It’s very much the pan-Asian open it’s built its reputation on.
All opened with wins:
The 21st Malaysian Chess Festival is finally, officially, ON. And as always, Event 1 — the good old SMS Deen Merdeka Open Rapid Team Chess Championship — kicked things off at KL Gateway Mall with the kind of numbers that make organizers lose sleep and arbiters lose their voices: 66 teams, 264 players, 9 rounds. Four rounds down on Day 1, five more to go on Day 2. Let's potong tumpang and see who's actually doing the damage.
Sitting pretty at 8 match points apiece (that's a flawless 4-0 in matches) are BRAINBOX - FEEL MY HOLY ATTACK and INDONESIA A, and honestly, nobody should be surprised.
I also like the GM Iniyan Pa's team name - their poor opponents are definitely feeling his holy attack. (not they use "MY" and not "OUR")
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| IM Cahaya Sutria from Indonesia A |
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| Brainbox |
BRAINBOX rolled out GM Iniyan Pa (2463, IND) and IM James Morris (2382, AUS) on the top two boards, both of whom have not dropped a single game — 4/4 each — while FM Lye Lik Zang and Chan Sheng Yip mopped up enough points underneath to keep the sheet spotless. That's a genuinely scary top-heavy lineup for a rapid team event where depth usually decides things, and so far the depth hasn't mattered because boards 1 and 2 simply haven't lost.
INDONESIA A have gone about it a little differently — a wall of IMs (Cahaya Satria Duta, Hafiz Arif Abdul, Budhidharma Nayaka, Gilbert Elroy Tarigan) with boards 3 and 4 both perfect 4/4. Very balanced, very hard to find a weak link, and all of then look surprisingly young - will definitely do a breakdown on exactly how young in the next post (if I can remember).
These two meet head-on in Round 5. Board 1. First match of the second half. This is basically the final before the final, and I'll be glued to it.
If you've been reading this blog, you'll remember I wrote about WIM Diajeng Theresa Singgih last September and felt bad I didn't even get a photo of her in action. Well, she's back, and this time she's brought three friends, and together they're the best story of the tournament so far.
INDONESIA B is an all-WIM squad — Singgih Diajeng Theresa, Laysa Latifah, Shafira Devi Herfesa, and Ummi Fisabilillah — and they currently sit in 3rd place with 7 match points, one board-point behind the co-leaders on tiebreak. Board 4 Ummi Fisabilillah is a perfect 4/4 despite being the lowest-rated player on her own team (1579 average performance rating be damned, she's just winning). Also wasted that the rapid is not FIDE rated
In the picture above she beat GM Priasmoro Novendra!
But the headline result is what they did to SMS DEEN TEAM 1 in Round 4: a clean 4-0 sweep, and this against a team fielding none other than GM Timur Gareyev (2574!) on board one. Yes, that Gareyev, of blindfold-chess-on-a-bicycle fame. All four SMS Deen boards went down together in that round, which tells you this wasn't a fluke on one board — the whole Indonesia B lineup turned up on the same day and dismantled a GM-anchored team in one sitting. Genuinely one of the results of the festival so far.
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| IM Poh Yu Tian |
Malaysia's own talent has had a mixed but interesting four rounds against the visiting GMs and IMs.
Solid evidence that our local FMs, IMs and GMs can absolutely go toe-to-toe with the region's best over 20+5 rapid — the top boards are holding their own even where the overall team results haven't quite followed.
Here's what to watch when the pieces go back down for Round 5:
Of course how can I not mention GILACHESS CHARIZARD KL is paired against THE RANDOM MIX in Round 5. We're on 3 match points, mid-pack, no delusions of grandeur — just here for the fun and the free flow of games to write about. Wish us luck anyway.
It's going to be a hectic and tiring day with 5 rounds still to play out of 9, nothing is settled — 8 match points is a great cushion but that's all it is - a cushion.
Indonesia's three teams (A, B, C) occupying three of the top five spots is the dominant theme right now, and it wouldn't shock me if the tournament boils down to an all-Indonesia argument at the top with BRAINBOX and GLADIATORS trying to crash the party.
Keep an eye on Diajeng Theresa Singgih's board too — I have a feeling there's more content to cover there later.
