She came, she saw, she conquered. She won the prestigious National Women’s Premier in 2014, 2015 and as the 43rd National Women’s Premier concluded recently at Delhi, we witnessed yet another performance of Padmini Rout at her maximum!
Fierce on the board and cool off the board, she has many titles to her credit. Currently she is preparing for the Women’s World Chess Championship which will be in February 2017. We spoke to her and asked her questions which we now present to you. Read on.
Padmini with the Champion’s trophy after winning the 43rd National Women’s Premier Chess Championship at Delhi.
Rucha Pujari: Congratulations Padmini on winning the prestigious National Women’s Premier, and now third time in a row, wow! How do you feel and what was your first reaction?
Padmini Rout: Thanks. I am very happy and I was kinda relieved after completion of the event.
Tell us how the tournament went for you. How did you approach the games and what was your strategy? How did you prepare for the games, how was it different for this round robin tournament?
I think it went smooth. I went to the games with a free head. Like all my opponents were doing, I too checked their games and made strategies against them.
After the tournament you said that you were happy with your play, especially in your game against Vijayalakshmi which was quite crucial and important for you. What happened in that game?
36…Nc3-a2?! Like they say “A knight in the rim is grim”. I got some serious attack after it.
Winning the Premier is a big achievement. How much effort did it take for you to win this glorious championship? Looking back, what can you say was a turning point of your career?
Well, I don’t know how to measure effort but in succinct I am a devoted chess player. Winning the U-11 girl’s Nationals in 2005, I could say was the turning point!
Devoted to Chess. Source: Padmini’s Facebook
How do you look at Women’s Chess in India? What do you think can be done to inspire more girls to take up Chess and consider as a career choice?
I see us as with lot of potential! I think Indian Oil did a great job in giving jobs to women players. Therefore I want to thank D V Prasad who initiated the process. So young girls who look up at us will be inspired to see that we have this financial security and we can play chess freely without any worry.
2017 is coming up! Which tournaments will you be playing around the year, and what are your goals?
My first World Cup could very well be my first tournament of next year! 🙂 I will try to play in strong open tournaments.
Aiming High. Source: Padmini’s Facebook
How do you select the tournaments you would want to play? How far in advance do you plan?
I prefer tournaments which are well organized and attract strong players. I try to plan them at least two months in advance.
Also tempted to ask, New Year resolutions? 🙂
Well I don’t really want to wait till the New Year to start something good. So all improvements are implemented with immediate effect as and when understood.
[bctt tweet=”Padmini Rout: I don’t really want to wait till the New Year to start something good” username=”FollowChessApp”]
When and how did you start playing Chess? What is your first Chess memory?
When I was around 8 – 9 years old, during summer vacations we would go to my native place, and there my father would take me along to his friend’s house (who had a daughter who played musical instruments) where he would endlessly play chess. After kibitzing a few games I would sit with his daughter and play music instead. Those days I preferred music over chess and now it is just the other way around.
You seem to be participating in Open tournaments since a very young age. Do you think that has helped you, over playing women-only events?
Definitely. There is more competition. I personally feel all women player should play in as many open tournaments possible in order to improve further.
What would be your words of inspiration for the upcoming players?
Enjoy the process of becoming good at your chosen field of work. Not everyone is lucky to have passion as their profession.
Source: Padmini’s Facebook
[bctt tweet=”Padmini Rout: Enjoy the process of becoming good at your chosen field of work” username=”FollowChessApp”]
Blitzkrieg!
What do you think you would be if not a chess player?
A scientist.
Three people you would like to invite for dinner.
A P J Abdul Kalam, Richard Feynman and Vivekananda.
How many players do you think you can play simultaneously in blindfold chess?
Umm never tried more than 2.
One Super Power you would like to have.
Teleportation.
You won the Premier three times in a row, and just recently Carlsen won the World Championship third time in a row! What do you think is common between you two?
Keeping up with the rising trend of strong open events, the Isle of Man International witnessed the participation of as many as 48 Grandmasters, including such distinguished players as Caruana, Nakamura, Wesley So, Adams and Eljanov, amongst others. Apart from a slight setback in the 2nd round, GM Pavel Eljanov, current World #16 and a key member of the Ukrainian team over the years, remained in full control throughout the course of the event and deservedly clinched the title. We were fortunate enough to catch up with him after this success, with Eljanov bringing his immense experience to the fore and speaking on a wide variety of topics in this highly informative interview.
(Courtesy: Harry Gielen via chessbase.com)
Shubham Kumthekar: Hi Pavel, good to have you! Congratulations on your splendid victory at Isle of Man. What was your approach like going into the tournament?
