IM Shashikant Kutwal Dominates Super Heroes Cup 2026

by Vivek Sohani - 22/03/2026

The Super Heroes Cup 2026 will be remembered not only for its inspiring participants but also for the sheer quality of chess produced across all rounds. In a knockout format where every game could end a campaign, IM Shashikant Kutwal delivered a performance of remarkable control, precision, and maturity to lift the title. Unlike many knockout events dominated by chaos, this tournament showcased a fascinating blend of fearless attacking play and classical positional understanding by the top differently abled players of India. Here is a detailed round-by-round report, featuring key positions and annotated highlights. Photos : Vivek Sohani

Super Heroes Cup 2026 – Chess Beyond Barriers

The return of the Super Heroes Cup 2026 marked more than just a chess tournament - it was a celebration of resilience, skill, and the unbreakable human spirit. Held in Pune after a five-year gap, the event brought together 16 of India’s strongest differently-abled chess players across visually impaired, physically challenged, and deaf categories. The event was sponsored by Samay Raina with his Super Pogchamps prize money (US$10,000) and Balraj Ghai, who made all the arrangements for the stay, food and venue for the players. With a knockout format over two intense days, the tournament delivered not just results - but stories, emotions, and some truly fighting chess. Let's get to know what happened at the Fern Habitat Pune on 14th & 15th March 2026 through this article!

Super Heroes of Indian Chess! India's Top 16 Differently Abled Chess Players | Photo : Vivek Sohani

Format

The format of the Super Heroes Cup is 16 players knockout Round Robin event. The time control for each match is 15 mins + 30 seconds increment for first and second game. In case of 1-1 tie we go into an Armageddon game with both players bidding for black pieces and the lower bid getting that time and black pieces, while White, who has to win on demand, gets 10 minutes. Increment of 5 seconds per move after move 30.

Round of 16 – Fireworks from the Start

While top seeds IM Shashikant Kutwal, Kishan Gangolli, and Darpan Inani advanced with authority, Aryan Joshi’s promising position slipped away in a heartbreaking Armageddon defeat. The 3rd seed of the tournament was undone by Sharon Rachel Aby’s brilliant sacrifice - a move that many will remember as the move of the tournament. Sharon truly lived up to the nickname “Sher-On” - playing like a lion (“sher” in Hindi)—with fearless and attacking chess. She won the best game of the round award for this one.

Can you spot a brilliant winning continuation for Black?

If you have spotted ...Rxh3!! you are absolutely correct! Sharon clinically finished the game with ...Rxh3!! Kxh3 Rf3+, Kh2 Qf4+, Kh1 Rh3+ and here Aryan resigned with a smile. It was a powerful moment where Aryan in spite of being more experienced and higher rated acknowledged that Sharon played better and congratulated her for the performance.

Sharon Rachel Aby not only emerged victorious on the board but also captured the hearts of everyone present at the venue. | Photo : Vivek Sohani

Sharon Rachel's victory against Aryan Joshi in the Armageddon game commentated by IM Sagar Shah

A short dedicated to Sharon

A beautiful speech by Aryan Joshi at the closing ceremony

Young Ved Holds Experienced Kshirsagar:

Ved Neeraj Phaur, hailing from Chandrapur - a place where chess infrastructure is still developing - made a strong statement by winning the first game against the seasoned Darshan Kshirsagar. Darshan is well-known in deaf and mute chess and has helped many young players over the years realize their potential. Meanwhile Ved was the youngest participant in the tournament being just 11 years old. This was truly a clash of generations.

The encounter saw both players falter in the late middlegame amid severe time pressure, but Ved kept his composure at the critical moment and converted his advantage into a full point. In the second game, he adopted a pragmatic approach, comfortably steering the game towards a draw without taking unnecessary risks, thereby securing his place in the next stage.

