No Indian male chess player in FIDE’s Top 10 ratings list after 26 months, Gukesh slips to 18th

For the first time in over two years, Indian male chess players have slipped out of the top 10 in FIDE’s world rankings.

In the May list released by FIDE, Arjun Erigaisi is the highest-ranked Indian in the 11th position. The previous time an Indian featured outside the top-10 was in February 2024, when Viswanathan Anand was 12th in the list.

India’s world classical chess champion D Gukesh is ranked 18th in the world on 2732 Elo points. Norway's Magnus Carlsen remains World No 1, a position he has held since 2011.

Erigaisi had been No 10 in April this year, while Gukesh had held the 10th position in March. There were three Indians in the top 10 as recently as February this year, with R Praggnanandhaa joining Erigaisi and Gukesh in the list.

In May 2025, Gukesh was World No 3, while Erigaisi was No 4, and Praggnanandhaa had been well inside the top 10, in the 7th position.

However, a series of poor results in recent months, and the improved showing by a pair of Uzbek stars, has pushed the Indians out of the top 10.

Uzbekistan's Nodirbek Abdusattorov and Javokhir Sindarov have sneaked into the top five. Sindarov, who recently won the Candidates Tournament, will challenge reigning classical world champion Gukesh in the title match later this year.

Koneru Humpy has maintained her position in the top 10 in the women's ratings for May, 2026. Humpy is ranked 6th, while Divya Deshmukh and recently-crowned Candidates champion Vaishali R are 12th and 13th respectively.