Pavel Eljanov: I had no particular expectations. Just two weeks prior to the tournament, I had returned from the Olympiad, which is the most energy-consuming tournament around in my opinion. I did not have time to make any serious preparations – just got to recharge my batteries a bit.
At what point during the tournament did you feel that you might go on to win the event? How do you manage to keep such feelings from interfering with your play?
At the beginning of the tournament, my energy levels were not quite 100%. However, I warmed up round by round and played some good games. I also think getting closer to a tournament victory works in my favour: it boosts my motivation and concentration.
Eljanov: “Getting closer to a tournament victory boosts my motivation and concentration.” (Courtesy: Lennart Ootes Facebook)
Which was the most satisfying game of the tournament? I liked my game against Shirov the most. I am glad that I was successful in outplaying such a great player, thanks to some sleeky manoeuvres. In particular, 13.Nb1! was a nice move, not only aesthetic but also the strongest. I was very precise in the technical stage as well.
Eljanov scored a crucial victory over Shirov in Round 6. (Courtesy: Isle of Man Chess Facebook)
There has been a rising trend of strong Opens in the recent years. How do you compare these events to the traditional all-play-alls? I like this trend, whereby professionals and club players – all take part in one big festival. These festivals usually consist of a main event along with some additional tournaments, wherein anyone wanting to play can participate. For me, it’s much more interesting to follow or play in such events.
Speaking of the tournament formats, what is your opinion about the existing World Championship structure?
The World Championship matches are gradually losing their dynamism and attractiveness, with chess (opening) theory going as deep as the endgame in many cases. As we can conclude from the previous two cycles, the most attractive parts have been the knock-outs and the Candidate tournaments. In these tournaments, players are forced to play more combative and resourceful chess, due to the necessity of beating more than one opponent. I think deciding a World Champion in tournaments featuring eight of the top players (like in San Luis or Mexico) is an interesting and logical solution.
New York 2016. Carlsen or Karjakin? How do you see the match panning out?
Concerning Carlsen-Karjakin, I would like to bring a wrong prognosis of course, but I don’t think it will be an attractive match from the point of view of chess content. Carlsen is clearly the better player and a big favourite on account of his good form and appropriate preparation. What I am really looking forward to is the organisers’ intention to provide virtual reality broadcast. I have already decided to buy a VR gear – I hope I won’t be spending money for nothing 🙂
[bctt tweet=”Pavel: What I am really looking forward to is the WCh organisers’ intention to provide virtual reality broadcast.” username=”FollowChessApp”]
Karjakin (L) vs Carlsen (R) – The action commences on the 11th of November!
Let’s go back in time. How did it all begin for you? What is your earliest memory associated with chess?
I grew up in a chess family. My dad was an International Master and a well known chess books publisher in the Russian language (Dvoretsky’s books, amongst others, were published by him). My mum also used to play chess, but at a more modest level (about 1800 ELO). I made my first steps in chess thanks to her. At that time, we used to learn from some chess books meant for kids. Then, we started travelling together to my early junior championships.
Late IM Vladimir Eljanov, GM Pavel Eljanov’s father, was an Honoured Coach of Ukraine and a chess book publisher of repute. (Courtesy: fide.com)
Growing up, which authors and players influenced you the most?
In the mid-90s, when my father began publishing, I used to help him with the proofreading of Dvoretsky’s chess books. That way, I absorbed a lot of quality chess information. I still think that those books are top class and beyond comparison.
A young Eljanov at the Amsterdam Chess Tournament of 2005, where he emerged victorious. (Courtesy: Frits Agterdenbos via chessbase.com)
Roundabout the time you became a Grandmaster, computers had started taking over. What has been your approach to using computers? How can up and coming players use computers to improve their play?
This is probably the most important question for young players aiming to play chess at the professional level. It is an extremely deep topic and I can speak on it for hours together. In brief, I suggest that any young chess player should not overuse the chess engines and stay away from concentrating too much on the study of openings. The most important thing for a chess player is to develop his/her own algorithm of finding (good) moves. To have a good mentor and to read good chess books is, in my opinion, essential for every player.
[bctt tweet=”Pavel: I suggest that any young chess player should not overuse the chess engines” username=”FollowChessApp”]
You are well-known in the chess fraternity for your opening expertise, having helped Gelfand more times than one, as well as Carlsen and Mariya Muzychuk. How do you go about preparing your openings? It’s not a secret that more or less all top players work on openings constantly. Everyone tries to anticipate and be one step ahead of his/her competitors. I am no exception to this. I try and choose openings that suit my style.
