Overview
- The seventh edition begins January 7 with 10-player round-robins in both Open and Women’s sections at Kolkata’s Dhono Dhanyo Auditorium.
- Confirmed Open field: Viswanathan Anand, Nihal Sarin, Arjun Erigaisi, Wesley So, Wei Yi, R. Praggnanandhaa, Volodar Murzin, Hans Niemann, Vidit Gujrathi, Aravindh Chithambaram.
- Confirmed Women’s field: Aleksandra Goryachkina, Kateryna Lagno, Divya Deshmukh, R. Vaishali, Nana Dzagnidze, Harika Dronavalli, Carissa Yip, Stavroula Tsolakidou, Vantika Agrawal, Rakshitta Ravi.
- Round 1 pairings include Anand vs Wesley So, Wei Yi vs Nihal Sarin, Arjun Erigaisi vs Vidit Gujrathi, and Rakshitta Ravi vs defending rapid champion Aleksandra Goryachkina.
- Tournament director Dibyendu Barua says invitations are strictly rating-based, while the concurrent Tata Chess Festival limits entries after registrations fill within hours.