The Malaysian Chess Festival has long been a crown jewel in the Southeast Asian chess calendar 👑, but if the statistics for the 2026 Open section are any indication, this year's event is a record in numbers and strength.
📊 With exactly 118 players registered for the Open section, the turnout reveals clear increased attention—despite the event being held at a shopping mall! 🏬♟️
🇮🇳 India Power House!
India leads the pack with a staggering 31 players—more than a quarter of the entire field. In recent years, Indian chess has exploded onto the world stage, producing Grandmasters at a rate that rivals the Soviet heyday. To see 31 representatives making the trip to Kuala Lumpur is amazing yet not surprising. 🚀🧠
🇲🇾 Malaysia is no slouch either.
Hot on India's heels is the host nation, Malaysia, with 25 players. It is incredibly encouraging to see such a strong local turnout. For Malaysian chess, this is a golden opportunity to test their mettle against a variety of international playing styles without leaving home. 💪🏽🏠
🇨🇳 The Sleeping Giant: China
While India has the numbers, China brings the firepower. With 14 players, China might be smaller in number, but they traditionally punch well above their weight in terms of rating. When China travels, they travel to win. These 14 representatives are likely to be some of the highest-rated players in the room, making them a potential minefield for unsuspecting opponents. 🐉⚡
🌏 The Regional Heavyweights
The "ASEAN flavor" of the tournament is very much alive:
🇸🇬 Singapore (8) • 🇲🇳 Mongolia (8) • 🇻🇳 Vietnam (5) • 🇮🇩 Indonesia (5)
ensuring that the Southeast Asian rivalry is alive and well. 🤝♟️
🌍 A Global Chess Gathering
All these and from 20 different federations!
We see the familiar powerhouses of the West: 🇺🇸 USA (1), 🇷🇺 Russia (3), and 🇪🇸 Spain (1).
We see a strong Middle Eastern presence with 🇮🇷 Iran (2) and 🇸🇾 Syria (1).
The Caucasus is represented by 🇦🇿 Azerbaijan (1), and Europe's eastern front by 🇧🇾 Belarus (1).
But the magic may be in the outliers: 🇦🇺 Australia (3) has made the long journey across the ocean. 🇯🇵 Japan (1), 🇰🇿 Kazakhstan (1), and 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka (1) round out the list. There is even a lone warrior from the distant shores of Belarus. 🌊✈️
🤝🌐 With 118 players representing 20 nations, the Malaysian Chess Festival 2026 Open is not just a chess tournament—it is like a diplomatic summit.
The Russian school meets the aggressive dynamism of the American players, the strategic depth of the Chinese mixes with the fighting spirit of the Indians, all while the home team looks to defend their turf. 🛡️👑
🔥 This year's Malaysian Chess Festival will be a most interesting edition indeed! 🎉♟️🏆
| Rank | State | 🥇 Gold | 🥈 Silver | 🥉 Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pulau Pinang | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
| 2 | Perak | 2 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| 3 | Selangor | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 |
| 4 | Negeri Sembilan | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Medal | Participant | State |
|---|---|---|
| 🥇 Gold | Nirish Kumar | Perak |
| 🥈 Silver | Poh Yu Tian | Pulau Pinang |
| 🥉 Bronze | Kavin Mohan | Selangor |
| Medal | Participant | State |
|---|---|---|
| 🥇 Gold | FM Nirish Kumar | Perak |
| 🥈 Silver | FM Kavin Mohan | Selangor |
| 🥉 Bronze | CM Lai Hong Jun | Pulau Pinang |
| Medal | Participant | State |
|---|---|---|
| 🥇 Gold | Goh Cai Xuan | Pulau Pinang |
| 🥈 Silver | Nor Ain Shahar | Selangor |
| 🥉 Bronze | Mathivathane Surendran | Perak |
| Medal | Participant | State |
|---|---|---|
| 🥇 Gold | Goh Cai Xuan | Pulau Pinang |
| 🥈 Silver | Gan Jo Lyn | Negeri Sembilan |
| 🥉 Bronze | Nor Ain Shahar | Selangor |
Like a caveman I arrived at Cititel last month for the #MYchessFestival meeting confused about where the hotel parking space has gone. As ...