Considering the opening boom and the rapidly developing engines, what are your views about Chess 960? I have played Chess 960 only once – in Mainz a long time ago. I think it’s funny. Also, there are a lot of positions which simply lack harmony and are bad for black right from the first move. I think there is a lot of space to tweak the chess rules (without changing the initial position) in order to increase the effectiveness and attractiveness of our game. The simplest one (but hardly the most effective) is to cancel stalemate. In any case, classical chess still excites me very much. I believe there are many years to go before our game gets emasculated. However, an inner motivation of any chess player and appropriate formats for events are very important, as I noted earlier.
What, according to you, has been the defining moment(s) of your career? There were a few. But I would say that the turning point – from where I started to work on chess much more professionally – was the Calvia Olympiad in 2004, when I became an Olympiad champion for the first time. I got a strong boost and realised that being 21 years old, I was still in the very beginning of my path.
The victorious Ukrainian team at the Calvia Olympiad, 2004. Eljanov scored a respectable 6 points from his 8 games. (Courtesy: www.thechessdrum.net)
If there is one thing that you would like to tell aspiring chess players around the globe, what would it be? 🙂 To enjoy the process and to not despair after failures. In any activity, there are ups and downs.
[bctt tweet=”Pavel Eljanov’s message to aspiring players: enjoy the process and do not despair after failures” username=”FollowChessApp”]
Blitzkrieg
If not a chess player, then… A doctor.
How does a normal day of GM Pavel Eljanov look like? Chess, family time, some sports etc.
Movies or the Theatre TV series – my bad, I know 🙂
Early Bird or Night Owl Night Owl.
The most influential (non-chess) book you have read till date. Hard to choose one. From this year’s reading, I very much liked ‘The man who mistook his wife for a hat’ by Oliver Sacks.
A few days ago, we brought to you interviews with GM RB Ramesh and GM Jonathan Tisdall, both of whom captained their respective sides successfully at the recently concluded Baku Olympiad. The duo spoke on a number of topics in those interviews, ranging from the Baku Olympiad to their own journey in the chess world. Now, it’s your chance to catch them unplugged, as they answer a flurry of offbeat questions, revealing lighter sides to their respective teams in the process!
Two colourful personalities: Ramesh (India) and Tisdall (Norway)
About Baku
The most exciting game played by a member of your team…
(Editor: Shankland himself said: “I got totally crushed in the beginning, and I have never had such a hopelessly lost position in my life against an opponent as strong as him and walked away with a draw, much less a win.” Harikrishna beat Mamedyarov with the Black pieces to secure a crucial win which helped team India beat higher rated Azerbaijan)
Magnus’ game vs the Philippines raised my pulse the most.
(Editor: Magnus playing White found himself defending a position with a pawn down, but eventually managed to draw the game)
(Editor: Sethuraman’s loss meant that team India lost to Ukraine 2.5-1.5 in an important round 9 match)
Aryan Tari’s loss vs Romania. Or have Hammer win in round one, and hope that changed his entire event. But when you’ve had a fantastic result, you aren’t that eager to tempt ‘fate’ or change history.
Sethu-Korobov: The calm before the storm! (Source: Facebook – Gopakumar Sudhakaran)
Knowing the teams
The funniest guy…
Adhiban!
Probably Aryan. He kept trying to convince us his Iranian roots made it impossible for him to concentrate against Iran, for one thing. And he was good at it. Magnus is a joker too.
Team Norway’s funny guy #1: Aryan Tari! (Source: Wikipedia)
…and their funny guy #2: The World Champion himself! (Source: Tisdall’s Facebook)
[bctt tweet=”The funniest guy in Team India!? Ramesh: Adhiban!” username=”FollowChessApp”]
[bctt tweet=”Tisdall: Aryan kept trying to convince us his Iranian roots made it impossible for him to concentrate against Iran #funny” via=”no”]
Team’s workaholic…
All of them work really really hard.
I don’t think we have one. No one overdoes it. Both Norway and Magnus have a more pleasure-driven approach to learning, so we tend to have playaholics.
The philosopher…
Harikrishna
I suggest Nicolai Getz. He’s very calm and reflective.
[bctt tweet=”Philosopher in Team India? Ramesh: Harikrishna” username=”FollowChessApp”]
[bctt tweet=”Philosopher in Team Norway? Tisdall: Nicolai Getz! Very calm and reflective” username=”FollowChessApp”]
The biggest foodie…
Adhiban
Me. You may want a player, but I think this one is clear. I have even worked at a stove!
Adhiban: “Hmm… Lemme see… What should I have for dinner tonight…” (Source: Facebook – Gopakumar Sudhakaran)
Who do you think would fare the best in a show like Fear Factor?
Vidit
Magnus, purely on competitive grounds.
Vidit: “I knew I’d be chosen!” (Source: chess.com)
Team’s favourite pastime at Baku…
Walking together as a team and sharing the fun and pains.
