India, Nov. 7 -- Among the big three from this new, dominant generation of Indian chess players, Arjun Erigaisi was the only one to miss out on qualifying for the 2024 edition of the Candidates Tournament - the pathway to the World Championships. That was a miss that took a toll on him.

"That was very tough for me," he had said to Chessbase India. "The first few days of January (2024) were very hard on me."

But the 22-year-old from Warangal moved on. He became the highest ranked Indian player, moving to the world No.4 spot. And now at the Chess World Cup in Goa, where three spots for the 2026 Candidates are up for grabs, Erigaisi has shown his intent.

As the second seed, Erigaisi received a bye from the first round. He then went on to ...