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Javokhir Sindarov will participate in the inaugural leg of the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam, starting February 7 in Weissenhaus. The 19-year-old Uzbek grandmaster replaces Viswanathan Anand, who withdrew on short notice. Sindarov, the runner-up in the online qualifier, completes the ten-player field.
Sindarov learned of his unexpected opportunity during a family vacation in Dubai. "On Friday morning, I received a WhatsApp message confirming that I would be playing", he shared. He immediately informed his parents and coach. "Everyone was thrilled".
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One of the most gifted young chess players, the Tashkent-born chess pro is one of six players in the history of the sport to become a grandmaster before his 13th birthday. He won a gold medal with the Uzbek team at the 2022 Chess Olympiad. At the end of 2023, he passed the 2700 Elo mark for the first time.
"Javokhir is one of the most talented players around", said Vladimir Fedoseev after narrowly defeating him in the final of the five-day online qualifier. Fedoseev expressed great respect for Sindarov's skills, adding, "Javokhir has some abilities that I can't say I have".
After narrowly beating Sindarov in the qualifier’s thrilling final, Fedoseev and Sindarov will meet again in Weissenhaus.
Sindarov finds Chess960 fascinating, saying it challenges his creativity and instincts. "You can play it easily without much preparation", he said, though he does not consider himself a specialist. His experience with Chess960 was limited to a few training games before entering the Freestyle Online Qualifier.
Initially, it seemed unlikely that Sindarov would reach the knockout stage. After scoring 2½ points in his first four games of the Swiss-system tournament, he knew he needed five consecutive wins to have a chance to advance. "I decided to just relax and play my best". He delivered, defeating five GMs in a row to secure third place and a spot in the knockout round.
Despite feeling unwell and nearly oversleeping his semi-final match, Sindarov advanced to the final without losing a game. He defeated world-class opponents Wei Yi (1½–½), Praggnanandhaa (2–0), and Yu Yangyi (1½–½).
In the final, Sindarov faced Fedoseev, who had been widely favoured due to his unorthodox and imaginative style that seems to fit Freestyle Chess perfectly. Sindarov defied expectations with a dominant start, outplaying Fedoseev from the opening in the first game. A precise tactical manoeuvre on move 16 gave him an overwhelming edge, handing Fedoseev his first loss of the tournament. "Strategically, that was very good of me", Sindarov remarked.
The second game saw Fedoseev in the driver's seat. Sindarov missed his one brilliant but obscure defensive resource on move 23, which could have secured his match victory. Instead, he lost, and the match continued into a blitz tiebreak, where both players displayed equal strength. Sindarov pressed hard in the first blitz game, but had to settle for a draw. The second blitz game, an intense 85-move battle, also ended in a draw.
Here's the possible save Sindarov missed, not trivial, but beautiful. 23…Qe2 with the key idea that 24.Rb3+ will be countered with 24…Rb5!:
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The decisive Armageddon game determined who would advance to the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam. Fedoseev, playing with the black pieces, only needed a draw to win. Although Sindarov lost a pawn early, Fedoseev failed to capitalise and eventually lost his advantage. Instead, he ended up with an endgame that should be lost under normal circumstances. However, Sindarov, with 10 seconds left on his clock, ran out of time, losing the match in heartbreaking fashion.
Surprisingly, Sindarov was not overly frustrated by the loss with the finish line in front of him. "Above all, I was proud of how well I played and how I fought back". Now, he eagerly anticipates competing against Magnus Carlsen, Hikaru Nakamura, and other top players. Sindarov plans to work with his coach (whose identity he keeps private) on a specialised freestyle training program after his vacation in Dubai. "We'll study some special strategies", he said, without revealing specifics.
For the upcoming challenge, Sindarov has no concrete goals beyond enjoying the experience. "Winning the event would be great, but first of all I want to play as well as I can and compete against the best players in the world. I'm really looking forward to it".
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