David Navara face R Praggnanandhaa in opening match: Indian Grandmaster R Praggnanandhaa, fresh off his victory at the Tata Steel Masters, got a good draw and will face local sensation David Navara in the Prague Masters’ opening round. Navara has long been regarded as one of the best European players, so Praggnanandhaa, who starts as the second seed, will have his work cut out for him with the white pieces. Praggnanandhaa is one of the strongest contenders to win the title because he will play five games as the white player in the 10-player, nine-round tournament.
David Navara face R Praggnanandhaa in opening match
Some of the best chess players in the world compete in the prestigious Prague Masters, a nine-round, 10-player in the competition, as the second seed and one of the tournament favorites, Praggnanandhaa came into the competition and his recent performances and the fact that he had five games with White pieces during this event strengthened his standing as a leading contender also he had a chance to get off to a fast start in the first round against Navara, but it was also difficult because of Navara’s skill and experience.
David Navara, who plays for the Czech Republic, is known for his perseverance in competitive play and his profound knowledge of chess positions while Praggnanandhaa would have to be at the top of his game from the beginning if he were to face him in Round one.
In their first game, Praggnanandhaa faced Navara with White pieces and chose a Queen’s Gambit Declined setup to start the game, specifically against the Ragozin variation after that white had a small early advantage because of move order, but he had few chances to generate winning opportunities in the middlegame.
Navara sacrificed a pawn at an essential moment to level the playing field displaying superb planning and strategic acumen and also h e was able to move into an endgame where both players had rooks and pawns left on the board thanks to this well timed pawn sacrifice, even though Praggnanandhaa had an extra pawn, the ensuing endgame was theoretically drawn.
In the end, Praggnanandhaa was unable to overcome Navara’s strong defense despite his best efforts to push for victory until all options had been exhausted. After much maneuvering in what was always anticipated to be an equal endgame, the game ended in a draw.
Aravindh Chithambaram, the other Indian in the race, will begin his campaign against Nguyen Thai Dai Van, a local player who recently won the Tata Steel tournament’s challengers division and earned a spot in the 2026 premium event.
In the other opening round matches, American Sam Shankland will start with the slightly favored color against 16-year-old Turkish talent Gurel Ediz, Dutch Anish Giri will also start as black against Le Quang Leim of Vietnam, and top seed Wei Yi of China will start with black pieces against German Vincent Keymer.
As the tournament goes on, Praggnanandhaa will face white games against Quang Leim, Aravindh, Wei Yi, and Dai Van. Giri, who is also predicted to place on the podium and has the ability to turn things around, will play the Indian in the final round.
Aravindh’s ability to calculate a deep and insatiable hunger for success makes him a potential dark horse in the tournament. Aravindh has five games in the tournament as a white player, just like Praggnanandhaa, but he needs to settle in quickly.
Wei Yi can be very difficult to beat and has been keeping himself in the top 10 of the world rankings. His ability to play dynamic chess at the highest level when the situation calls for it is what makes him a formidable opponent.
The only Indian competitor in the challengers’ division, Divya Deshmukh, will take on Spanish competitor Ivan Salgado Lopez. Divya would like to regain some of the ground that was lost to the forgettable Tata Steel challengers.
Vincent Keymer (Germany) versus Wei Yi (Chen); Aravindh Chithambaram (India) versus Nguyen Thai Dai Van (Cze); Sam Shankland (USA) versus Gurel Ediz (Tur); R Praggnanandhaa (India) versus David Navara (Cze); Le Quang Leim (Vie) versus Anish Giri (Ned) are the pairings for the first round.