On 2 April 2025, the Asian Zonal 3.4 Chess Championship – a qualifier for the World Cup – kicked off in Pavilions 7 and 8 of the Atakent Exhibition Centre in Almaty. The Asian Zone 3.4 includes six countries from the expanded Central Asian region: Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Afghanistan. A total of 131 players (87 men and 44 women) are competing for seven spots in Batumi and New Delhi.
In May 2023, when the previous qualifier took place in Dushanbe, Tajikistan, only three World Cup spots were available – two for men and one for women. Those places went to Assel Serikbay and Alisher Suleymenov from Kazakhstan, and Nodirbek Yakubboev from Uzbekistan. This year in Almaty, players will vie for three spots in Batumi (Georgia), which will host the Women’s World Cup from July 5-29, and four places in India, where the World Cup will take place from November 1-26.
The opening ceremony featured welcoming speeches from Mukhtar Mukanov, Acting Head of the Sports Division at the Almaty Sports Department; Gulmira Dauletova, Executive Director of KazChess; Husan Turdialiev (Uzbekistan), President of FIDE Zonal Council 3.4 and Chief Arbiter of the tournament; and Baglan Musin, President of Freedom Shapaghat.
Symbolic first moves were played on the first two men’s boards by Raushanbek Matchanov, Consul General of Uzbekistan in Almaty, and Zhenishbek Asankulov, Consul General of the Kyrgyz Republic in Almaty, and by Nurymyrat Rozyjumaev, Counsellor-Consul of the Embassy of Turkmenistan in Kazakhstan, and Zhanibek Saurbek, entrepreneur and Chairman of KazChess for Almaty Oblast. And with that, the game began!
The first major upset occurred in the men’s category: 18-year-old FIDE Master (FM) Yerlan Tleukhanov (2143) held Uzbek Grandmaster (GM) Abdimalik Abdisalimov (2525) to a draw – from a position of strength.
The other top seeds, including GM Mukhiddin Madaminov (2536), GM Ortik Nigmatov (2501), and International Master (IM) Mukhammadzokhid Suyarov (2469) from Uzbekistan, along with IM Saparmurat Atabayev (2530) from Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan’s GM Alisher Suleymenov (2478), IM Zhandos Agmanov (2470), IM Aldiyar Ansat (2469), IM Arystanbek Urazayev (2467), and GM Ramazan Zhalmakhanov (2462), all lived up to expectations and secured victories.
In the women’s section, the top-ranked players on the first seven boards – WGM Alua Nurman (2347), IM Meruert Kamalidenova (2342), WGM Xeniya Balabayeva (2285), WGM Liya Kurmangaliyeva (2249), and WIM Assel Serikbay (2235) from Kazakhstan, along with Uzbekistan’s WIM Afruza Khamdamova (2326) and WIM Umida Omonova (2263) – all won their games. However, some had to battle hard for their victories, particularly Balabayeva, whose encounter with the experienced Anel Muratova (1900) concluded close to 8:30 PM Almaty time.
Two other interesting results stood out. WCM Yasmina Alemanova (1844) and WFM Zarina Nurgaliyeva (2199), both 15 years old, faced off in the first round. Though Zarina is two months older and already knocking on the door of Kazakhstan’s senior national team as a FIDE Master, while Yasmina is just a Candidate Master, it was Zarina who had to fight for a draw and reached it by a perpetual check.
Meanwhile, in another matchup with a greater age gap, 18-year-old WFM Ayaulym Kaldarova (2179) also had to settle for a draw against WCM Deniza Kurmanalina (1837).
Standings, pairings and results
Photos: Yevgeniy Kim