Swimming pool meetings would be my guess.
(Co-authored by Shubham Kumthekar and WFM Rucha Pujari)
For Team Norway, the recently-concluded Baku Olympiad turned out to be a beautiful tale. Spearheaded by World Champion Magnus Carlsen, the Norwegians racked up a historic 5th position, booking a World Team Championship berth for themselves in the process. The ever-colourful Jonathan Tisdall, known for his witty ways, captained this record-breaking young brigade. Post-Baku, we were fortunate enough to catch up with Jonathan, who talks about what went on behind-the-scenes, the World Teams and his love for Shogi in this intriguing interview.
Norway’s captain – Jonathan Tisdall (Source: Susan Polgar Twitter – @SusanPolgar)
Shubham Kumthekar:Hello Jonathan! It’s been a few weeks since the Baku Olympiad came to a close, where the Norwegian team racked up a historic 5th position. Being the captain of this amazing team, how good are you feeling? 🙂
Jonathan Tisdall: I’m still very pleasantly surprised! The biggest feeling now is wondering how to get ready for our unexpected prize of direct qualification for the World Team Championship.
SK:How did you guys approach the Olympiad – was there a specific strategy in place?
JT: I think that might be easy to spot – the team wanted to try playing with a minimum of rotation, to ‘top the team’ as much as possible. This was risky as Norway has had a history of fading in the final rounds.
Young but formidable – The Norway Chess Team. (Source: chess-results.com)
SK: Following a slow start, your team turned things around beautifully in the second half. What, according to you, made the difference?
JT: Magnus warmed up, and the team introduced a few daily routines to strengthen togetherness. Also, they are physically fit, which is very important for Magnus.
Team Peru (L) vs Team Norway (R) from Round 7. Starting with crucial victories over Turkey and Peru in Rounds 6 & 7 respectively, the Norwegian unit racked up a scintillating finish. (Source: Susan Polgar Twitter – @SusanPolgar)
SK: In the final round match against India, a victory for either of the teams would mean an outside chance of making a podium finish. What was Team Norway’s approach going into this big encounter?
JT: Magnus said jokingly (?) before the Olympiad that plan A was to try to win on every board. Norway just played. There were no fancy – neutralise their whites, focus all the efforts on board X – type strategies. Everyone fights and tries to make the most of the chances they get.
SK: What was Magnus’ influence like on the team?
JT: Supreme. He uses a lot of energy being the team leader, and works to inspire and gather the team, advise and relax them. I think, it is one of the reasons he is yet to over-perform in a team event – he feels immense responsibility and gives away some of the energy he needs. In Baku, this was more true than ever, but it also went better than ever. Of course, he also led by being fully focused on his games – his concentration was better than ever for a team event.
[bctt tweet=”Tisdall: Magnus uses a lot of energy being the team leader, and works to inspire and gather the team..” via=”no”]
Team Norway’s spearhead – World Champion Magnus Carlsen (Source: Lennart Ootes Twitter – @LennartOotes)
SK: How did you go about captaining the team?
JT: I adopted a policy of being a safety valve. I smoothed out any distractions, problem-solved, but in the background, off-the-board matters. We have the world champion on the team, no other expertise is needed. His understanding of sporting psychology is also about as good as his chess.
If any conflict should arise, I could be an authority figure, but the bottom line was to trust the team and Magnus fully, and to let them get on with it. I was the water boy and a friendly ear, and stayed in constant touch.
SK: What, in your opinion, distinguishes effective team captains from the rest?
JT: I think there are many styles, depending on the team. Some need to be the trainer types, some inspire or set a mood, some are managers, some a combination of these. Knowing what your team needs, and when to stay the hell out of the way, are two skills I would highlight. Of course the job demands, say, of Ivan Sokolov for Iran, were completely different from mine. Having an active world champion changes the equations.
Last-minute talks… (Source: Susan Polgar Twitter – @SusanPolgar)
SK: This impressive finish at Baku has also guaranteed Norway a spot in the World Team Championship to be held next year. How huge is it for you and the boys and how do you plan to approach it?
JT: Every time I think about it, it gets bigger. It will be a historic event for Norway. Honestly, the first stage is to secure funding. Despite the chess boom, the Norwegian Federation doesn’t have a lot of funds. The first goal is to play in the World Teams without having to scrimp on the Euro Teams later in the year. Ideally, we would be able to afford some serious preparation.
SK: Let’s backtrack. How did your chess journey begin?
JT: I learnt very young at my father’s knee, and started playing in tournaments when I was about 11. Things went forward very quickly – at first.
SK: What were the key moments in your journey towards the Grandmaster title?
