Nodirbek Abdusattorov wins Tata Steel Masters 2026, Andy Woodward wins the Challengers

by Devansh Singh - 02/02/2026

After the long wait of 4 years, Nodirbek Abdusattorov finally won the 88th edition of Tata Steel Masters, or famously referred to as 'Wimbledon of chess.' Nodirbek had a half-point lead going into the last round, and he maintained that lead after winning his last round game against Arjun Erigaisi. In the last three editions of the Tata Steel Masters, Abdusattorov came really close to winning the event, but this time he managed to win it in style by half a point lead over his fellow countryman Javokhir Sindarov, scoring 9/13. In the Challengers section, Andy Woodward clinched the title with a half-point lead over Vasyl Ivanchuk, and we will be seeing him taking part in the Masters Section next year, as he qualified for it after winning the Challengers title. Photo: Lennart Ootes/Tata Steel Chess

Andy Woodward earns an invitation to play the Masters next year

Players witnessed a close fight in both the Masters and Challengers sections till the last round. In the Masters, going into the final round, five players were fighting for the Masters title: Nodirbek Abdusattorov was leading with half a point, Javokhir Sindarov, Hans Niemann, Vincent Keymer, and Jorden van Foreest. All four players were in a race, but Nodirbek Abdusattorov won his final game and became the undisputed Champion of the event.

While in the Challengers, Vasyl Ivanchuk and Aydin Suleymanli both remained in the race for the Challengers title until the last round. Andy Woodward won his last round against Erwin L'Ami and scored 10/13. The only player who could have caught him after his win was Aydin Suleymanli, who lost his last round game against Velimir Ivic. The Legend Vasly Ivanchuk played some tremendous chess to secure second place in the event with just a half- point margin as he scored 9.5/13 rounds.

Andy Woodward bounced back in style

After losing his game in the first round of the event against Bibisara Assaubayeva. Andy lost just one more game in the event against Vasyl Ivanchuk and played two draws to score 10/13. The last round victory helped him in securing the first place as well as a spot in the Tata Steel Masters 2027. Andy also increased his rating by 23,3 points. | Photo: Lennart Ootes/Tata Steel Chess

Andy Woodward vs Erwin L'Ami (1-0)

With the white pieces, Andy capatalized the advantage of having his active rooks against L'Ami's weak king, and eventually Andy managed to outplay his opponent to clinch the title| Photo: Lennart Ootes/Tata Steel Chess

Interview with Andy Woodward after winning the Tata Steel Challengers 2026 | Video: Tata Steel Chess Tournament

Nodirbek Abdusattorov showed his class

Nodirbek Abdusattorov showed his class once again as he managed to win his last round game against Arjun Erigaisi with the black pieces. He was always the one to watch, but 2026 was when he finally closed the deal. By turning consistent high-level play into an overall win, he joined the elite ranks of the tournament’s champions. Abdusattorov increased his Rating by 19.5 Points and reached World No. 5 in the rating list.| Photo: Lennart Ootes/Tata Steel Chess

Arjun Erigaisi vs Nodirbek Abdusattorov (0-1)

Playing the Evans Gambit in the final round backfired for Arjun. At this position, Arjun played 33.Ba3 instead of the best move in the position Bb2, and Nodirbek immediately got a big advantage by playing 33.Rd1+

Eventually, Abdusattorov managed to outplay Arjun in an Opposite Coloured bishop endgame.| Photo: Lennart Ootes/Tata Steel Chess

Arjun Erigaisi vs Nodirbek Abdusattorov | Video: ChessBase India

Interview with Nodirbek Abdusattorov after winning the Tata Steel Masters 2026 | Video: Tata Steel Chess Tournament

The Top 3 finishers of Tata Steel Masters 2026: Left to Right- Javokhir Sindarov (second place), Nodirbek Abdusattorov (Champion), and Jorden van Foreest (Third) | Photo: Prajwal Bhat

Tournament director Jeroen van den Berg praised the winner’s performance:

“What a great achievement by Nodirbek Abdusattorov. He played at a very high and stable level throughout the tournament. In recent years he was always very close, and now he has rightfully won the title. I congratulate him warmly and of course invite him to return next year to defend his crown in Wijk aan Zee.”

