5 min learnParisUp to date: Aug 12, 2026 11:37 PM IST
Nihal Sarin carries a sure repute. He’s the one with nerves of metal, a relaxed that by no means cracks, and a composure that refuses to buckle below strain. He thrives in fast-paced chess, is among the many most skilled gamers within the computer-setup enviornment, and arrived in Paris for the Esports World Cup 2026 on the again of a demolition job over Alireza Firouzja to win the Bullet Chess Championship. He was the apparent Indian to observe.
Then he sat down on the buzzing enviornment inside Expo Porte de Versailles.
What adopted was a letdown. In his very first spherical, the quarterfinals of Group Stage A, the draw handed him a well-recognized face and a well-recognized problem in opposition to good pal and compatriot Arjun Erigaisi. And within the battle of the 2 Indians, Arjun triumphed over Nihal in brutal vogue.
Arjun beat Nihal at his personal sport, together with his personal type. An ice-cool Arjun, nerves of metal on full show, handed Nihal back-to-back losses with each colors and despatched him tumbling into the loser’s bracket.
However his pleasure of getting the higher of his shut pal was short-lived as Arjun ended up shedding his semifinal to a really powerful and decided Alireza Firouzja in a repeat of final yr’s conflict on the identical stage.
Arjun Erigaisi takes on Nihal Sarin within the Esports World Cup. (Categorical Picture)
One other Indian within the fray, Pranesh M suffered a quarterfinal defeat by the hands of Uzbekistan’s Nodirbek Abdusattorov. With that outcome, all three Indians – Arjun, Nihal, and Pranesh – now discover themselves within the decrease bracket, combating to remain alive within the match.
In a difficult 10+0 format with no increment, Arjun struck first with white items in opposition to his compatriot. Within the Caro-Kann, he had Nihal strolling a tightrope straight out of the opening, forcing him to bleed time early.
Story continues beneath this advert
Gaining momentum, Arjun stored pushing, and below the strain of the ticking clock, Nihal’s place crumbled.
With colors reversed, all Arjun wanted was a draw. However after irritating Nihal with a place that provided no edge, he capitalised on a one-move blunder to win the match 2-0.
Hope stays
Fortuitously for Nihal and his compatriots, the match’s distinctive format gives a lifeline. There is no such thing as a straight elimination. The decrease bracket provides losers a second probability, a path to redemption via a string of must-win matches.
“On this sport, I had a little bit of a gap mishap however as soon as I received management, I pushed very well and performed an excellent sport. The second sport, it was extra of a gap matter. As soon as I received place – he tried his degree greatest, he put up quite a lot of good makes an attempt – however I believe my place was a bit too good,” Arjun analysed after the dual contests.
Story continues beneath this advert
Nihal admitted he doesn’t actually like taking part in in opposition to pal, however was trustworthy in his evaluation.
“He simply performed an incredible match, that’s why I misplaced. I simply received outplayed by the opponent. I may have performed higher, I suppose. Particularly within the first sport, I imagine I additionally performed very decently, however he stored up the strain very nicely… the board, the clock, the mixed strain was an excessive amount of,” he mentioned.
Arjun believed the distinctive format on the Esports World Cup additionally labored in his favour.
Arjun Erigaisi takes on Nihal Sarin within the Esports World Cup. (Categorical Picture)
“Nihal is extraordinarily good, particularly in non-incremental codecs. He lately gained the bullet championship as nicely, however that is 10+0, so I wasn’t too frightened about it as a result of it might matter provided that we reached that stage. It was a 50-50 match, I assumed, and I simply needed myself to be on high of my sport,” he mirrored.
Story continues beneath this advert
American Grandmaster Hikaru Nakamura wasn’t stunned by the outcome both. He mentioned Arjun has one of the best opening preparation amongst all of the Indian gamers, and that’s why he practically made it to the Grand Finals within the final version.
“He performs probably the most dynamic chess, so I’m not stunned. Arjun performed very well. The outcomes aren’t there but, however Arjun is doing issues in a different way, and he’s on an excellent path in the meanwhile,” mentioned Nakamura.
Firouzja might have had some extent to show in Paris, which can have given him added motivation in opposition to Arjun.
The teenager, who moved from Iran to France in 2019, was lately dropped from the nationwide workforce that may play on the Chess Olympiad in Samarkand later this yr. The French Chess Federation took the decision after Firouzja’s repeated failures to characterize the nation at workforce occasions.
Story continues beneath this advert
(The author is in Paris on the invitation of the Esports Basis)