JT: I had the worst competitive psychology on Earth, which is why it took so long, and why I became better known as a trainer/writer. My key moments were not giving up.
SK: Which of your tournament victories/achievements stand closest to your heart?
JT: Winning the Reykjavik Open. (Ed. – 1996)
SK: Is it true that you like and play Shogi? When and how did you get acquainted with the game?
JT: I love Shogi, but don’t really play it, no time. I learnt it at my father’s knee as well, but became very interested in Shogi when I decided to use it to regain the ‘beginner’s mind’ while I was writing ‘Improve Your Chess Now’ and wanted to remember how it felt to be inexperienced as a player.
The initial setup of Shogi, also known as Japanese Chess. (Source: Wikipedia)
SK: Any plans of learning other variants like Xiangqi and Go? 🙂
JT: No! Go is too abstract for me, and for some reason I find Xiangqi very hard to grasp, the most elusive of the chess variants. I was just chatting to Simen Agdestein who is writing a book about these games. He fell for Go, but completely agreed with me about Xiangqi. We couldn’t understand what made it so difficult.
SK: While we are on chess variants, let’s talk about a variant within western chess, namely Chess 960. What are your views about it?
JT: I have a feeling it might become a big thing in the future. That is if no one seriously turns the computers on it as well.
[bctt tweet=”GM Tisdall on Chess960: I have a feeling it might become a big thing in the future ” username=”FollowChessApp”]
SK: With all the experience you bring to the table, what would you like to tell aspiring players aiming to make it big in today’s competitive chess environment?
JT: My experience doesn’t extend to today’s environment! But, I think the most obvious thing that doesn’t seem to be common practice these days is that endgame knowledge should be a higher educational/training priority. Time limits keep getting faster, and so you are never going to have the time needed to think properly at the end.
[bctt tweet=”GM Tisdall: Endgame knowledge should be a higher educational/training priority” username=”FollowChessApp”]
It has been few weeks since the Baku Olympiad, and we caught up with the captain of the Indian Open team – Grandmaster RB Ramesh. We asked him questions on the Olympiad and the crucial moments, Indian Chess, how should a player improve, and more. A very well known personality, Ramesh needs no introduction. A simple man with high ideals, he is unarguably one of the best coaches in India. We are grateful to him for sharing his opinions and insights.
Indian Open Team at the Baku Olympiad. From left to right: Captain RB Ramesh, Sethuraman SP, Karthikeyan Murali, Vidit Gujrathi, Adhiban B, Harikrishna P
Rucha Pujari: Great performance by Team India at the Baku Olympiad. How did the team approach the tournament, and how did it go?
Ramesh RB: Thank you very much. It was indeed a great performance from the young Indian team at Baku. Regarding the team’s approach, it was mostly about taking each match individually and trying to score as many points as possible on each board/match. All the players were in good form and very confident about their abilities. That made the job easier.
RP: How was the board order chosen? How did the team work together during the tournament and before the games?
Ramesh: We discussed few options and decided to go with the rating order this time around. Basically we discuss what is the best possible board order to field once the pairing is known. These days, preparations are done mostly with Laptops plus personal cloud computers/servers of individual players at the top level. Each player has his own opening material and if there are some lines that need to be checked, some problem lines were new ideas need to be found then myself and the player who is not playing will try to come up with some ideas which can be used in that game. Mostly, pregame preparation is about revising vast material which the player already has and plugging the holes that may arise in few variations. In many cases, some playerswill have some new ideas or some interesting options and they share with other players. This way the players help each other to find optimum lines to be employed in that particular game.
RP: There may have been a lot of crucial moments. Can you share some of them? How did you overcome them?
Ramesh: Against Cuba, one of our player had some issues with an opening and we found some idea at the very last moment and luckily it appeared on the board and we won an important game. Though the idea was not dangerous, it was tough to handle it over the board and it worked in our favor!
At times some player feels dejected after a painful loss and is not in the mood to play the next game and there is a slight loss of confidence in one’s ability. I try to keep the players in good frame of mind and talk to the concerned player during a walk and cheer them up. Since lot of the issue involve players, it would be better we don’t go into the specifics.
Fortunately, we didn’t have too many crisis moments. Players in general were in good form throughout, except in few cases were the last 3 rounds proved to be tougher than expected and didn’t go in our way.
Captain Cool. Source: Ramesh’s Facebook
RP: You have contributed so much to Indian Chess. Let us go back. How did you start playing Chess and when did you decide to take up Chess as a career?
Ramesh: I started playing chess at the relatively later age of twelve years in December 1988. Anand becoming GM was the inspiration. It was initially more like a hobby but when I started winning some tournaments I started to take it more seriously. When I qualified for National A (current national premier) in 1995-96, I realized I should probably take this as my career option.