11-year-old Ved Neeraj Phaur is truly a prodigy. He is the current visually impaired National Junior Champion and he managed to beat a much higher rated as well as experienced opponent in round 1. | Photo : Vivek Sohani

Round of 16 results: Sharon and Shankar emerged victorious in their Armageddon deciders. | Photo : chess-results.com

Replay games from Round of 16:

Quarter Finals:

Pairing Bracket at the time of Quarter Finals. | Graphics: Anmol Bhargava

The Quarterfinals of the Super Heroes Cup 2026 saw the intensity rise a notch as the remaining contenders battled for a place in the final four. It also meant that on the final day they would get to play both the matches - the semi-finals and the finals or the battle for 3rd place.

Kishan Gangolli - number 1 visually impaired player of India is also an organizer and an administrator at AICFB! | Photo : Vivek Sohani

Kishan Gangolli delivered a dominant performance against his state-mate Samarth Rao, wrapping up the game in just 34 moves with the white pieces. The encounter began with the Stonewall variation, and Kishan capitalized on his opponent’s inaccuracies at precisely the right moments. With crisp calculation and excellent timing, he converted his advantage into a powerful attack, producing a near-flawless game that earned him the Best Game of the Quarterfinals award.

CM Samarth J Rao’s campaign came to an end in the quarterfinals. In the round of 16 Samarth had got the better of Devendra Vaidya | Photo : Vivek Sohani

On the top board, IM Shashikant Kutwal found the going quite tough against Shankar Ramakrishnan in the Quarter Finals. Shankar had impressed everyone when he had outwitted the national champion of visually impaired chess Somendra BL in the first round. Now against Shashikant, he managed to hold the first game to a draw.

IM Shashikant Kutwal found the going quite tough against Shankar in the Quarter Finals | Photo : Vivek Sohani

Shankar Ramakrishnan impressed one and all with his tenacity and fighting spirit | Photo : Vivek Sohani

In the second game Shashikant had a dominating position out of the opening, but he went wrong and we reached a critical moment:

Shashikant Kutwal vs Shankar Ramakrishnan, Quarter-Finals Game 2

...a5 was played in the game by Shankar in the above position. This turned out to be the final error. Black had a chance to hold the game with the very nice move ...Kf7! The important point being that after Kg3, Black is able to force an immediate draw with ...Nxe5! Nxe5 and Kxf6! with a draw!

India no.2, Chartered Accountant, and motivational speaker—Darpan Inani | Photo : Vivek Sohani

When experience meets rising talent, the result often hinges on composure - and Darpan Inani proved exactly why he is among India’s elite. A top visually impaired player, Para Asian Games double gold medallist, Chartered Accountant, and motivational speaker, Darpan brought both class and control to this crucial quarterfinal clash. He maintained superior piece coordination, waited patiently for inaccuracies and converted his advantage with clinical precision! Later in the second game, he neutralized Ved’s attempts to create complications, avoided unnecessary risks and steered the game towards a comfortable draw. This ensured a 1.5–0.5 victory, sealing his place in the semifinals.

Venkata Karthik halted Sharon Rachel Aby’s dream run | Photo : Vivek Sohani

After producing one of the most memorable moments of the tournament in Round 1, Sharon Rachel Aby faced a tough challenge against the defending champion Karthik Venkata Krishna in the quarterfinals. In the first game Sharon matched Karthik's move for move until this crucial moment:

Karthik Venkata Krishna vs Sharon Rachel, Quarter Finals Game 1

Sharon had just given up a pawn on the previous move with ...d4 and White had captured with his bishop. The position is still interesting and round about even. But Sharon got too excited and played ....Qa2? She wanted to capture the pawn on f2 to give a perpetual to the white king, but Karthik saw one step ahead and went Qxc6! The queen now can drop back to g2, to deal with the checks and this was enough for Karthik to win the game.

Volunteer Vivek Joshi gives Sharon water in between her game. This became an iconic photo from the event | Photo: Vivek Sohani

Victory did knock on Sharon's doors on in the second game two equalize the score. It was incredible that she managed to build up a winning position in spite of all the pressure. However, when she had to calculate the king and pawn endgame, she went wrong twice. Karthik eventually won and sealed his spot in the semi-finals.

Results of Quarter Finals | Photo: chess-results.com

Replay the games from Quarter Finals:

Semifinals: Kishan misses a chance to push Karthik into Armageddon!

