Chess in the Last 24 Hours: Firouzja Wins in Chennai, Champion Gukesh Finishes Last

Imagine you are the best chess player in the world. Everyone expects you to win. But in your own home city, in front of your own fans, you finish in last place. That is the story of the last 24 hours in chess. It is a story about a fall, and a story about a comeback.

Firouzja Takes the Title

The big event was the Quantbox Chennai Grand Masters in Chennai, India. It ran from July 16 to July 22, 2026. Eight strong players fought in a round-robin, which means everyone played everyone.

The winner was Alireza Firouzja from France. He played seven games and lost none of them. He scored 4½ points out of 7. He started fast, winning his first two games, and then played it safe. In the last round he made a calm draw with the Indian star Arjun Erigaisi, and that was enough for clear first place.

"After I won the first two games I had a comfortable lead and didn't take as much risk," Firouzja said. This is his second big tournament win in a row. Not long ago he had dropped out of the world's top ten. Now he is back among the best.

A Hard Week for the Champion

The sad story of the week belongs to Gukesh Dommaraju. He is only 20 years old, and he is the reigning World Champion. Chennai is close to his home. But nothing went right for him.

Gukesh lost three games and won none. He finished last with just 2 points out of 7. He even came close to falling out of the "2700 club" — the group of players with a rating above 2700. In the final round he needed to stay safe, so he made a quick draw against Hans Niemann and saved his rating by a tiny bit. He ended on 2703.1 points.

It was a strange final game. Gukesh gave up a bishop in a surprising way. The computer called it a blunder, but Niemann chose the safe path and the game ended in a fast draw. "It's very rare you are just winning out of the opening with Black against the world champion," Niemann said later.

The Fight for Second Place

Behind Firouzja, the race for second was close. Dmitry Andreikin had drawn six games in a row. But in the last round he finally won, beating Nodirbek Abdusattorov. That win lifted him into second place on tiebreaks. Arjun Erigaisi took third.

Here is how the top of the table looked:

What It All Means

Chess is a game of ups and downs, even for champions. Gukesh rose to the very top very young. A slump like this feels shocking, but he is still only 20, and many great players have bounced back before. Do not be surprised if he returns strong very soon.

For now, the smile belongs to Firouzja. He proved that a comeback is always possible. And that is the beauty of chess: the board is set the same for everyone, and tomorrow is always a new game.