Yesterday in Samarkand was carnage — and our Boy Tenny was right in the splash zone.
He opened brightly, as usual, then decided to spice things up with a premature 20.h4 — the chess equivalent of jumping into a pool without checking if there’s water🤪
The follow‑up, 21.hxg5, was pure self‑sabotage: the eval bar nosedived to –3.6 faster than a crypto crash. From there, GM Jakhongir Vakhidov didn’t just press — he steamrolled.
The final position? A queen‑and‑bishop battery aimed at a stoppable mate in one, eval –92, resignation on move 25. Brutal. Efficient. Surgical🥋🥋
But misery loves company, and Tenny’s got elite company. The world champion himself is on a three‑game losing streak and today finds himself parked dangerously close to our boy. G‑boy’s opponent? The ever‑regal Divya😍 on the now-legendary Board 57.
Divya doesn’t wander — she reigns. Admirers and suitors come to her throne; she stays put, dispensing checkmates and heartbreak in equal measure😔. Will Gukesh’s streak stretch to four? Can he keep his eyes on the board and not the queen across from him? Many have failed.
Even Tenny’s been caught gawking, and Nigerian chess fans are now urging him to make his strongest move — if he can’t win games, maybe he can win her heart.
The Leading Masters are egging him on from Nigeria: Zlatics the Humanoid and Manny the Man from Spain (a lifelong Divya romantic😆) have been packaging pick‑up lines for Tenny.
Manny’s even got a special flow ready for the day he meets her. The problem? Some say Tenny’s not strong enough on the board to woo a chess queen, as many prefer partners who can outplay them. I wish him luck… but I’m not holding my breath😋
Meanwhile, Tenny’s got Black today against GM Mahammad Muradli (2590), a 22‑year‑old Azerbaijani hitman with a CV that reads like a hit list:
- Two‑time Azerbaijani Champion (2019, 2022)
- World U12 Champion (2015) and World U20 Blitz Champion (2023)
- Gold‑medal team member at the 2019 World Youth Chess Olympiad
- Winner of the 2022 Biel Master Tournament with a 2726 performance
- Has scalped elite names — including a classical win over Hikaru Nakamura, who is busy chasing Mickey Mouse events as I type! Carlsen says he is shameless😆
Muradli’s style? Sharp, aggressive, and allergic to quiet draws. Tenny will need more than charm to survive this one, seeing how attacking he has been throughout the tournament.
And then there’s Gukesh’s streak. My digging shows no world champion before him has ever lost three classical games in a row in a single open or invitational. The worst? Just two:
- Magnus Carlsen – Tata Steel 2023 (Rounds 4–5)
- Viswanathan Anand – Linares 2005 (Rounds 2–3)
- Garry Kasparov – Linares 1993 (Rounds 3–4)
- Anatoly Karpov – Dortmund 1983 (Rounds 6–7)
Those were the limits… until now. Gukesh’s three‑peat at the 2025 Grand Swiss is unprecedented. History says the greats can rebound — but will Samarkand be his crucible, or the tournament that breaks him?
The clocks are ticking. The pieces are set. And somewhere in the hall, Board 57 waits like a stage for whatever drama comes next.
