Raunak crowned champion Nagpur GM wins Scheldemond International Chess Tournament

Sports Reporter :

NAGPUR’S very own Grandmaster Raunak Sadhwani has been crowned champion at Scheldemond International Chess Tournament that was held in Vlissingen, Netherlands, from August 1 to 8.
Raunak produced a strong and consistent performance by remaining unbeaten throughout the nine-round international open tournament, finishing with an impressive 7.5 points out of 9. Raunak’s road to the title was marked by extraordinary resilience and fighting spirit. One of the biggest tests came in a gruelling 5.5-hour marathon battle, where he showed tremendous endurance and determination.
He finished level on points with England’s GM Daniel Howard Fernandez, but secured first place on the basis of the tournament’s tie-break criteria, which gives priority to their direct encounter. This win proved to be the turning point of the
tournament, putting Raunak in a commanding position and
ultimately paving the way for him to be crowned the eventual champion.

The victory is particularly significant as the tournament featured a strong international field, including several Grandmasters and International Masters. Raunak entered the event as the top seed and lived up to his billing with a composed performance across all nine rounds.
The Scheldemond International Chess Tournament is one of the established open chess events in the Netherlands, bringing together leading Grandmasters, International Masters and ambitious players from across the world. For Raunak, the Vlissingen title adds another international tournament victory to his growing list of achievements and marks another strong result on the European chess circuit. Raunak’s championship performance once again highlights the strength and consistency of Indian chess on the international stage.

After his win, an ecstatic Raunak said, “I am very happy to win the Scheldemond Chess Tournament. Winning tournaments always holds a special place and creates wonderful memories in my life. It also gives me a lot of self-belief and confidence, and motivates me to prepare even better for the next tournaments ahead. Really happy to win this event. I’m glad I could stay consistent throughout the tournament. The key moment was staying calm in critical positions and converting small advantages. Tie-breaks are always tricky, so I’m happy things went my way this time. Being top seed always brings pressure, but I tried to focus only on one game at a time. That approach helped me stay steady throughout the event. Looking forward to bring more titles to my country.”