A winning position. A ticking clock. And then, a furious slam. World number 18 Hans Niemann let out a raw display of frustration after blowing a golden opportunity at the Esports World Cup (EWC) chess qualifier, losing to Anish Giri in dramatic fashion and missing out on a coveted spot in the main event.
The high-stakes final qualifier, held in Saudi Arabia, decided the last four players to join chess superstars Magnus Carlsen and Hikaru Nakamura in the inaugural EWC main event. Nihal Sarin, Javokhir Sindarov, Anish Giri, and Levon Aronian emerged victorious, booking their tickets to the next stage, which starts on July 29.
Niemann’s campaign started strong. Fresh off his runner-up finish at the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam in Las Vegas, the 22-year-old American defeated Ahmed Adly and Yu Yangyi to move within one win of qualification. But his momentum unraveled.
After a narrow tiebreak loss to Sindarov, Niemann dropped into the loser’s bracket for one last shot. There, he faced Giri, and fate. After splitting the first two games, the decider saw Niemann outplay Giri into a clearly winning endgame. But as his advantage grew on the board, the clock betrayed him. With seconds left, Niemann flagged out of time, out of chances.
What followed was raw emotion: Niemann slammed his hand on the table and stormed off, a rare but telling moment in the often composed world of elite chess.
In contrast, Russian GM Andrey Esipenko, who also lost a make-or-break match to Levon Aronian, took defeat in stride, exchanging handshakes and congratulations with his opponent.
The main draw of the Esports World Cup 2025 marks a historic moment for chess. Its debut at a global esports event, with a $1.5 million prize pool. The winner will take home $250,000, the second-largest first prize in classical chess after the World Championship itself.
Sixteen of the world’s top players will battle it out across four groups of four in a round-robin format. The top two from each group will move on to the quarterfinals, where the format switches to knockout. Expect fireworks.
But for Niemann, the EWC dream ends here, not with a checkmate, but with a clock’s cold silence.
I’m Xuan Binh, the founder of Attacking Chess, and the Deputy Head of Communications at the Vietnam Chess Federation (VCF). My chess.com and lichess rating is above 2300, in both blitz and bullet. Follow me on Twitter (X).
