FIDE Ranking: R Praggnanandhaa only Indian chess player in world top 10; where is gukesh

R Praggnanandhaa and D Gukesh NEW DELHI: FIDE, the world chess body, has released its world rankings for November 2026, with R Praggnanandhaa remaining the only Indian in the Open Top 10 at world 7. Grandmaster Nihal Sarin broke into the world top 20 for the first time, reaching a career-best world ranking of 19 in the latest FIDE rankings.His impressive performance at the 41st European Cup of Chess Clubs in Budva, Montenegro played a big role in his rise.Nihal scored 5 points from six games, won the individual gold medal on board two and added 11 rating points to achieve a classical rating of 2720.

India’s presence in the world rankings

India continues to have a strong presence in international chess, with 13 players appearing in the Open Top 100. R Praggnanandhaa leads the Indian contingent at world No. 7 with a rating of 2763, followed by Arjun Erigaisi at No. 12 and Viswanathan Anand at No. 14.Nihal’s rise puts him at 19th place while reigning world champion D Gukesh is at 26th with 2710 points.Other notable movers include Pentala Harikrishna and Karthikeyan Murali, who gained 11 rating points to climb to world number 57 and 58 respectively. Conversely, Leon Luke Mendonca lost 12 points and dropped out of the world 100.In the women’s rankings, India has 11 players in the Top 100. Koneru Humpy remains the country’s highest-ranked woman in the world rankings with 2520 points, followed by Divya Deshmukh at 12th and R Vaishali at 24th.Harika Dronavalli is ranked 26th. The biggest setback came for Deekshith Modipalli, who lost 87 rating points in three tournaments and fell from 29th in the world to 87th.

India remains second among chess countries

At the federation level, India continues to hold the second position in all three categories: Open, Women’s and Mixed.In the Open rankings, the USA leads with an average rating of 2719, while India follows with 2706. China leads the women’s and mixed categories, with India second in both.The latest rankings underscore India’s growing depth and continued strength in world chess.