India’s Hungarian triumph has been hailed by many as a pivotal moment for chess in the country. For years, the sport relied almost exclusively on the genius of Viswanathan Anand for sustenance. But 2024 has changed everything. Walking through the doors pushed open by Anand, India’s next-gen is charting ways to command chess the way the country has never done before.
Clearly, the scale of the achievement has not sunk in for many. Going into the 45th edition of the Chess Olympiad in Hungary, it was expected India would bring home a medal or two, as it was seeded first and second in the women’s and open section, respectively. However, both the Indian teams went beyond expectations by bagging maiden gold medals in both divisions and in four individual boards. India also retained the Gaprindashvili Cup, the trophy awarded to the nation with the best overall performance. India’s double title win in Budapest is a sporting achievement on par with any for the country, considering the Chess Olympiad is the pinnacle of the sport in a team format. What also stood out was the emphatic nature of India’s win, particularly in the open section. The team – consisting of D Gukesh, R Praggnanandhaa, Arjun Erigaisi, Vidit Gujrathi and P Harikrishna – emerged unbeaten in the 11-round tournament, drawing just one tie, to Uzbekistan in the ninth round. India lost just one individual game out of the 44 it contested. India’s near-flawless run was powered by World Championship challenger Gukesh, who won nine out of 10 games in the top board, securing the individual gold in the process. Also in the mix of things was Arjun Erigaisi, whose 10 wins out of 11 won him gold in the third board, while also lifting him to a career-high third in the FIDE live rankings.
The Indian women’s team, playing without its top-ranked player Koneru Humpy, was stretched considerably more than its counterpart. Going into the final day, India was forced into a practically must-win situation to claim gold. But the side held its resolve as it dismantled Azerbaijan to evade the challenges of Kazakhstan and the USA to lift the title. India’s title charge was driven by Divya Deshmukh and Vantika Agrawal. What unites both the Indian teams is their youthful composition. Of the 10 Indians to battle it out in Hungary, six are under 24, hinting at a potential for the country to dominate global chess for years. Gukesh is primed to take down China’s Ding Liren and become the youngest World Champion. Arjun is a stone’s throw away from breaking the 2800 ceiling in live ratings. Praggnanandhaa continues to claim prized scalps in big-ticket tournaments. Divya is ever so close to becoming the fourth Indian woman to attain the Grand Master title, months after Vaishali did so.
It is, however, unfortunate that India’s assertion on the global chess stage has not been celebrated in the way that wins in other sporting events are. Prominent public figures seem to have given it a miss. The kings and queens of Indian chess deserve better.
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