What did Jawohir Sindarov say about the prestigious tournament he is participating in? (interview)

The "2025 Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Weissenhaus" tournament, with a prize fund of $75,000, is underway. In this tournament, Nodirbek Abdusattorov and Javakhir Sindarov will compete with the best chess players in the world.

This tournament is being led by our compatriot Javakhir Sindarov. So far, he has defeated such chess players as Vincent Kaymar (Germany), Levon Aronian (USA), Vladimir Fedoseev (Russia), and Magnus Carlsen (Norway). In particular, the victory over Carlsen has allowed Javakhir to equal the points in the tournament standings with the leader Fabiana Caruana.

Javakhir Sindarov was interviewed in English about the "Freestyle Chess" tournament.

- It became known at the last minute that you would participate in the tournament. The reason is that Vishy Anand left the tournament. How do you feel?
- At first, I was a little disappointed. The reason is that I played well. I defeated Praggnanadh, and before that I defeated several other strong opponents. The final match was difficult. I won the first match, and in the second I could have drawn, but at the last second I made a mistake and the game went to a tie-break. I lost the victory in the decisive round. Of course, it was a shame.

- How did you know that you were invited to the tournament anyway?
- In January, I played in the Bundesliga and met the organizers Jan-Henrik and Sebastian there. Our paths crossed several times and I noticed that they smiled at me every day. At that time, I didn't understand why they did that. A few days later, I was on vacation in Dubai with my family and suddenly I got a message: "Do you want to play freestyle chess?" Of course, I immediately agreed. It was a great opportunity to play against the best!

- Do you like freestyle chess?
- The main thing is that you don't have to prepare for a long time. In regular chess, you spend 3-4 hours preparing, and then play another 5-6 hours. It's very difficult. In freestyle, everything depends on your mind. You don't play according to the lines you have memorized, but only according to the position. It's more interesting!

- But you always prepare!
- Probably. Regular preparation is important in chess, but I like the process of the game more.

- How did you prepare for this tournament?
- I solved the chess problems. I played them on Chess960 I looked at about 100 positions. This helps me to organize the game, but I can't remember them. The main thing is to quickly adapt to the game picture.

- How big is the difference between you and top chess players like Magnus or Fabiano? Where are you closer to their level - classical or "freestyle"?
- I think I'm closer to them in "freestyle". They are much stronger in classical. In regular chess, initial preparation decides a lot, but in "freestyle" chess everything depends on understanding the position.

- But you love preparation. Don't you?
- Sometimes, but imagine practicing the first moves for three hours every day and then playing for six more hours. It's tiring. In "freestyle" you just play chess and it's great! Follow “Zamin” news on “Telegram”