In the first round of the Prague Masters, Indian Grandmaster R Praggnanandhaa, fresh off his victory at the Tata Steel Masters, will face local sensation David Navara after receiving a fortunate draw.

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 since he will play five games as the white player in the 10-player, nine-round competition.

Aravindh Chithambaram, the only 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 be on the podium and has the ability to turn things around, will play the Indian in the last round.

Aravindh’s ability to calculate a deep and unquenchable passion for victory makes him a potential dark horse in the event.

Aravindh has five games in the competition as a white player, much as Praggnanandhaa, but he needs to settle in quickly. Wei Yi can be extremely difficult to beat and has been keeping himself in the top 10 in the global rankings. His ability to play dynamic chess at the top level when the situation calls for it is what makes him a formidable opponent.