It is now a sport that India dominates and will continue to in the next few years. Vishy’s children, it can be said, have all grown up. To see Indians finish first and second in the recently concluded Tata Steel Chess tournament in the Netherlands, fondly called the Wimbledon of Chess, was immensely satisfying.
D Gukesh and R Praggnanandhaa went into the final round tied and, surprisingly, both lost their matches. Arjun Erigaisi, despite a poor tournament, came back brilliantly in the last two rounds to take down Fabiano Caruana and Gukesh. Pragg too lost, and it meant the contest had to go into a tie-break. While Gukesh won the first blitz game, Pragg won the second, and then Gukesh made an error in the decider to gave Pragg the title.
For Pragg, it was a special comeback. For Gukesh, it was an excellent tournament after his World Championship win, proving that he has the ability to soak up the pressure and deliver consistently at the highest level. And for Indian chess, it meant a continuation of the great run – from twin golds in the Olympiad to Gukesh winning the World Championship, and now a 1-2 finish in the Netherlands.
With some of these players still in their teens, the future is bright. They will get better in the next few years and almost all of them – Gukesh, Pragg and Arjun – have the ability to become greats of the sport. For Gukesh, it was a real challenge. To get to the top is hard. But to stay there is much harder. Now, Gukesh is the yardstick, and for an 18-year-old, the pressure must be humungous. That he stayed unbeaten till the very last round is evidence of his mental strength and temperament. To finish runner-up via the tie-break was a fantastic follow-up to his World Championship win.
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For Pragg, this is a huge step forward. An Indian winning the title after 19 years, and the way he came back said a lot about his talent and persistence. After a modest 2024 by his standards, it is good to see him start 2025 with a bang.
For Arjun, India’s highest-rated player for a while now, things did not go well from the start. Losing a few games unexpectedly, he struggled to get his act together till the last two rounds. Many would have given up by then, and started to focus on the next tournament. Not so Arjun, he beat Gukesh and Abdusattarov in the last two rounds with hugely impressive performances. That’s his takeaway, and evidence of what he is capable of.
Clearly, Indian chess is rocking. Vishy’s children have all grown up, and he can now watch proudly as they start to dominate the sport. Yes, there is Magnus Carlsen, and he remains the benchmark, as Gukesh has said time and again. But as with all empires or reigns in sport, he too can be challenged by this crop, who all have the talent and the patience. The look on Gukesh’s face in the last few seconds of the decider said it all. He just hates to lose, and that’s what defines this bunch. They are hungry for more, and will only get better and better in the months to come.
Also Read: Praggnanandhaa defies odds to come of age at Tata Steel chess