India's Chess Prodigies
The India Commentary view
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By Our Editorial Team
First publised on 2023-08-28 08:24:35
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The India Commentary view
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Indian chess is witnessing a historic revolution with several players in their teens making a mark on the world stage and several others, younger than them, waiting in the wings. R Praggnanandhaa reached the finals at the World Championships while D Gukesh, Arjun Erigaisi and Nihal Sarin have performed consistently well. Gukesh lost to Carlsen in the quarterfinals while Erigaisi lost to Prag, again in the quarters. Both Prag and Gukesh are products of the Velammal Vidyalaya in Chennai, often referred to as India's chess factory for producing 17 grandmasters out of the 83 India has produced so far.
There is no doubt that Prag, Gukesh, Erigaisi and Sarin, as also the other emerging players, have prodigious talent. But as chess has become fiercely competitive and exceedingly tactical, talent needs to be supplemented with hard work. It is not to say that these youngsters are not working hard, but they have to work harder if they need to be consistently successful on the world stage. This was proved in the finals of the World Championships when after matching Carlsen move for move in the first two classical games, Prag was found wanting in the rapid games of the tiebreak.
But Prag's journey in the World Championships showed that the progress these young players are making is systematic. Enroute to the finals, he beat world number 2 Hikaru Nakamura and world number 3 Fabiano Caruana. He also beat compatriot Arjun Erigiasi in a fiercely contested match in the quarterfinals. Despite the loss in the finals, Prag will play the Candidates tournament that will identify the challenger who will play Ding Liren for the world title. D Gukesh is also likely to qualify for the Candidates tournament. With the emergence of these superbly talented youngsters, Indian chess is in good hands.