Abdusattorov with Champion's Trophy | Photo: Prajwal Bhat

Andy Woodward receiving the trophy | Photo: Prajwal Bhat

Guess the player behind the phone?? | Photo: Prajwal Bhat

Sindarov played some fantastic chess at Tata Steel Masters to finish in the second spot with 8.5/13. World Cup winner Sindarov is showing his class in the recent events, and the way he is performing, he is now one of the favourites to win the Candidates. He also increased his rating by 19.4 Points to reach World no.11| Photo: Lennart Ootes/Tata Steel Chess

Nguyen, Thai Dai Van vs Javokhir Sindarov (0-1)

Interview with Javokhir Sindarov | Video: Tata Steel Chess Tournament

IM Christian Gloeckler won Qualifiers with 8.5/9

Christian Gloeckler of Germany scored 8.5/9 to win the Qualifiers with a rating performance of 2850. He became the first player to qualify for the Challengers next year.| Photo: Lennart Ootes/Tata Steel Chess

Interview with IM Gloeckler, Christian, after winning the Tata Steel Qualifiers 2026 | Video: Tata Steel Chess Tournament

Not the best event for Indian Players:

This year, 4 Indian Players took part in the Masters section: Gukesh D, R. Pragganandhaa, Arjun Erigaisi, and Aravindh Chithambaram. All four players had a terrible tournament in Wijk Aan Zee. Arjun lost almost 30 Rating points, and he slipped out ofthe World Top 10. All other Indian players also lost the rating points, and they would like to forget the bad memories from this event and learn from their mistakes.

Who said chess is not a Spectators Sport??| Photo: Lennart Ootes/Tata Steel Chess

Vasyl Ivanchuk finished in second place with 9.5/13, and he was almost on the verge of winning the Challengers| Photo: Lennart Ootes/Tata Steel Chess

Watch the closing ceremony

Closing Ceremony of the Tata Steel Chess 2026 | Video: Chessbase India

Replay Round 13 Masters game

Replay Round 13 Challengers game

Watch Live stream

Replay Round 13 live commentary by IM Sagar Shah, Amruta Mokal and IM Soumya Swaminathan | Video: ChessBase India

Masters round 13 results

	Bo.	No.	Rtg			White	Result		Black		Rtg	No.
1	7	2775		GM	Erigaisi, Arjun	0 - 1	GM	Abdusattorov, Nodirbek		2751	14
2	8	2758		GM	Praggnanandhaa, R	½ - ½	GM	Van Foreest, Jorden		2703	6
3	9	2656		GM	Nguyen, Thai Dai Van	0 - 1	GM	Sindarov, Javokhir		2726	5
4	10	2754		GM	Gukesh, D	½ - ½	GM	Keymer, Vincent		2776	4
5	11	2760		GM	Giri, Anish	½ - ½	GM	Niemann, Hans Moke		2725	3
6	12	2705		GM	Fedoseev, Vladimir	1 - 0	GM	Aravindh, Chithambaram Vr.		2700	2
7	13	2679		GM	Bluebaum, Matthias	½ - ½	GM	Erdogmus, Yagiz Kaan		2658	1

Final standings of the Masters Section | Photo: Tata Steel Chess Tournament

Challengers round 13 results

	Bo.	No.	Rtg			White	Result		Black		Rtg	No.
1	7	2431		IM	Lu, Miaoyi	0 - 1	IM	Yip, Carissa		2466	14
2	8	2576		GM	Warmerdam, Max	½ - ½	IM	Roebers, Eline		2398	6
3	9	2406		FM	Panesar, Vedant	0 - 1	GM	Assaubayeva, Bibisara		2497	5
4	10	2608		GM	Woodward, Andy	1 - 0	GM	L'ami, Erwin		2634	4
5	11	2628		GM	Suleymanli, Aydin	0 - 1	GM	Ivic, Velimir		2638	3
6	12	2516		IM	Oro, Faustino	½ - ½	GM	Maurizzi, Marcandria		2611	2
7	13	2604		GM	Yuffa, Daniil	0 - 1	GM	Ivanchuk, Vasyl		2605	1