Nodirbek Abdusattorov playing against Hans Niemann at the Quantbox Chennai Grand Master Chess Tournament on Thursday, July 16, 2026.
| Photo Credit: B. VELANKANNI RAJ
Nodirbek Abdusattorov has good memories of Chennai. He was at the forefront of Uzbekistan’s spectacular run in the chess Olympiad in nearby Mamallapuram in 2022, with his defeat of D. Gukesh on the top board ensuring the gold for his team.
Abdusattorov is back in the city for the Chennai Grand Masters tournament and is more than happy to return. The 21-year-old Uzbek, who is part of a group of rising stars from the Central Asian republic, said he was looking forward to the match against the World champion but wasn’t focussing only on it.
“This tournament is very short. In some rounds, anything can happen, because it’s a very young field,” the former World Rapid champion said in an interaction.
Abdusattorov has slipped under the radar in recent times with his compatriot Javokhir Sindarov stealing the spotlight with a triumph in last year’s World Cup in Goa before dominating the field in the Candidates to set up a World championship match against Gukesh.
He said he would help Sindarov in his preparation for the title clash. “I had joined his training camp for a week before the Candidates. For the upcoming World championship match, for sure, I will be part of his team. I will be training with him. From my perspective, he’s my friend, he’s close to me, and I will do my best to help him,” Abdusattorov said.
It is not common for chess players to have friendships, especially with rivals, but the young Uzbek superstars seem to be different.
The Abdusattorov-Sindarov friendship could be crucial as Uzbekistan aims to win the Olympiad gold to be held back home in Samarkand.
Published – July 16, 2026 10:20 pm IST
