Magnus Carlsen, the world No 1, will be paired at least twice in the coming days with the world championship challenger, Uzbekistan’s Javokhir Sindarov, in the Tech Mahindra Global Chess League, the six-team franchise competition.
In 2024 the Global League was held in London, but this year it returns to India, taking place in Bengaluru (formerly Bangalore), India’s technology capital, from 5-13 September, finishing two days before the 400-team chess Olympiad opens in Samarkand, Uzbekistan.
Carlsen will play on the top or icon board for the defending champions, Alpine APL Pipers, while Sindarov will play for Fyers American Gambits. Other icons include Alireza Firouzja (Triveni Continental Kings), Ian Nepomniachtchi (Ganges Grandmasters), former world champion Viswanathan Anand (PBG Alaskan Knights), and Maxime Vachier-Lagrave (CheQ Mumba Masters). Supporting male players include Turkey’s fast-rising record breaker Yagiz Kaan Erdogmus, 15, while the women stars are led by the Candidates runner-up, Bibisara Assaubayeva.
Carlsen and Sindarov will play two games, one with each colour, in the preliminary all-play-all stage, with a third and possibly a fourth if both teams reach the semi-finals, third-place match, or final. The time limit will be 20 minutes for the entire game, plus a two-second per move increment from move 41.
The pair have met many times, but mostly in Freestyle Chess, where the back rank pieces are randomised. This occasion will be their most significant clash yet, including a symbolic match context where one can score more points. As a result, it may be regarded as a pale substitute for a world championship match that will likely never occur.
The GCL aims to turn chess into a major team sport where elite men and women compete alongside the best junior talents rather than in separate categories. The league has gained increased media and public attention across successive seasons. It is now testing app-based probability forecasts and other innovations in Bengaluru.
Although India is central to its story, the GCL wants to become a serious contender in global team chess, providing a platform for emerging talents to compete with established figures. Carlsen v Sindarov represents that ambition.
The European Senior Team Championships for over-50s and over-65s have their final rounds in Hersonissos, Crete, on Friday. England are positioned for at least silver medals in both categories and have already secured gold in the women’s competition.
After eight of nine rounds in the 65+, England and Slovenia both have 14 match points, with England slightly ahead on tie-breaks. Italy are third on 13. England 50+ lead with 15 match points, followed by Italy 14 and Netherlands 11.
England have dominated these events for several years, as the generation that produced the English Chess Explosion of the 1970s and 1980s has reached senior age.
The team organiser, IM Nigel Povah, has performed dedicated work. However, this year’s results provide a sobering note. The USSR team of the 1980s, which consistently won gold over England’s silver, has rarely appeared in the European Seniors, but made a cameo this year with the two top boards for Slovenia, GM Alexander Beliavsky and GM Adrian Mikhalchishin, both ex-Soviets. With their lesser-known third and fourth boards, they defeated England 65+, led by GMs John Nunn and Tony Kosten, 3-1.
The final round of the European 65+ and 50+ championships (1.15pm BST start) can be watched on lichess.
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