity and pressure, but mishandled the ensuing complications. Martinez took full advantage of the errors, turning the tables to claim one of the biggest wins of his career.
Why memorising endless theory might not be the best path - and how an idea-based repertoire can change your game.
In today’s fast-paced chess world, especially online, where blitz and rapid games dominate, the traditional approach of grinding through lines of opening theory can feel overwhelming, and even unnecessary. The real challenge? Striking the right balance in your opening preparation. How deep should you go? Where do you stop? This course is built on the timeless wisdom of my legendary coach, Chebanenko, who designed opening repertoires for his “lazy” students - not lazy in attitude, but smart in approach. His philosophy? Don’t memorise. Understand.
Four other matches also saw the lower-rated player prevail:
- Pouya Idani (Iran, 2601) beat Andrey Esipenko (FIDE, 2681) in just 29 moves after Esipenko blundered in a sharp middlegame.
- Radoslaw Wojtaszek (Poland, 2660) defeated Vladimir Fedoseev (Slovenia, 2717) after converting a knight endgame with an extra pawn. The players entered the endgame on move 26, and the Polish grandmaster finally forced resignation on move 77.
- Alexey Sarana (Serbia, 2675) overcame Jorden van Foreest (Netherlands, 2693) following a long, tense endgame with queens and minor pieces on the board.
- Peter Leko (Hungary, 2660) defeated Kirill Alekseenko (Austria, 2666) in a nervy encounter marked by mutual time pressure.
Leko's participation in Goa has been one of the event's major talking points. The 46-year-old Hungarian grandmaster, who came close to beating Vladimir Kramnik in the match for the World Championship title in 2004, remains one of his country's strongest players (he is ranked second currently). He was selected to represent Hungary after Richard Rapport qualified through his world ranking.
Among the top seeds, many were held to draws on Friday. The highest-rated winners were Arjun Erigaisi, Le Quang Liem and Levon Aronian. Notably, Pentala Harikrishna, who scored a brilliant win in round two, maintained his strong momentum in Goa, adding another victory to his tally by defeating Belgian rising star Daniel Dardha.
Peter Leko taking a stroll | Photo: Michal Walusza
In this insightful video course, Grandmaster David Navara shares practical advice on when to calculate deeply in a position — and just as importantly, when not to.
In this insightful video course, Grandmaster David Navara shares practical advice on when to calculate deeply in a position — and just as importantly, when not to.
Free sample video: Introduction
Free sample video: Invisible moves
Alexey Sarana | Photo: Michal Walusza
Abdusattorov 0-1 Martinez
In this course GM Ganguly turns calculation into a trainable skill with a structured path for any level.
If one skill decides more games, it’s calculation. Openings fade, plans change - but seeing clearly, comparing lines, and choosing with confidence wins points. In this course GM Ganguly turns calculation into a trainable skill with a structured path for any level. You won’t just solve tactics; you’ll learn how to think: where to start, which branches to explore, when to stop, and how to keep a crystal-clear mental board under pressure.
Free video sample: Introduction
Free video sample: Forcing moves
Jose Martinez plays the Philidor Defence | Photo: Michal Walusza
Harikrishna 1-0 Dardha
Analysis by GM Karsten Müller
From Mating with a queen; a rook; two bishops; a knight and a bishop; to the basics of pawn endgames – here you will gain the necessary know-how to turn your endgame advantages into victories!
Pentala Harikrishna defeated Daniel Dardha | Photo: Michal Walusza
All games - Round 3
Replay games from all rounds at Live.ChessBase.com
In the first part of the video series, we will look at White’s four main moves: 6. Bg5, 6. Be3, 6. Be2 and 6. Bc4.
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