Tata Steel Chess: Abdusattorov defeats Bluebaum, enters last round as sole leader

2/1/2026 – With one round remaining, the race for first place remains unresolved in both sections of the Tata Steel Chess Tournament. In the Masters, Nodirbek Abdusattorov leads alone after defeating Matthias Bluebaum, while Javokhir Sindarov trails by half a point and three others still have outside chances. In the Challengers, Andy Woodward and Aydin Suleymanli share the lead, with Vasyl Ivanchuk close behind. | Photo: Tata Steel Chess / Lennart Ootes

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Abdusattorov, Keymer and Erdogmus grab wins in the penultimate round

The penultimate round of the Tata Steel Masters left five players still with a theoretical chance of taking first place. The strongest position, however, now belongs to Nodirbek Abdusattorov, who defeated Matthias Bluebaum to move into the final round as sole leader. Sunday's decisive round will begin two hours earlier than usual (at noon CET), with Abdusattorov sitting on 8 points from 12 games.

Javokhir Sindarov, who had started the day tied for first, agreed a quick 14-move draw with Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu. As a result, Sindarov now stands alone in second place, half a point behind his compatriot.

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Three further players can still dream of at least tying for first and entering a playoff, though they will need favourable results elsewhere - an Abdusattorov loss and Sindarov not winning.

Vincent Keymer moved into this group after defeating Thai Dai Van Nguyen. Their game developed into a technical, queenless endgame from a Petroff Defence, where Keymer gradually improved his position and converted. This was Keymer's third win in a row. He has drawn only two games in the twelve rounds played so far and, despite having lost five times, has still managed to gain rating points. That is particularly notable given that he entered the event as the rating favourite.

Hans Niemann also remains in contention. In his game from round twelve, Gukesh Dommaraju obtained a clearly favourable endgame but failed to make the most of his chances, allowing Niemann to hold the draw and stay in the title race. Jorden van Foreest, the third player in the chasing group, gained an edge with white in the early middlegame against Arjun Erigaisi, but the Indian GM soon equalised, and the game ended safely in a 36-move draw.

Jorden van Foreest

Jorden van Foreest | Photo: Tata Steel Chess / Lennart Ootes

Besides Abdusattorov and Keymer, Yagiz Kaan Erdogmus also scored a full point with the white pieces. He checkmated Vladimir Fedoseev after the latter chose a double-edged path right from the opening, leading to a complex fight that ultimately went in the Turkish player's favour.

In the final round, none of the five players still in with a chance of overall victory will face each other, and all five will play with the black pieces. The most relevant pairing will see Arjun Erigaisi facing Nodirbek Abdusattorov.

Round 13 pairings

Bo.	Rtg		White		Black	Rtg
1	2775	GM	Erigaisi, Arjun	GM	Abdusattorov, Nodirbek	2751
2	2758	GM	Praggnanandhaa, R	GM	Van Foreest, Jorden	2703
3	2656	GM	Nguyen, Thai Dai Van	GM	Sindarov, Javokhir	2726
4	2754	GM	Gukesh, D	GM	Keymer, Vincent	2776
5	2760	GM	Giri, Anish	GM	Niemann, Hans Moke	2725
6	2705	GM	Fedoseev, Vladimir	GM	Aravindh, Chithambaram Vr.	2700
7	2679	GM	Bluebaum, Matthias	GM	Erdogmus, Yagiz Kaan	2658

Round 12 results

Abdusattorov 1-0 Bluebaum

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GM Blohberger presents a complete two-part repertoire for Black: practical, clear, and flexible – instead of endless theory, you’ll get straightforward concepts and strategies that are easy to learn and apply.
The King’s Indian Defence has been one of the most dynamic and popular responses to 1.d4 for decades. Legends such as Garry Kasparov, Bobby Fischer, and Hikaru Nakamura have employed it at the highest level – and it continues to fascinate today, as it offers Black not only solidity but also rich attacking and counterattacking opportunities. Its special advantage: the King’s Indian is a universal system, equally effective against 1.d4, 1.c4, and 1.Nf3. Grandmaster Felix Blohberger, multiple Austrian Champion and experienced second, presents a complete two-part repertoire for Black. His approach: practical, clear, and flexible – instead of endless theory, you’ll get straightforward concepts and strategies that are easy to learn and apply.
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Keymer 1-0 Nguyen

Vincent Keymer

Vincent Keymer | Photo: Tata Steel Chess / Lennart Ootes

Standings after round 12

All games

Suleymanli joins Woodward in the lead

A Supergrandmaster's Guide to Openings Vol.1 & 2

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The struggle for first place in the Challengers - and with it a place in next year's Masters - now revolves around three players.

Long-time frontrunners Andy Woodward and Aydin Suleymanli head into the final round tied for first place. Suleymanli moved level at the top after defeating Marc'Andria Maurizzi with the black pieces. Maurizzi took considerable risks from the outset in his search for a win, but Suleymanli handled the complications well and came out on top.

Woodward, on his part, signed a 31-move draw against Velimir Ivic. His preparation was evident: he spent less than 30 minutes on the entire game, while Ivic finished with only 17 minutes on his clock.

The third contender is 56-year-old Vasyl Ivanchuk, who stands half a point behind the leaders, and drew with white against 12-year-old Faustino Oro in the penultimate round.

In Sunday’s deciding round, both Suleymanli and Woodward will have the white pieces, facing Ivic and Erwin l'Ami respectively, while Ivanchuk is set to play black against Daniil Yuffa.