India: An acknowledged global chess power

2024 has been a spectacular year for Indian chess. The national women’s and men’s teams won the Chess Olympiad in September in Hungary; this tournament attracts the participation of almost all national teams of the world and, hence, a victory there for both the men and the women teams established that India has become an acknowledged global chess power.

To these victories were added that of Gukesh Dommaraju’s success in the World Chess Championship in Singapore the 12^th of this month when he defeated the reigning world champion Ding Liren of China.  At 18, Gukesh became the youngest player to win the international chess crown. This was, of course, an outstanding individual performance but coming in the wake of the victories in the Chess Olympiad it showed that, by now, India has not only one great player in Gukesh, but a number of grandmasters who are likely to continue to make their mark at the international level in the game for years to come.

This is in contrast to the efforts of Visvanathan Anand who was the ‘undisputed’ world champion between 2007-2013 but he developed his chess prowess without the chess playing and mentoring infrastructure that is available now. The history of Indian chess shows that there have been other remarkable players both prior to and after independence but it is Anand who put India on the global chess map like no other player. Indeed, the Indian chess world has also to be grateful for the part that he has played in fostering Indian chess talent. I was told by an Indian Foreign Service batch-mate who was a very accomplished chess player himself that Gary Kasparov has said that now Anand’s chess ‘children’ have grown up.

At this stage let me take a brief detour about my IFS batch-mate who does not wish to be named. He was of course an accomplished diplomat during his professional career but he kept his interest in mathematics and chess alive and this is so even now in his retirement. During his first posting to a South East country in the late 1970s he won its most prestigious tournament but was not allowed to compete in its national championship which was naturally restricted to its own nationals. I know of no other Indian diplomat who made his mark in a game of skill in another country as he did. Years later when he was posted to another South Eastern country his competence in chess was known there too, including, most likely, by the Sports Ministry of that country.

During my discussion with my batch-mate we recalled that when we were growing up in the 1960s and even in the 1970s the world of chess was dominated by the Soviet Union. The Soviet authorities fostered a chess culture; consequently, a very large number of chess grandmasters were from the Soviet Union. Indeed, chess had become an element of Soviet soft power because the game requires very high intellectual abilities. My batch-mate told me that India’s rise as a chess power has been the work of chess enthusiasts all over the country but particularly in the southern states.

Many more young persons are involved in the game and there are far more tournaments than there were when he was a young person playing chess. Companies too have played a great role in this process through their financial assistance to individual players and by sponsoring chess tournaments. A special mention has to be made of Tamil Nadu whose government has given special attention to the game. Today, Chennai has become the chess capital of India. It is noteworthy that Gukesh went straight to Chennai from Singapore.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi was very enthusiastic though when the Indian teams won the Chess Olympiad in Hungary. He was then in the US and mentioned the achievement there. On his return he met the Indian teams to congratulate them. This was a good gesture. There is no doubt that the Indian government, at the highest levels, will suitably and tangibly acknowledge Gukesh’s historic achievement.

Chess originated in India. From India it went to the Islamic world and later to Europe. Naturally the game changed over the centuries and modern chess is in some ways a different and more dynamic game but the fact is that the 64 square board and the basic principles of the game can be traced to India. The fact that now India has re-emerged as a chess power is fitting.

Three final points:

One: Gukesh’s humility and sportsman spirit in his hour of triumph was amazing for a boy of 18. He was profuse in his appreciation of Ding Liren whom he called a true champion. He obliquely recognized Ding Liren’s personal troubles. In paying tribute to his opponent Gukesh followed India’s tradition that should be emulated by all Indian athletes. Gukesh also recognized that he has a way to travel to reach the level of Magnus Carlsen.

Two: To allege, as one former world champion did, that Ding Liren threw away the match and this should be inquired into shows a meanness of spirit. It is true that Ding Liren made a monumental mistake which cost him the match and the title but in sports such errors are occasionally made even by the greatest. What is galling many Europeans is the rise of Asia in chess.

Three: Jammu and Kashmir has an abundance of young women and men of the highest intellectual calibre. The UT government should consider nurturing a chess culture. It would be wonderful to have a world chess champion from J&K one day.