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India Shining. In chess
Updated On: 28 April, 2024 06:24 AM IST | Mumbai | Manisha Mohite
India is hitting headlines for making chess history, and the heroes are almost too young to be champions. What’s behind the country’s recent prodigal run?
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(From left) Chess Grandmasters Dommaraju Gukesh, Viswanathan Anand and Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa attend a chess tournament in Kolkata in 2023. Pics/Getty Images
The constant jostling and shuffling for top place in Elo Ratings, a method for calculating the relative skill levels of players in zero-sum games like chess, has not only delighted Indian fans but garnered the attention of the chess world since it signifies the emergence of a new super power in the game.
In just the first four months of 2024, five Indians—Viswanathan Anand, Dommaraju Gukesh, R Praggnanandhaa, Arjun Erigaisi and Vidit Santosh Gujrathi—have featured in the top ten in World Rankings. What is equally fascinating is that in this period, the pole position of India’s top-ranked chess player in live ratings has also rotated between this lot. Every victory, defeat and even the draws have added to the drama. This is a far cry from the 1990s when Anand stood solo, for decades.
India, ranked second in the world with an average Elo rating of 2713 (top 10 players) is steadily narrowing the gap against top-ranked United States of America which enjoys an Elo 2724 aggregate. China follows third with Elo 2685, and Russia, once the powerhouse of chess, is in fourth position with an Elo 2683 average. Azerbaijan is a distant fifth with Elo 2646.
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