Gukesh, Praggnanandhaa Compete at Sinquefield Cup in St Louis

Indian chess stars World Champion D Gukesh and R Praggnanandhaa are set to compete at the Sinquefield Cup 2025 in St. Louis, which is the fifth leg of the Grand Chess Tour. Praggnanandhaa currently leads Gukesh in the Grand Chess Tour standings and aims for a podium finish to improve his overall ranking, while Gukesh returns to classical chess after a brief hiatus. The tournament features a star-studded field including Fabiano Caruana, Alireza Firouzja, Levon Aronian, and Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, with Magnus Carlsen absent as he no longer enjoys classical chess. Both Indian players have also chosen to compete in the Grand Swiss tournament in Uzbekistan next month, underlining their ambition to win major titles. The Sinquefield Cup is a 10-player round-robin event with a prize fund of $350,000, and it serves as a key qualifier for the year-end Grand Chess Tour finals in Brazil. Consistency will be key for the Indian duo as they face seasoned opponents in this prestigious classical chess competition.