No man ever steps in the same river twice
Sagar Shah talks about recreating success as a chess player!
From the CEO
There is one phenomenon that chess players go through quite often. Tell me if this has happened with you as well. You go to a tournament and you perform well. And everything works like a clockwork. Somehow you were in this amazing form and you just couldn’t put a step wrong. This becomes such a powerful memory, that we draw energy and inspiration from it all the time!
For me such a tournament happened at the Dresden Open in 2014. I was almost invincible there. I started with 5 wins, two of them against GMs and then 4 draws – making my first GM norm, finishing 1st ahead of 12 other GMs, winning 2000 Euros. Amruta was also thoroughly impressed with what I had achieved!
It was the most beautiful experience of my life. For the next events that I played I would often think to myself, what was it that I did in Dresden, I must try it here as well. And I was unsuccessful. This is because things keep changing all the time! Nothing is constant. If there is one thing I did well in Dresden, it was that I was in the moment. I was in the present there! And maybe this is what I should be drawing my energy from – not the t-shirts I wore, the pen I wrote with, the food I ate, or the transport I took to the game! (Believe me, I have tried to recreate all of this at some point or the other!).
“No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it is not the same river and he is not the same man”. This quote by Heraclitus is an important reminder that things which look dormant on the surface are actually changing from within.
Take for example Javokhir Sindarov – he looked absolutely unbeatable until 15th of April 2026 and he was! He had an unbeaten streak of 53 classical games – with victories at the World Cup and FIDE Candidates! But now things have changed for him. He is no longer just a strong, world class player. He is now a World Championship Challenger. This means that his priority is now to win the match. His best novelties and opening ideas, he has to preserve. Players will look at him differently. He is now the man to beat! And so, what worked for Sindarov very well until 15th of April is not going to work anymore. Just yesterday he slumped to his first loss against Praggnanandhaa.
Photo: Lennart Ootes/Grand Chess Tour
We see this happening to the best in the business – it has happened with Ding Liren, it has happened with D. Gukesh. It is important to recognize that things are changing all the time inside you. And so, you have to readjust yourself. Every now and then connect with what is happening inside of you. How do you do this? Well, a good idea is to close your eyes and go to a quiet place and just observe your thoughts, emotions and feelings. You don’t need to do this every day like a mechanical thing. I know many people who decide to take meditation as something like a routine. This is much more different. This is to look within yourself and to understand that you are changing all the time. To acknowledge the changing you. And when you are changing all the time, there is absolutely no need to cling to how you were in the past! Dresden worked in Dresden, it won’t work again! That’s how new Dresdens are created! - Sagar Shah
PRODUCT OF THE WEEK
LEARN FROM THE CLASSICS WITH SAGAR SHAH!
Wise and successful players of the game have always told us to study the classics – games by the great masters of the past. But in this age of cutting-edge opening theory, preparation and engines, is studying the classics really that helpful? On this ChessBase video course, Sagar Shah does not merely preach. First, he shows you classical games of great legends such as Petrosian, Botvinnik, Fischer, Korchnoi and Kasparov, looking at typical patterns and ideas from the middlegame!
Today, we have a very special offer on Sagar Shah’s ChessBase Video course Learn from the Classics. Use the Coupon code “SSCLASSIC10” to get a 10% discount - the offer is valid till 24th May!
LATEST NEWS OF THE WEEK
Sweet Revenge: Praggnanandhaa Topples World Title Challenger Sindarov in Bucharest
R Praggnanandhaa took a sweet revenge against World Championship Challenger Javokhir Sindarov in the 2nd round of Super Chess Classic 2026. In the FIDE Candidates, Sindarov defeated Praggnanandhaa in both games they played. Despite that result, this was a great win for Pragg. In another decisive result, Vincent Keymer defeated Bogdan Daniel Deac, and Maxime Vachier-Lagrave won against Alireza Firouzja. After 1st peaceful day, now the games are getting more interesting and exciting for viewers as well as players. The 3rd round will start on 16th May at 4 PM Local Time/ 6:30 PM IST. Photo: Lennart Ootes
Frederik Svane wins Sardinia World Chess Festival 2026, Faustino Oro creates History
Frederik Svane scored an unbeaten 7.5/9 points to win the 3rd Edition of Sardinia World Chess Festival 2026. In the last round, Svane scored an important victory over Murali Karthikeyan, who was co-leading with him after 8 rounds. Haik M Martirosyan, Ian Nepomniachtchi, and Mamikon Gharibyan scored an unbeaten 7/9 points to finish in 2nd, 3rd, and 4th positions, respectively, according to tiebreak scores. Faustino Oro creates history at the Sardinia Chess Festival as he scored his final GM norm after facing Nepomniachtchi in the last round. He became the second-youngest Grandmaster in Chess history at the age of just 12 years, 6 months, and 26 days. Check out how things ended up in Sardinia. Photos: FT Niklesh Jain
Jose Eduardo Martinez Alcantara wins Bucharest Grand Prix 2026
Jose Eduardo Martinez Alcantara drew his tiebreak armageddon game with black pieces against Aydin Suleymanli to win the Bucharest Grand Prix 2026. After 10 rounds of play, 5 players were in joint 1st place with 8.5/10: Jose Martinez, Aydin Suleymanli, Cristobal Henriquez Villagra, Dimitrov Radoslav, and Kiril Georgiev. The top 2 players, Jose Martinez and Suleymanli, played a tiebreak armageddon game to decide the winner. Almost 600 players from 27 countries took part in this Grand event organised at the Palace of Parliament in Bucharest. Photos: Abhyudaya Ram
‘Chess Speaking for Itself’ as Hans Niemann wins Grand Chess Tour Super Rapid and Blitz 2026
Hans Niemann played some tremendous chess to win the Grand Chess Tour Super Rapid and Blitz 2026. Hans got an early lead in the Rapid section that helped him maintain it in the blitz. After the first day of Blitz, Hans was in 1st place. On the second day, he won the most important last round clash against Radoslaw Wojtaszek to clinch the title. Fabiano Caruana came very close to first place, but in the end, he was not able to keep up with Hans' half-point lead. Check out how Hans, who was tired and sick, managed to win in this strong field. Photo: Lennart Ootes
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