RP: How was the transformation from a player, towards becoming a trainer for you?
Ramesh: It was kind of smooth for me, the transition from player to trainer. I had worked with my wife Aarthie in 1998 and She went on to win the World under 18 Girls Championship in Spain in 1999. This gave me lot of confidence and I realized I could become a good trainer if I put in more effort. I went as coach for the Indian Junior team in 1998 for Asian Junior Championship at Iran. That was a good break for me.
Later I worked a player who went on to become a GM within a short span of one year (would prefer to keep the name confidential).
I started working with a lot of talented youngsters and most of them if not all started improving rapidly and that gave me lot of confidence in my abilities as a coach. I started to study a lot, work much harder in preparing good training material myself and tried to upgrade myself constantly so I can fulfill any requirement from the student. This is very exciting and I learnt a lot about myself, chess and about various issues that bother upcoming players and how to effectively solve them.
The evergreen positive Ramesh
RP: How do you look at the current Indian and Global Chess scenario?
Ramesh: Indian chess, in general, is looking very bright and has huge potential. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for Women chess in India. There are not enough talents coming up in Women chess to replace the older generation of players. Something drastic needs to be done here. Among men, we can see lot of young kids doing well and the average age of Indian men team is getting younger and the average age of Women team is getting older.
There is lot of scope for improvement in how things are run in India. I have shared my views on this in my Facebook post.
Globally, Chess is also getting younger, players are earning more at some level and the same cannot be said for all level of players. There is a mismatch there which probably is because there are too many good players and not enough money to cater to the need of everyone.
The game is becoming more technology driven. The advancements in Hardware and software play a huge role in the quality of the player’s preparation.
Lot of new avenues have opened up for those who are interested in Chess to make a living. For example, there are more websites, more authors who write books, produce DVD’s, Video lectures, online commentators, coaches, clubs, academies, organizers, etc.
Chess is going through an exciting stage were some things are going in right direction while some or not!
The Facebook post mentioned above, where Ramesh shared his views on Indian Chess.
[bctt tweet=”Ramesh: Indian chess, in general, is looking very bright and has huge potential” username=”FollowChessApp”]
RP: How long do you think it will take for India to produce another World Champion, after VishyAnand?
Ramesh: I think we are going to see in future that no single player can dominate the game for very long, as was the case in the past. Probably Carlsen will be the last of the World dominating players.
In such a scenario, we should be happy if we can produce more 2750+ players in the next 5 years and take it from there. We have a large base of young strong players and if they are properly groomed and opportunities provided, we should have at least 10 players in 2700+ in next 10 years if not more.
RP: What does it take to become a world class player? How can a player improve his game independently?
Ramesh: There is no correct answer to this question! Tremendous amount of love for the game, self-belief, hard work, good memory, tough nerves, ability to raise after bad results, higher level of learning capacity, opportunities to play in strong tournaments regularly at every level, proper training, good hardware/software, financial muscle, support from school and parents, high level of competition among fellow players from young age etc.
These days a combination of individual work and good training is crucial to make rapid progress from young age and sustain it over a longer period. A player should be constantly assessing his/her strengths and weaknesses and make appropriate changes in the way they prepare at home and play in tournaments.
It is better to not settle down into a fixed method of preparing and remain flexible to make constant changes to how and what a player prepares at home. One should work on areas he/she is already good at and also work more on areas one is not so good at. One should also possess the skill of unlearning the bad qualities they have cultivated over the years. Problems like poor time management during the game, inefficient preparation where a player spends more time but learns less, poor concentration, not having a plan while preparing, unwillingness to acknowledge one’s weak areas and resolving them, spoiling the whole tournament after a painful or unexpected loss, worrying too much about result, too much focus on ratings going up and down, lack of interest in learning new areas, poor self-esteem, inability to handle tough situations are some of the common problems that prevent a promising player from making it big.
Parents should not have unrealistic expectations from their children without proper foundation to base their expectations on. Ability to spend money is not a criterion to expect great things from their children in Chess. Personally I have seen that many parents play a crucial role in ensuring their child does not reach their potential as a result of unrealistic expectations, looking for instant success, unwillingness to go through the grind, impatience, over emphasis on ratings, judging the child on game to game basis, not paying attention to how hard the child works, not being supportive when the child requires it, being overly critical and damaging a child’s self-esteem etc..
Many parents think, sending a child to a good coach is their magical wand and their role ends with it. A player becomes successful mostly because of his/her own effort, involvement, learning, etc.. Parents and Coaches only facilitate this process. Parents should also play the role of a good mentor as the child spends most of the time with them. A child should be taught the value of hard work, self-belief, learning, changing, experimenting, making mistakes and learning from them, overcoming losses, keep aiming higher etc..
