At the Superbet Classic, where he will be the top-seeded player, world champion D. Gukesh will have the chance to surpass the 2800 rating for the first time in his career.

The competition, which begins on Wednesday, is the Grand Chess Tour’s first classical chess event of the year. With all nine Tour players competing in the inaugural event together, Gukesh, who is rated third in the world in terms of ratings, will have his work cut out for him.

Deac Bogdan-Daniel, a member of the host nation, has been given the wild card. A little more than three months after placing second in the Tata Steel Masters in January, Gukesh will be seen competing in a Classical tournament.

The 18-year-old is regarded as a master of classical chess, and this style has been the basis of all of his significant achievements. A strong showing might help Gukesh reach the 2800 rating milestone, which is now at 2787 points. The other Indian in the race, in addition to the world champion, is R Praggnanandhaa, who is prepared to challenge everyone.

Pragg, the Tata Steel Masters champion, had a respectable showing in the last superbet quick and blitz in Warsaw, Poland, where he placed third. In addition to the two Indians, the other leading candidates for the title are Firouzja Alireza of France, Nodirbek Abdusattorov of Uzbekistan, and Fabiano Caruana of the United States.

Participants

Firouzja Alireza, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave (Fra); Nodirbek Abdusattorov (Uzb); Duda Jan Kryzsztof (Pol); Deac Bogdan Daniel (Rou); D Gukesh, R Praggnanadhaa (Ind); Fabiano Caruana, Levon Aronian, Wesley So (USA); and Nodirbek Abdusattorov (Uzb).