India’s EWC 2026 Chess Run Ends in Quarterfinals, But the Payday Is Real

Arjun Erigaisi and Nihal Sarin bow out at the quarterfinal stage — but not before pocketing a serious payout each.

India’s Chess campaign at the Esports World Cup 2026 in Paris has wrapped up, with both Gen.G’s Arjun Erigaisi and S8UL’s Nihal Sarin finishing in the top 8. Arjun lost a tense Armageddon tiebreaker to Hikaru Nakamura, while Nihal fell 2.5-0.5 to defending champion Magnus Carlsen. Here’s the full breakdown.

EWC 2026 Quarterfinal Results at a Glance

Arjun’s clash with Hikaru was a rematch of last year’s third-place decider. All four regulation games ended in draws, pushing it to Armageddon, where Hikaru’s White pieces delivered a checkmate finish. Nihal’s rematch against Magnus followed a similar script to last year — Magnus took the first two games before a draw sealed the set.

Prize Money Breakdown

Both Arjun and Nihal earned $75,000 (~INR 71.5 lakh) each for their top 8 finishes — the biggest Indian Chess contingent EWC has seen yet. Pranesh M took home $55,000 (~INR 52.5 lakh) after a Lower Bracket exit, while Aravindh Chithambaram earned $23,000 (~INR 21.9 lakh) following elimination in the Play-Ins, all from a $1.5 million (~INR 14.3 crore) total prize pool.

What’s Next

Hikaru now faces Lazavik in the semifinals, while Magnus takes on Firouzja in a rematch of last year’s final. The grand final follows a best-of-three-sets format. For more esports and gaming coverage, head to TechnoSports Esports.

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