Fabiano Caruana Wins Titled Tuesday After Dramatic Showdown With Nihal Sarin
Fabiano Caruana claimed his first Titled Tuesday victory on October 13, finishing with 9.5 points after a tense final-round draw. The American grandmaster secured the outright win in Chess.com’s weekly online chess tournament thanks to a crucial victory over Nihal Sarin in round 10—and an assist from Hikaru Nakamura, who defeated Nihal in the final game.
Nihal had led the event for much of the day and came close to earning both first place and a $5,000 perfect-score bonus. Instead, he finished third on nine points, behind Nakamura, who took second on tiebreaks. Caruana’s steady finish proved enough to put him alone at the top of a crowded field of elite chess players.
Nihal’s Perfect Start Sets the Pace
The tournament’s $5,000 perfect-score bounty added extra pressure to an already demanding 11-round event. The prize is available to any player who wins every game, and it grows by $250 each week until someone achieves the feat. Nihal emerged as the early frontrunner, opening with a remarkable run of victories.
Seventeen players began with four points from four games, including Caruana, Nihal, Nakamura, Wesley So, and several other leading grandmasters. The group narrowed quickly: only five players reached 5/5. Nihal, Sina Movahed, and So were among them, alongside grandmaster Rohith Krishna and FIDE Master Behzad Salimiyan, whose win over Alireza Firouzja was one of the early surprises.
Salimiyan’s strong start ultimately helped him finish 35th and earn the tournament’s under-16 prize. But the spotlight belonged to Nihal. In round six, he beat Salimiyan to become the only player still on a perfect score. Two purposeful bishop moves to e5 helped him take control, while the other players on 5/5 drew their games.
Nihal Extends His Lead
Nihal continued his run by defeating Movahed in round seven, reaching 7/7 and opening a one-point gap over the field. Elsewhere, Caruana joined a large group on six points after an unusual win on time against Kacper Piorun. Caruana’s opponent had the better position, but a last-second check disrupted a premove, and Piorun’s clock expired with Caruana’s own timer showing just 0.7 seconds.
That narrow escape became part of a recurring theme in Caruana’s tournament: rapid decision-making and clock management kept him in contention even when the board position was difficult. In fast online chess, a strong position is only one part of the contest. Players must also make practical choices quickly, anticipate premoves, and keep enough time to convert their chances.
Nihal won again in round eight, outplaying Maxime Vachier-Lagrave positionally and forcing resignation after 32 moves. With eight straight victories, he led by a full point. The chasing group included Caruana, Daniil Dubov, Vladislav Artemiev, and other top grandmasters.
Caruana’s Comeback Creates a Decisive Round 10
After the tournament break, Aleksei Sarana became the next player to try to stop Nihal. A knight sacrifice made their game complicated, but Nihal held firm and moved to 9/9. That left him just two rounds away from the perfect score and the additional $5,000 bounty.
Caruana, meanwhile, kept himself within reach by beating Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa in a game that also featured time pressure. Commentator Robert Hess described the result as Caruana “stealing a victory from the jaws of defeat,” although Caruana eventually gained an advantage on the board before his opponent’s clock ran out.
The results set up the tournament’s pivotal round-10 clash: Nihal had nine points, Caruana had eight, and no other player had more than 7.5. A Nihal win would have guaranteed him first place before the final round, giving him a risk-free chance to pursue the perfect-score prize. A Caruana victory, by contrast, would bring him level and throw the title race wide open.
Time proved decisive. Caruana simplified the position by exchanging several pairs of pieces and built a significant advantage on the clock. Nihal later generated genuine winning chances, but by then he had only 2.7 seconds remaining, compared with 58 seconds for Caruana. Nihal managed to play 19 more moves, but his clock eventually expired. Caruana had won the game and taken control of the standings.
Final-Round Draw Is Enough for First
None of the players on 7.5 points won in round 10, leaving a 12-way tie for third place heading into the final round. Caruana had White against Movahed, while Nihal had Black against Nakamura. Both leaders made mistakes, but neither opponent managed to turn them into a decisive advantage.
Caruana’s game settled into a draw, which was all he needed to clinch first place with 9.5 points. Hess described Caruana’s approach as “anti-Fabi chess,” noting that he was playing quickly and prioritizing the clock. The strategy worked: while the draw ended Caruana’s chances of a perfect score, it secured the tournament title.
Nihal’s final game went the other way. Nakamura defeated him, costing him the half-point he needed to catch Caruana. Nakamura finished second on nine points with the best tiebreak score, while Nihal placed third. Wesley So took fourth, followed by Artemiev, Dmitry Andreikin, Sergei Zhigalko, and Salimiyan.
Prize Winners and Tournament Highlights
Caruana earned $2,500 for first place, with Nakamura receiving $1,500 and Nihal $1,000. No player completed a perfect score, so the $5,000 bounty remained unclaimed and will continue to grow under the event’s rules. Other awards recognized performances across different categories, including top woman, top senior, top youth, top girl, and the highest-placing non-grandmaster.
IM Polina Shuvalova won the top-woman prize, GM Sergey Volkov was the top senior, and Salimiyan earned the under-16 award. IM Felix Ilinca was the leading non-GM, while CM Georgijs Germanovs took the non-IM prize. The event also included streamer awards and separate prizes for game and move of the week, with those selections to be announced later.
Caruana’s victory was a reminder that success in online chess depends on more than opening preparation or positional skill. His resilience through difficult moments, awareness of the clock, and calm handling of the final round allowed him to capitalize when Nihal’s remarkable winning streak finally ended. Titled Tuesday, Chess.com’s weekly tournament for titled players, once again delivered a high-level contest shaped by tactical ideas, time scrambles, and a title race that remained uncertain until the final moves.
