Chess Olympiad 2026 Round 2: India’s Open, Women’s Teams, Pairings and Live Stream

Divya, after sitting out the first round, will be in action in the second round. | Photo Credit: PTI

India will continue its title defence at the 2026 Chess Olympiad in Samarkand with the second round of the Open and Women’s sections on Thursday.

India began its campaign with victories in both sections on Wednesday.

In the Open section, India defeated Thailand 3-1. D Gukesh, Nihal Sarin and Vidit Gujrathi registered wins, while Arjun Erigaisi suffered a surprise defeat to Thailand’s IM Prin Laohawirapap. R Praggnanandhaa was rested for the opening round.

The Women’s team had a cleaner start, completing a 4-0 sweep of the Dominican Republic through wins from Koneru Humpy, R Vaishali, Vantika Agrawal and Savitha Shri B. Divya Deshmukh was rested.

In the second round, the men’s team will go up against Indonesia, while the women’s team will take on Finland.

R.Praggnanandhaa will be seen in action in place of Arjun Erigiasi, who lost in the first round against a lower-ranked opponent, Thailand’s Prin Laohawirapap. In the women’s event, Divya Deshmukh will replace Koneru Humpy.

India Open team Round 2 pairing

Open section

R. Praggnanandhaa (black) vs Megaranto Susanto

Nihal Sarin (white) vs Hafiz Arif Abdul

D. Gukesh (black) vs Cahaya Satria Duta

Vidit Gujrathi (white) vs Budhidharma Nayaka

Women’s section

R. Vaishali (black) vs Keinanen Anastasia

Divya Deshmukh (white) vs Paasikangas Johanna

Vantika Agarwal (black) vs Sippola Sara-Olivia

B. Savitha Shri (white) vs Lehtinen Helja

LIVE STREAMING INFO

Where to watch the live stream of the Chess Olympiad 2026?

The live streaming of the Chess Olympiad 2026 will be available on the FIDE YouTube channel.