Abdusattorov Leapfrogs Van Foreest To Lead Before Final Round In Prague

GM Hans Niemann's first win of what he called "probably the worst tournament of my life" looked to be the highlight of the penultimate round of the 2026 Prague Chess Festival Masters until some shocking late drama. The key games looked headed for a draw, but leader GM Jorden van Foreest suddenly stumbled into a lost position against GM Aravindh Chithambaram, allowing GM Nodirbek Abdusattorov to take the sole lead by spotting a way to win a pinned piece against GM David Navara.

Round nine begins four hours earlier on Friday, March 6, starting at 5:15 a.m. ET / 11:15 CET / 3:45 p.m. IST.

Masters: Late Drama Transforms Standings

Just when it looked like a day of a single win, we had late twists in the two games that mattered most for the standings at the top.

Round 8 Results: Masters

Suddenly Abdusattorov has overtaken Van Foreest and leads by half a point, with Navara the only other player still in with a chance of winning the tournament.

Standings After Round 8: Masters

Once again in Prague there wasn't a single uneventful game. GM Parham Maghsoodloo was pushing hard after playing the Caro-Kann against GM Nodirbek Yakubboev, but his advantage slipped away when he went for breaks in the center.

GM Gukesh Dommaraju vs. GM Vincent Keymer was an enthralling battle after the German number-one went for the Marshall but found himself regretting it by move 14. He commented:

You need a file! It’s the typical position that if I had checked it for five minutes I would have made a very easy draw, but if I don’t, there are so many options it’s kind of difficult for me to figure out what the right move is, and obviously I didn’t find the right way!

14...a3!? was a bold and playable choice, but Keymer eventually fell 55 minutes behind on the clock as he tried to navigate the consequences. Gukesh gave up his queen to try and push a dangerous passed pawn, but in the end the game ended in a well-played draw by both sides.

At first it looked like the day would end with only one win.

Niemann 1-0 Anton

Niemann's first win of the event allowed him to expand on everything that had gone wrong:

There’s been so many missed chances, it’s so ridiculous! My first round against Gukesh I had a basically winning position if I just play normal moves, against Aravindh I’m winning in one move, that went from a win to a loss, against Parham I’m also just clearly winning, even against Yakubboev, I had a much better position with Black that I at least was lucky to draw, and then against Jorden I just play one normal move and I make an easy draw.

Niemann called it "abhorrent and disappointing" to fail to capitalize on 2.5 points' worth of chances, adding, "I think I played very well, but what demon possessed me in the first five games I don't know."

Things turned around against GM David Anton, who fell to a second defeat in a row. Niemann commented, "I’m really, really happy that I found the move 34.g4," which GM Rafael Leitao calls "an amazing move" in his Game of the Day analysis below.  

The remaining two games were hovering around 0.00 and it seemed we'd go into the final day with Van Foreest leading Abdusattorov and Navara by half a point. Suddenly, however, everything changed! 

Navara 0-1 Abdusattorov

After a finely played game it was Abdusattorov who was pressing in the endgame, though it felt there was no imminent danger. 53.g4?, however, lost on the spot, as the Uzbek number-one was able to cut off the defender of the pinned bishop on c2.

There was no way back, and Abdusattorov demonstrated fine technique to take the win, first place, and cross 2780 on the live rating list.

That win became even more significant when Van Foreest lost.

Van Foreest 0-1 Aravindh

Aravindh had thrown away a win in one move the day before and called his tournament "completely topsy-turvy," though he added that he was happy about his play.

He had even more to be happy about in the penultimate round, as, in a position where Aravindh confessed he'd have been happy to make a draw, Van Foreest over-pushed and suddenly found his pieces lacking coordination. They then got entangled in a net from which there was no escape.

That dramatic turnaround means that for the second time this year Abdusattorov enters the final round of a super-tournament with a half-point lead. A win against Niemann will guarantee him the title, while a draw guarantees at least a playoff. 

Van Foreest can catch or overtake Abdusattorov if the leader doesn't win, but he faces a tough pairing with Black against Maghsoodloo. Local hero Navara needs Abdusattorov to lose to have a chance of forcing a playoff for first place, though he also has the black pieces, against Aravindh. 

Round 9 Pairings: Masters

Challengers: Finek Doesn't Crack

Two games were decisive in the Challengers, with the winners, GMs Benjamin Gledura and Daniil Yuffa both giving themselves hope of winning the tournament and qualifying for the 2027 Masters.

Round 8 Results: Challengers

IM Vaclav Finek once again had to fight very hard to avoid defeat, this time against GM Surya Ganguly, but the 16-year-old survived to keep a half-point lead at the top, while Yuffa and Gledura moved up.  

Standings After Round 8: Challengers

Yuffa moved to within half a point of Finek with a powerful win over GM Jonas Bjerre, including some moves we'd all like to play! 

He told WGM Keti Tsatsalashvili afterward: "I didn’t expect to win a second consecutive game because I don’t have any faith in myself. I was on quite a bad streak recently, so winning even one consecutive game is a huge win for me!"

Yuffa could have been joined by IM Jachym Nemec, but he was thwarted by GM Divya Deshmukh in a tricky knight endgame and remained a point behind the leader.

If that knight endgame was tricky, it was nothing compared to the four-knight mayhem which saw Gledura also reach 4.5 points. The final position says it all! 

As in the Masters, the leader has a half-point lead and can guarantee victory with a win, though Finek has Black vs. GM Thomas Beerdsen. If he draws only Yuffa can still catch him, while if he loses a three-way tie for first place becomes possible. 

Round 9 Pairings: Challengers

Don't miss all the action, a full four hours earlier than usual!  

The 2026 Prague Chess Festival takes place on February 25-March 6 at the Don Giovanni Hotel in Prague, Czech Republic. The format is a round-robin with 10 players in Masters, Challengers, and Futures groups, as well as an Open tournament. The time control is 90 minutes for the first 40 moves, followed by 30 more minutes for the rest of the game, with a 30-second increment per move starting on move one.

Previous coverage:

• Round 7: Keymer Grabs Only Win As Van Foreest Maintains Lead In Prague
• Round 6: Aravindh Condemns Gukesh To 3rd Loss
• Round 5: Abdusattorov Beats Gukesh Again, Van Foreest Hits World No. 11
• Round 4: Keymer Grabs 1st Win As Van Foreest Overtakes Gukesh On Live Rating List
• Round 3: Van Foreest Knocks Gukesh Out Of Top 10
• Round 2: Aravindh, Anton Strike Back In Round 2 Of Prague Masters
• Round 1: Abdusattorov Hits World No. 4, Gukesh Evades Niemann As Prague Masters Begins
• Keymer, Gukesh Top Field For 2026 Prague Masters