A Semifinal clash between Finalists of Super Heroes Cup Online (2021) Edition! | Photo : Vivek Sohani

The semifinal clash between Kishan Gangolli and Karthik Venkata Krishna turned out to be a gripping encounter filled with missed opportunities and fine margins. This was also the clash between them that took place in the finals of the Super Heroes Cup 2021. It was Karthik who had emerged victorious back then. Naturally, Kishan was raring for a revenge! It was absolutely amazing to see how Karthik created his chances in the first game. Although Kishan defended well, one mistake is all it took for Karthik to be all over his opponent. A beautiful finishing touch to the game was the bishop and knight checkmate at the end.

After losing the first game Kishan was in a must-win scenario in the second game

Kishan played with everything that he had in this encounter. He was creative, he found the best moves and he put Karthik under grave pressure. It felt as if the scores were going to be tied. But it was not to be. Kishan went wrong, Karthik found a way to checkmate Kishan's king. With this win Karthik advanced to the finals.

In the other semi-finals it was IM Shashikant Kutwal who got the better of Darpan Inani. | Photo : Vivek Sohani

In the other semifinals, the first game proved to be the decisive one. Darpan came well prepared to the game and put a lot of pressure on Shashikant in the opening. However, in the endgame Shashikant turned it around and scored a win. There was a critical moment in the game where Shashikant made a crucial error but Darpan couldn't take advantage of it.

Darpan Inani vs Shashikant Kutwal, Semi-finals, Game 1

In this position Shashikant had to play Ke3, but he blundered with Ke1. Darpan who had very little time on the clock got attracted to Rf1+. The move looks brilliant because Kxf1 is a stalemate but after ...Kd2 black is just winning. The key resource missed by Darpan was Rf3!! (instead of Rf1+) and believe or not the game is drawn!

With the lead in hand, Shashikant adopted a more practical and controlled strategy in the second game. Darpan, needing a win to stay in contention, tried to create complications, but the game ended in a draw.

Semifinal Results | Photo: chess-results.com

Replay the games from Semi Finals:

The Final Battle – Shashikant outplays Karthik; Kishan survives in Armageddon for Third place!

IM Shashikant Kutwal showed immense fighting spirit to win the finals! | Photo : Vivek Sohani

The finals was fought between two of the best physically challenged players of the country - IM Shashikant Kutwal and FM Karthik Venkata Krishna. In the first game the players fought tooth and nail, but the bar didn't really move from the equality mark. The game ended in a draw.

In the second duel, Shashikant showed his endgame class. He had the bishop pair and he continued to grind endlessly. Karthik was holding his own well. But at some point tiredness got the better of him as he blundered and Shashikant took home the full point and the title.

Shashikant Kutwal vs Karthik Venkat Krishna, FInals, Game 2

The last move by Black was a big error! White to play and win!

White played the move Bc5+ and unfortunately the black king had no where to go! If it went on the c-file then Be3+ nets the rook and if it went to e6 or d7, then Bf5+ wins the exchange!

GM Abhijit Kunte, IM Abhishek Kelkar, IM Prathamesh Mokal watching the intense Final! | Photo : Vivek Sohani

The final game between Shashikant and Karthik with commentary by IM Sagar Shah

The battle for third place brought another intense showdown between Kishan Gangolli and Darpan Inani, both eager to finish the tournament on a high. The match proved to be closely contested, with neither player willing to concede ground in classical games. After hard-fought battles, the contest moved into a high-pressure Armageddon decider. Darpan fought valiantly, but Kishan’s resilience and experience proved decisive as he managed to survive the Armageddon battle.

The intense Armageddon game between India no.1 Kishan Gangolli and India no.2 Darpan Inani

Replay the games from Third place match :

Replay the games from Finals:

The Super Heroes Cup 2026 concluded with fitting drama - IM Shashikant Kutwal showcasing dominance in the final. Karthik Venkata Krishna showed what a class act he is! Kishan Gangolli held his nerve in Armageddon to claim third place and Darpan was a deserving 4th place finisher. This brought an unforgettable tournament to a thrilling end.