Sindorov retains lead after draw

Uzbek grandmaster Javokhir Sindarov held on to the top spot at the end of the first half of the Candidates Tournament in Cyprus.

In Round 7 of the 2026 FIDE Candidates Tournament, being held in Cyprus, the Uzbek chess player drew with Dutch grandmaster Anish Giri. The result allowed Sindarov to maintain his lead in the standings with 6 points.

Competing in the Candidates Tournament for the first time, Sindarov remains unbeaten so far. In the previous rounds, he defeated Andrey Esipenko, Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa, Fabiano Caruana, Hikaru Nakamura, and Wei Yi. Only his games against Matthias Bluebaum and Giri ended in draws.

The winner of the tournament, which runs until April 15, will earn the right to challenge reigning world champion Gukesh Dommaraju for the world title. The second half of the tournament, which has a prize fund of $500,000, will begin on April 7.