Teenaged GM Praggnanandhaa caused a sensation after beating world number two Hikaru Nakamura and number three Fabiano Caruna en route his silver medal at the FIDE World Cup. He became the world's youngest player to play in the final and the third-youngest person to qualify for the Candidates Tournament. It was also the first time four Indians -- Praggnanandhaa, Gukesh, Erigaisi, and Vidit Gujarathi -- entered the quarterfinals of the tournament.

When asked about Indian chess igniting a tremendous surge and rise in the last decade, All India Chess Federation (AICF) president Sanjay Kapoor said the country has entered the "golden era" and the country will have over a hundred Grandmasters within two years. For years, five-time World Champion Viswanathan Anand dominated the conversation on Indian chess, and rightly so. However, the dynamics have changed in the past decade with youngsters like R Praggnanandhaa, D Gukesh and Arjun Erigaisi making rapid progress in the international arena.