Uzbek grandmaster wins Candidates with round to spare
Sindarov, 20, to face India’s Gukesh for world title in fall
Javokhir Sindarov will challenge for Gukesh Dommaraju’s world chess championship this fall after clinching the Candidates tournament with a game to spare on Tuesday afternoon in Cyprus.
The 20-year-old Uzbek grandmaster closed out an emphatic victory in the 14-game double round-robin with a tame 58-move draw playing with the black pieces against Dutch star Anish Giri, moving to 9½ points and leaving the world No 9 two adrift with one round remaining.
“After he exchanged queens [20 Qxa6] ... I didn’t have any pressure,” Sindarov said afterwards. “I felt very comfortable during the game.”
