Nodirbek Abdusattorov commented on the rook blunder in his game with World Champion Gukesh Dommaraju in Round 6 of Tata Steel Chess 2026. Abdusattorov noted that Gukesh had made a similar blunder against him in a game at the 2022 Chess Olympiad.

Nodirbek Abdusattorov

Nodirbek Abdusattorov

Uzbek GM

“My game against Gukesh in round six… It was a very unexpected end. He blundered a rook! Such a one-move blunder happens in one game out of a thousand. It was a truly shocking moment.

Before he made his blunder, I noticed he was nervous and running out of time. It felt like a deja vu from our game at the 2022 Chess Olympiad, where he made a similar one-move blunder at the end and lost the game.

It happens very rarely and it’s a very hard feeling for a player…”

The Tata Steel Chess Masters 2026 takes place in Wijk aan Zee, Netherlands from January 17 to February 1. Gukesh Dommaraju has participated in Tata Steel Chess three times, finishing in second place and missing the championship in tiebreaks in both 2024 and 2025.

Credit: Frans Peeters/Tata Steel Chess