UzChess Cup: Exciting sixth round leaves Madaminov and Vokhidov tied for first

by Carlos Alberto Colodro
6/13/2026 – Mukhiddin Madaminov (pictured, left) caught Shamsiddin Vokhidov in the lead after scoring his fourth win of the UzChess Cup, defeating Vidit Gujrathi in Friday's sixth round. Vokhidov split the point with Nodirbek Yakubboev, while Nodirbek Abdusattorov signed a 61-move draw in his game against Hans Niemann to remain half a point behind the leaders. Shakhriyar Mamedyarov and Ian Nepomniachtchi also scored wins in Tashkent. | Photo: Official website

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Nepo, Mamedyarov and Madaminov score

Three games ended decisively in Friday's sixth round of the UzChess Cup in Tashkent, and the results left two Uzbek players tied for first place. Mukhiddin Madaminov defeated Vidit Gujrathi with the white pieces to catch Shamsiddin Vokhidov, whose run of three consecutive wins was halted by Nodirbek Yakubboev in a 27-move draw.

Vokhidov had entered the round as the sole leader after victories over Madaminov, Nikolas Theodorou and Ian Nepomniachtchi. Against Yakubboev, however, the two Uzbek teammates split the point relatively quickly, allowing Madaminov to join Vokhidov at the top of the standings. Madaminov remains drawless in the event, having collected four wins and two losses so far in the single round-robin.

The other drawn game was the longest struggle of the day. Hans Niemann and Nodirbek Abdusattorov played 61 moves out of a Sicilian Defence, with Abdusattorov, playing black, getting the upper hand in the middlegame. He later reached a rook and knight endgame with an extra pawn, but accurate defence by Niemann kept the balance.

The remaining decisive results were scored by Shakhriyar Mamedyarov and Ian Nepomniachtchi. Mamedyarov defeated Nikolas Theodorou with black, while Nepomniachtchi beat Arjun Erigaisi with white in one of the day's most anticipated pairings.

Madaminov and Vokhidov now share first place on 4/6. Abdusattorov, also representing Uzbekistan, stands alone in third place on 3½/6, while a five-player group is a further half point behind.

Vidit remains in last place on 1½/6 after another difficult result, having so far lost 14.1 rating points and fallen below the 2700 mark on the live ratings list.

Nepomniachtchi 1-0 Erigaisi

Ian Nepomniachtchi, Arjun Erigaisi

Ian Nepomniachtchi defeated Arjun Erigaisi in the battle of super-GMs | Photo: Official website

Theodorou 0-1 Mamedyarov

Nikolas Theodorou, Shakhriyar Mamedyarov

Nikolas Theodorou played a brave opening line against the ever-fighting Shakhriyar Mamedyarov | Photo: Official website

Round 6 results

Standings after round 6

All games

Links


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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