Aleksandar Indjic impresses, wins Baku Open

by Carlos Alberto Colodro
5/10/2025 – The Baku Open, the inaugural event of the newly launched "Chess Tour Azerbaijan", concluded on 6 May at the Baku Crystal Hall. Serbian GM Aleksandar Indjic emerged as the clear winner in the Group A section, finishing unbeaten with a score of 7/9. Georgian GM Baadur Jobava and Turkish GM Vahap Sanal shared second place, just half a point behind. Nearly 700 players from 16 countries competed across three sections, with prize funds totalling $55,000. | Photos: Azerbaijan Chess Federation

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Jobava and Sanal on the podium

The 2025 Baku Open concluded on 6 May at the beautiful Baku Crystal Hall, marking the first event in the newly established Chess Tour Azerbaijan, a series of eight tournaments to be held across the country.

The event featured three sections (Groups A, B, and C) each following a 9-round Swiss format with classical time control. Nearly 700 players from 16 countries participated, competing for a total prize fund of $55,000, with $12,000 awarded to the Group A winner.

In Group A, Aleksandar Indjic of Serbia lived up to his status as the top seed, claiming the title with a score of 7/9. The 2024 European Champion remained unbeaten throughout the event, securing decisive wins at key moments, including a pivotal fifth-round victory over Mahammad Muradli of Azerbaijan. Muradli, who had started strongly with four consecutive wins, lost momentum after the defeat and failed to recover the lead. Two rounds later, Indjic got the better of title contender Vahap Sanal while marshalling the black pieces (see analysis of the game below).

Georgian GM Baadur Jobava and Turkish GM Vahap Sanal finished just half a point behind Indjic, each scoring 6½/9. Jobava, who also remained undefeated, secured second place based on the higher average rating of his opponents, while Sanal took third.

In Group B, Georgian player Nikoloz Chkhaidze emerged as the winner, while Group C saw a tightly contested finish, with Akbar Mirzayev of Azerbaijan edging out Kamran Babayev on tiebreaks (Buchholz system) to claim the title.

Aleksandar Indjic

Aleksandar Indjic

Sanal 0-1 Indjic

Baku Chess Open 2025

The spacious playing hall

Final standings

Rk. Name Pts. TB1
1 Indjic, Aleksandar 7 0
2 Jobava, Baadur 6,5 0
3 Sanal, Vahap 6,5 0
4 Babazada, Khazar 6 0
5 Ibrahimli, Murad 6 0
6 Muradli, Mahammad 6 0
7 Iskandarov, Misratdin 6 0
8 Aditya, Mittal 6 0
9 Brodsky, Michail 6 0
10 Valiyev, Shahin 6 0
11 Aliyev, Ravan 6 0
12 Suleymanli, Aydin 5,5 0
13 Shogdzhiev, Roman 5,5 0
14 Aswath, S 5,5 0
15 Mohamed, Anees M 5,5 0
16 Samadov, Read 5,5 0
17 Xie, Jianjun 5,5 0
18 Harshavardhan, G B 5 0
19 Ilamparthi, A R 5 0
20 Ahmadzada, Ahmad 5 0

....60 players

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Carlos Colodro is a Hispanic Philologist from Bolivia. He works as a freelance translator and writer since 2012. A lot of his work is done in chess-related texts, as the game is one of his biggest interests, along with literature and music.
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