Candidates chess: Why is Pragg looking like a ‘bleak shadow’ of himself?

There are still two more rounds in FIDE Candidates chess in Cyprus, but one thing is certain – it will not be an all-Indian clash for the men’s world title at the end of this year. R. Praggnanandhaa, who raised hopes when he started with a strong win against Dutch No.1 Anish Giri, had remained winless since then and is currently seventh in the Open category – meaning he is all but out of reckoning.

It’s however, a different story with her sibling R. Vaishali, his 24-year-old elder sister who has produced a much more composed performance in her second appearance at the Candidates event. A defeat against China’s Zhu Jiner in the 12^th round on Sunday means she now shares a joint lead to stay in the running while her compatriot Divya Deshmukh finds herself  at the bottom of the women’s standings.

The performance of Pragg, for whom it’s the second Candidates appearance in a row, along with reigning world champion D. Gukesh had been an area of concern for India’s legion of chess followers. After being anointed as the youngest champion in December 2024, Gukesh’s form saw a steep drop last year as he dropped out of the top 15 in FIDE live rankings and has now withdrawn from the full 2026 Grand Chess Tour on 31 March.

Describing her own recent string of below-par showing as ‘’quite disappointing,’’ Gukesh said that his team decided he should compete with ‘less intensity’ to allow for dedicated training time to prepare for his title-defence. The Chennai youngster is likely to run into Javokhir Sindarov, who is on the verge of winning the Candidates - maintaining a two-point lead over Anish Giri with two rounds to go.

Breaking her silence over brother Pragg’s indifferent form in Cyprus, Vaishali told ChessBase India that the siblings had faced such situations while participating in events together, but there wasn’t much they could do for one another in the middle of the tournament as they were focused on their own game.

“It’s tough. But throughout the years, we’ve had such moments where (in) some important tournament, either of us tournament won’t go well, so that’s how I think it is. It goes on. I’m trying to focus on my tournament. It’s tough, but what to do,” said Vaishali.

A damning verdict on Pragg’s game came from the legendary Garry Kasparov, who said the Indian looked like a ‘bleak shadow’ of his own self in the past few years. “Pragg was on the rise and just now it’s like he’s a bleak shadow of what we saw a couple of years ago,” Kasparov said with a hint of surprise in his voice.

Grandmaster Yasser Seirawan mentioned that Pragg’s play at the Candidates had looked “stale” and it did not seem like the Indian had “come with fresh ideas.” Kasparov was, however, scathing: “Stale is a very good word. Something is missing… the kind of spice of the game. It’s still top, top quality, but definitely not enough to actually beat your peers at that level.”