Chess Olympiad: Indian chess teams on cusp of history after taking down USA, China

The Indian women’s team, who was successful 2nd spot successful Chess Olympiad standings coming into the 10th round, defeated a depleted mentation of China, which was missing each their apical players similar Tan Zhongyi, Hou Yifan, Ju Wenjun and Lei Tingjie, who person been women’s satellite champions oregon contenders for the women’s satellite champion’s crown. While each of the Indian players drew, it was Divya Deshmukh’s triumph that handed India a win.

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The Indian squad successful the unfastened conception astatine the Chess Olympiad is presently connected 19 points with China connected 17 and USA and Uzbekistan connected 15. A triumph implicit USA each but assures Indian a golden medal with a circular to spare successful the unfastened section. The women’s team, meanwhile, is connected apical of the standings with 17 points portion Kazakhstan, who were league leaders up of the 10th circular successful a losing position.

India winning a golden medal successful the 2 sections astatine the Budapest Chess Olympiad would beryllium different milestone successful what has been 1 of the top years for Indian chess, 1 which has seen 3 Indian players suffice for the cut-throat Candidates tourney for the archetypal clip ever; a 17-year-old Gukesh becoming the youngest-ever subordinate to triumph the Candidates; Praggnanandhaa taking down satellite nary 1 Magnus Carlsen for the archetypal clip successful the classical format astatine the Norway Chess tournament; and Arjun Erigaisi propelling himself into the world’s apical 5 ranking spots.

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The twelvemonth could get adjacent amended successful December with Gukesh having the accidental to go the youngest-ever satellite champion astatine the property of 18, if helium tin bushed satellite champion Ding Liren.

After Gukesh had won the Candidates tourney earlier this year, the legendary Garry Kasparov had remarked: “The Indian earthquake successful Toronto is the culmination of the shifting tectonic plates successful the chess satellite arsenic the 17-year-old Gukesh D volition look the Chinese champion Ding Liren for the highest title. The ‘children’ of Vishy Anand are connected the loose!”

The tremors of this ‘Indian earthquake’ are being felt astatine each successive elite chess tourney successful the world, from the FIDE World Cup, wherever Pragg made it to the last to the FIDE Grand Swiss tournament, won by Vidit Gujrathi and Vaishali, and the Candidates, wherever determination were 2 Indian women successful the Women’s Candidates too 3 Indians successful the unfastened Candidates.

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At the Chess Olympiad successful Chennai 2 years ago, the existent unfastened squad of 5 players was divided into 2 arsenic India were allowed to tract much than 1 squad arsenic hosts. At that Olympiad 2 years ago, Gukesh and Praggnanandhaa played connected the India B squad and won bronze portion Pentala Harikrishna, Vidit Gujrathi and Arjun Erigaisi played successful the India A squad which ended fourth. But successful Budapest, these 5 players person travel unneurotic to form a formidable outfit.

Arjun Erigaisi has been the destroyer-in-chief for the Indian squad astatine the Olympiad successful Budapest. India person gained a monolithic borderline astatine the Olympiad by having a satellite nary 4 playing against the third-best players from different teams. Arjun has truthful acold won 7 retired of his 9 games. (PHOTO: Mark Livshitz/FIDE)

“This is surely the strongest squad India has ever sent to an Olympiad. They person a beauteous decent accidental of winning the gold, and a just accidental of winning a medal. Everyone has surely go stronger successful the past 1 year,” Srinath Narayanan, the skipper of the Indian team, told The Indian Express earlier the Olympiad began.

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Heading into Saturday’s 10th circular astatine the Olympiad, the Indian squad was unbeaten successful 36 matches (four matches successful each of the 9 rounds) successful the unfastened section. Pragg’s decision to So is the lone crippled India has mislaid successful 40 games successful the unfastened section. While the wide necktie against defending champions Uzbekistan ended successful a draw, successful different matchups, the Indians person successfully bulldozed their mode past opponents.

The Indian team’s spot tin beryllium gauged by the information that satellite nary 4 Arjun Erigaisi is lone playing connected the 3rd committee — astatine the Olympiad, astir countries take to put their committee bid (which subordinate volition play connected which committee number) by strength, meaning apical players diagnostic connected the archetypal oregon the 2nd board. So acold successful Budapest, some Gukesh (six wins and 2 draws successful 8 games) and Arjun (seven wins and 2 draws successful 9 games) person played similar unstoppable forces portion Pragg has played similar an immovable entity (drawing six retired of his 8 games). Vidit and Harikrishna, the oldest veterans successful the team, person played measured chess. What’s adjacent much singular is that they person not needed the semi-retired Viswanathan Anand, presently ranked 11th successful the world, oregon the 4th subordinate of India’s prodigy quartet, Nihal Sarin, to diagnostic successful the squad frankincense highlighting the extent successful Indian chess.

Previously, India has won bronze medals successful 2014 and 2022. The Indians besides shared golden astatine the 2020 Online Chess Olympiad, which is simply a wholly antithetic format.

“India are playing insanely well. It’s large to see. Gukesh and Arjun are truly connected fire. Pragg is playing truly coagulated chess. Vidit and Harikrishna are playing truly well. This Indian squad is stronger than ever this year! The squad tone is excellent, they’re each precise motivated. Obviously, if Viswanathan Anand was determination successful the squad it would person been adjacent much insane,” Nihal tells The Indian Express with a smile.

Nihal, who won a golden connected the 2nd committee astatine Chennai 2 years ago, admits that being the top-ranked subordinate successful India is 1 of the astir hard things successful satellite chess astatine present. He admits to feeling a flimsy pang astatine not being a portion of the Indian team, but concedes: “I person to play better.”

Talking astir the mindset of the different Indian prodigies, Nihal says: “They are astir importantly precise bully chess players. They’re hardworking, precise confident, optimistic arsenic well. If they’re playing against Magnus Carlsen, portion immoderate radical whitethorn panic, they’ll spot it arsenic a accidental to learn. You ever get stronger by playing stronger players. If you propulsion yourself that way, your level volition besides increase.”