Chess Grandmaster Nihal Sarin Storms Through LCQ to Esports World Cup 2025!

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At a time when the global chess fraternity was keeping its eyes fixated on the historic all-Indian FIDE Women's World Cup 2025 Final between Divya Deshmukh and Koneru Humpy as the match went into the rapid tie-breaks in Batumi (Georgia), Grandmaster Nihal Sarin also achieved a rare feat.

Following her win in the final, 19-year-old Deshmukh also achieved the grandmaster status, becoming only the fourth Indian woman to do so.

Nihal, meanwhile, representing S8UL Esports, secured a spot in the Esports World Cup (EWC) 2025. His impressive performance in the Chess Last Chance Qualifiers (LCQ) earned him this achievement.

Nihal was one of four players and the only Indian to qualify through the LCQ, completing the 16-player roster for the EWC group stage starting July 29 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Nihal's journey to qualification was marked by exceptional skill. In the LCQ group stage, he achieved five victories and ended with 5.5 points, securing a top-four finish in Group B. This success advanced him to the playoffs. During the knockout rounds, he made a remarkable comeback against Belarus' Denis Lazavik in the Round of 16, winning 1.5 - 0.5 despite being in a losing position.

Continuing his strong form, Nihal defeated Dutch player Anish Giri with another 1.5 - 0.5 victory in the quarterfinals. He then secured his qualification by overcoming Russia's Andrey Esipenko 2.5 - 1.5 in the winners' bracket, showcasing his world-class speed chess skills under pressure.

The EWC 2025 chess event boasts a prize pool of $1.5 million (approximately INR 12.9 crore). The competition will follow a rapid 10+0 time control format, featuring four groups of four players each. The top two from each group will advance to single-elimination playoffs, culminating in a best-of-three sets Grand Final.

Nihal's success highlights S8UL's growing influence in shaping Indian esports on the global stage. As the only Indian organisation selected for the prestigious Club Partner Program by the Esports World Cup Foundation (EWCF), S8UL represents India in titles like Apex Legends, EAFC, and now Chess.

Nihal expressed his happiness about qualifying for EWC 2025: "I'm incredibly happy to have qualified for the Esports World Cup 2025. The competition was intense, and the format really tested every aspect of my game. I'm thankful to S8UL for believing in me and backing me on this journey."

Achievements and Future Prospects

Nihal hails from Thrissur and is currently ranked eighth in India and thirty-seventh globally with a FIDE rating of 2692. He joins fifteen other top chess players at EWC, including Magnus Carlsen and Hikaru Nakamura.

This year has been impressive for Nihal as he finished as runner-up at the Asian Individual Chess Championship and secured his spot at the men's Chess World Cup set to be held in India later this year. He also won the Tashkent Open title earlier this year without losing any matches.

S8UL's Apex Legends team competed in EWC grand finals while EAFC athlete Jonas Wirth (Jonny) is set to participate from August 7 to 10. Another EAFC representative Aaron Rivera (Happy) aims to qualify through Play-Ins while Tekken 8 athletes Arja Gamoori (Sephiblack) and Nino Schwarz (Nino) will compete from August 7 to 9.