[bctt tweet=”Ramesh: Many parents think, sending a child to a good coach is their magical wand and their role ends with it” via=”no”]
RP: You have trained and shaped so many players and youngsters, who have went on to become Grand masters and International masters. What goes on in your academy Chess Gurukul? How is Chess studied differently there?
Ramesh: Thanks. We don’t focus too much on results and instead try to teach our students to focus more on the effort they put in learning and getting stronger as a player. A player should learn to think better, analyse a position better, manage time better, and trust that the effort we put will never go wasted and will be rewarded at the right time.
We try to focus in all areas of the game and cultivate an overall positive personality to the player. A player should not feel inadequate in any area of the game. We try to teach our students to enjoy competition, accept that tough moments make us tougher, be as hopeful as possible at all times especially when things are not going the way we want them to, not to play only for results but also to experiment, to try new things, to learn new things, new approaches to one’s thinking process. With each move and each game we learn something new about our self and strive to get better.
A selfie at Chess Gurukul. Source: Ramesh’s Facebook
RP: What challenges do you face as a coach? What changes can you suggest as regard to grassroot chess coaching in India?
Ramesh: Main challenge is not being able to spend as much time individually as I would like to spend with my students. Almost every day someone is playing in some tournament or other. They are going through good times or extremely testing times on daily basis and as their coach I have to respond in appropriate manner. Less time for family or self is another issue. But these also make me a better person, force me to be on the alert all the time. I try keep myself as up to date as possible in all areas of the game. Sometimes, a talented player will not be in a financial position to afford the coaching fees. When a child is not putting enough effort at home and stop making progress it is a toughest moment as a coach.
Currently, most of the top players in India are still active players and not spend much time in sharing their knowledge with the next generations. When that starts to happen more we will have many good coaches who can cater to the needs of all levels of players. Currently there are lot of good coaches at the lower level. But once a student reaches a certain level the coach finds himself to be inadequate.
If the players feel there is enough money to be made as a coach on a long term basis we will have more players turning into full time coaches. For this to happen, governments at State and Central level should reward good coaches financially in relation to their student’s achievements. That in itself will be a regular source of income for good coaches.
More training camps for coaches should be organized. Coaches should make effort to upgrade themselves and teach what is good for the players instead of teaching only the things that know currently. Coaching should not be done only for money but also a holistic approach helps in being a good coach.
RP: You are married to Aarthie Ramaswamy, and are the first Grand master couple of India! Can you share your story with us? How often do you play Chess at home? 🙂
Ramesh: Well, being married to a strong chess player helps a lot at home. Aarthie understands that I have to spend lot of time with my students. Sometimes I will be sad when my students are going through tough times and be in my own world. I am very emotionally involved with my students so their ups and downs affect me lot though I try not to show them to my students. As a player herself, Aarthie understands all these well and give me the space to be myself.
Aarthie is one of the main reason for whatever little I have achieved as a coach. I had to quit my job at some point in my life and She encouraged me to be what I wanted to be though the financial prospects did not look bright. She handles all the administrative work herself leaving me to focus on my students to the best of my ability. I don’t play chess at all anymore except lot of blitz with my students. At home we try to lead a normal family life and keep chess away as much as possible but that is difficult!
Ramesh and Aarthie are first Grandmaster couple of India!
RP: What would be your message for the upcoming players?
Ramesh: Believe in yourselves, work really hard. Hard work does not mean more work but sincere work. Play chess because you like it, don’t give too much importance than required to results. Show interest in learning everything about chess, accept the good and bad things that come with it. Never doubt your hard work, it will always help you when you need it the most.[bctt tweet=”Believe in yourselves, work really hard. Hard work does not mean more work but sincere work.” username=”FollowChessApp”]
RP: Finally, if you had the power to change one thing in this world, what will you change?
Ramesh: Myself! I will want to be a better person than what I am now, be more rewarding to the society, contribute more to my student’s progress, make my family more happy. [bctt tweet=”Ramesh: I will want to be a better person than what I am now, be more rewarding to the society…” username=”FollowChessApp”]
A few weeks back, Kenya witnessed a Chess bonanza – the Nairobi Gymkhana Millionaire Chess Open. Kim Bhari, a prominent Kenyan organizer, handled a couple of aspects of this breakthrough event, which was graced by GM Maurice Ashley himself. In this interview, Kim speaks about this amazing tournament, a few upcoming Kenyan talents, Chess activities in Kenya, and his unique, creative hobby!
(Source: Kim Bhari)
Shubham Kumthekar: Hello Kim! The Nairobi Edition of the Millionaire Chess came to a conclusion a few weeks ago. Can you tell us something about the event? How did it go?
