If 1988 will ceaselessly be remembered in Indian chess because the 12 months that the nation received its first Grandmaster in Viswanathan Anand, 2022 shall be important for displaying that India can stage large-scale chess tournaments and compete with one of the best on the earth. In July-August this 12 months, India hosted the FIDE Chess Olympiad — the forty fourth iteration of the biennial event involving greater than 180 nations — for the primary time ever.
The internet hosting rights had been awarded to India simply 5 months earlier than the occasion, an consequence of the Russia-Ukraine battle which meant Moscow couldn’t be the host metropolis. Moscow’s loss was Mamallapuram’s achieve because the coastal city close to Chennai, the epicentre of Indian chess, put up a grand present at extraordinarily quick discover.
However that wasn’t all. The teenager quartet of D Gukesh, R Praggnanandhaa, Nihal Sarin and Raunak Sadhwani, together with 30-year-old B Adhiban, was a part of an India B group that secured bronze within the open part of the Olympiad. It was solely the second occasion of an Indian group profitable an Olympiad medal, the primary additionally being a bronze in 2014 in Tromso, Norway.
That the medal got here from a five-member group comprising 4 newbies made it all of the extra particular. The chances had been on India A, seeded second behind United States, to push for a medal, however the group of P Harikrishna, Vidit Gujrathi, Arjun Erigaisi, SL Narayanan and Krishnan Sasikiran completed fourth.
The medal-clinching show was essentially the most resounding signal of the start of a brand new period for Indian chess dominated by these teen masters. With Anand heading into administration by turning into deputy president of the worldwide chess federation (Fide) and the likes of Harikrishna and Gujrathi simply producing regular outcomes, it’s these Gen Z youngsters which are grabbing the eye of the chess world.
There isn’t any larger proof of that than the trio of Gukesh, Praggnanandhaa and Erigaisi beating five-time world champion Magnus Carlsen in 2022. Gukesh and Erigaisi beat him as soon as every and Praggnanandhaa emerged victorious on three events. It could have come within the fast format somewhat than classical time management, however as Anand mentioned a few months in the past, it’s simply as laborious to beat the Norwegian nice in fast time management as it’s in every other format. By the way, Carlsen clinched the World Speedy and Blitz titles in Almaty, Kazakhstan, final week.
“I feel the importance (of the outcomes) is for his or her self-confidence,” Anand had mentioned. “They’ve seen that even towards one of the best participant on the earth, somebody towards whom it is extremely troublesome to grab some extent, they’ll do it. That’s the constructive message they need to take away.”
At this stage, there may be seemingly little to separate these youngsters by way of the place they stand. Gukesh has the very best Elo score — 2725 — among the many youthful lot, and he was additionally one of the best participant within the Olympiad. He’s certainly one of 5 Indians – Anand, Erigaisi, Harikrishna and Gujrathi are the others — with a dwell score of greater than 2700 in the intervening time. Each Gukesh and Erigaisi crossed the elusive mark for the primary time in 2022.
“Olympiad was undoubtedly a dream run. The efficiency on the Olympiad gave me the idea that I can compete on the high,” Gukesh mentioned.
Having made appreciable progress over the previous 12 months, Gukesh is hoping to keep up his tempo of development. “I’m trying ahead to 2023 with nice pleasure as I’ve received invites to a couple prestigious elite occasions the place I can rub shoulders with the best possible. I hope to make the most of these alternatives and climb up the scores,” mentioned the 16-year-old from Chennai.
The others on this elite membership may have comparable objectives this 12 months. The primary large occasion for Gukesh, Praggnanandhaa and Erigaisi this 12 months would be the Tata Metal Chess Masters from January 13-29 in Wijk aan Zee, Netherlands.
With their video games nonetheless evolving, it’s possible that they may add additional strings to their bow. “Although I’m happy with my classical play, I’d additionally like to enhance my velocity chess abilities concurrently to maintain up with my classical customary,” Gukesh mentioned.
For Praggnanandhaa, it could be the precise reverse. As GM Srinath Narayanan lately identified, “Praggnanandhaa has been common primarily due to his exploits in on-line fast tournaments. I feel Praggnanandhaa hasn’t performed as many classical video games as the opposite two. However it is just a matter of time earlier than he begins doing nicely in classical chess too.”
Given their starvation to study and urge for food for brand new data, anticipate the youngsters to swiftly iron out their weaknesses and show past doubt that they’re right here to remain.