Vidit Gujrathi

Vidit Gujrathi, the most experienced of the three Indian debutants, left his stamp on the Candidates with a display of enterprise that surprised many. Though his points tally does not reflect the value he brought to the competition, his twin victories over

Nakamura will be recalled in every discussion of this premier event.

Victories over World No. 3 Nakamura and World No. 4 Alireza Firouzja gave Vidit instant recognition in the chess world. Though Vidit won the Grand Swiss — considered the toughest open tournament — to qualify for the Candidates, the conquests of Nakamura and Firouzja surely did bring never-before attention to his skill sets. When Vidit beat Nakamura in their return encounter in the second half of this double round-robin event, it was believed that the popular American’s title prospects were firmly buried. But Nakamura bounced back to stay in contention until the final-round deadlock against eventual champion Gukesh.

Vidit was sure to rue the losses to Praggnanandhaa and Gukesh, but nothing was more shattering than the defeat to Ian Nepomniachtchi.

He appeared to be on the threshold of victory but slipped and lost to the two-time defending champion, who remained the only unbeaten player in the competition. Vidit hid his face in his hands and fought back tears. What a huge miss it was!

Overall, Vidit could take back plenty of positives, the biggest being the way he ended Nakamura’s 47-game unbeaten streak in classical time format. It was a great learning experience for him, who is showing great skill in matching some of the finest in the world.