The Olympic fever was over and it was a bittersweet campaign for India. Nothing like that in the Chess Olympiad though. The rising generation of Indian players in the game of 64 squares made a massive statement of potential by winning gold in the open and women’s sections in the 45th edition of the competition played in the Hungarian capital of Budapest on Sunday.
It is a huge achievement, considering that before this, India’s best was bronze in the open segment in 2014 and 2022, and bronze in the women’s tournament in 2022. Two years is not exactly a long time in sports and yet, the Indian teams proved that they have made rapid progress in this period. The team in the open section was seeded second, while the women were ranked first. They lived up to the billing.
This is significant because after Viswanathan Anand and his five world championship wins, Indians had not won anything at the top level. There was potential and the number of Grandmasters kept rising. The world hailed India’s wealth of talent, but the results were not tangible. Until this year, no Indian after Anand qualified for the Candidates tournament, the winner of which gets the chance to challenge the reigning world champion.
The glass ceiling was broken by D Gukesh, who won the Candidates held in Toronto. He will take on China’s Ding Liren in November. Last year, R Praggnanandhaa finished runners-up in the World Cup. Unnoticed, Arjun Erigaisi moved up to fourth in the world rankings. All this happened, but Indians still did not win the big events despite coming close. The heist in Hungary changes that narrative.
This is remarkable considering the number of youngsters who played a major role in this. In the open section, Arjun is 21, Praggnanandhaa 19 and Gukesh 18. Vidit Gujrathi is 30. They played most of the games in the 11-round competition, while the veteran P Harikrishna took part in three.
In the women’s half, the seasoned Koneru Humpy didn’t even go to Hungary, while the other experienced player, D Harika, performed below expectations. Up stepped R Vaishali, Divya Deskhmukh and Vantika Agarwal. Vaishali wasn’t as spectacular, the other two were. They received good support from Tania Sachdev, when required.
This was team work and solid coordination in both sections. The seasoned ones chipped in at crucial junctures, while the younger ones kept delivering. Arjun and Divya were the principal scorers, delivering wins in almost every round. In some of the rounds, India decimated strong teams. The women, especially, made a strong comeback after losing the eighth round and drawing the ninth.
The twin triumph is a tribute to India’s growing stature in chess. After Anand, for a long time, it was only potential and nothing substantial to show for it. Now comes fulfilment. They have emerged supreme in the biggest team competition, and in style. This might just be the beginning of a new and dominant era for Indian chess.
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