Chess | After 190-move draw, 14-year-old Yagiz Kaan Erdogmus plays out 16-move draw at FIDE Grand Swiss 2025: Here’s why

Teenage sensation Yagiz Kaan Erdogmus has once again grabbed attention at the FIDE Grand Swiss 2025 in Samarkand, Uzbekistan. On Tuesday, the 14-year-old from Turkey settled for a short draw, featuring 16 moves, against his own coach, Azerbaijani star Shakhriyar Mamedyarov. Coming just a day after surviving a marathon 190-move battle, Yagiz seemed in no mood ahead of the rest day to prolong the struggle against his coach. The two shook hands early, acknowledging the unique dynamics of a coach-versus-student clash.Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW!This decision came less than 24 hours after Yagiz had enthralled fans with one of the most memorable games of the event, a 190-move draw against Nodirbek Abdusattorov. Facing India’s Aditya Mittal in Round 4, he conjured a brilliancy despite being massively down on material. In a board position where Mittal had two queens, a rook, and an extra pawn against his two rooks and pawns, Yagiz still found a forced mating sequence. Under crushing time pressure, he pushed Mittal’s king relentlessly until a humble pawn sealed the checkmate. Veteran grandmaster Praveen Thipsay hailed it as a “game for the books of combinations.”That spectacular victory showcased why Yagiz, rated 2646, is the highest-ranked player in history at his age. In one of the early rounds, he had held reigning world champion D Gukesh to a perpetual check, denying the favourite a full point. Such feats are becoming routine for the prodigy, who is already known for unsettling elite players like Magnus Carlsen in online blitz encounters. Seeded 52nd in this 11-round qualification event for the Candidates, Yagiz continues to defy expectations. The quick draw with Mamedyarov might not have entertained fans in the same way as his draw against Abdusattorov, but it underlined another truth of top-level chess.