KB: The event was a resounding success with over 190 players taking part. Kenyan chess players were delighted to have GM Maurice Ashley in Nairobi. His commentary thrilled the huge crowd that was following the games.
SK: Speaking about Grandmaster Maurice Ashley, how huge was Grandmaster Maurice Ashley’s support and his presence at the event? 🙂
KB: Chess players were delighted by his presence. But what’s more important is what he did outside of Millionaire Chess. GM Ashley visited Sports Outreach Programme which is located within one of the disadvantaged areas in Nairobi. Here, he interacted with many young chess players and inspired them as well.
Maurice Ashley interacting with Kenyan school kids. (Source: Kim Bhari)
SK: An event like this involves a lot of behind the scenes work. How did the team hit upon having an event of this stature and how did the timeline unfold?
KB: The event was run by Nairobi Gymkhana Club and Waridi Chess Ventures. The main sponsor was Kasparov Chess Foundation but a number of other sponsors also came onboard including East African Contractors, Isinya Feeds, Filmline, Masai (K) Ltd and AMS Properties, Terrian Chess Academy and Kenya Chess Masala.
I was involved in the event only with respect to getting the registration portal and carrying the live transmission of the top 5 boards.
Two remarkable organisers! (Source: Kim Bhari)
SK:CM Wachira Wachania of Kenya emerged as the winner of the first edition of this unique event. Please tell us something about the champion 🙂
KB: CM Wachira Wachania is a 38-year-old player and has represented Kenya in the 2006 Turin Olympiad where he scored 50% and obtained the CM title. He is a businessman and a father of two boys.
Wachira Wachania scored a perfect 5/5 to emerge victorious at the Nairobi Gymkhana Millionaire Chess Open. Here, he is seen receiving the prize from GM Maurice Ashley and Mr Arun Jain, Chairman of Nairobi Gymkhana. (Source: Kim Bhari)
SK: Who are some of the brightest young talents from Kenya?
KB: Riya Shah, who is 16 years old, will be representing Kenya at her 2nd Olympiad in Baku. She is the current Kenyan Women’s National Champion.
The other youngsters are Timothy Mbabu (13) & Sumit Deshpande (15), both of whom are rising rapidly.
WFM Riya Shah, rated 1551, is the current Kenyan Women’s National Champion. (Source: Nairobi Chess Club – Facebook)
SK: How popular is chess in Kenya?
KB: It is still not as popular as I would like it to be. There are various reasons for this. Nairobi Chess Club was formed in 1958 and it remained the only organization until 1976 when the Kenya Chess Association was registered.
Chess is a fringe sport and has only recently started to get some government attention.
SK: You’ve been an active player yourself, having represented Kenya at the 1998 Elista Olympiad. How far has Kenyan Chess and African Chess come in all these years?
KB: I was the Vice Chairman of the Kenya Chess Association and left in 1999, only resuming getting involved in chess in 2007. Kenyan chess is now growing rapidly over the past 3 to 4 years. The main reasons have been the new chess officials, who have been much more supportive of the many chess organizers promoting the game in various regions.
Some of the names that come to mind are Weru Watson in Nyeri who regularly hosts events with over 300 kids, Andrew Owili who organizes the Kisumu Open, Humphrey Nyongesa who organizes the Bungoma Open, Erick Oyugi of Sports Outreach and Daystar University. Other organisations include Terrian Chess Academy and Nairobi Chess Academy, with both of them being accredited by FIDE.
Besides, over the past 10 years, the Kenyan Government has been supportive of chess by providing funding for teams to travel to various events.
Another reason for the rapid growth of Kenyan Chess has been the advent of Facebook and Twitter. These social platforms have done wonders in terms of publicity and promotion.
The official logo of Kenya Chess Masala, Kim Bhari’s brainchild. Through the Kenya Chess Masala website and its Facebook and Twitter pages, Kim has done wonders with respect to bringing Kenyan Chess to the fore. (Source: http://www.kenyachessmasala.com/about)
There has also been great support from the Kasparov Chess Foundation in terms of Kasparov’s visit to Nairobi in July 2014, GM Nigel Short’s visit in 2015 and the donation of 5,000 chess sets.
FIDE has also been very helpful in the recent past, as we had GM Georg Mohr who conducted a Trainers’ Seminar where over 20 Kenyans obtained certification. Kenya has also received a subsidy of over Euro 7,000 to facilitate the team’s travel to the 2016 Baku Olympiad.
SK: You’ve been involved in Kenyan chess administration and organization for well over 20 years now. Can you tell us something about being ‘behind the curtains’?
KB: I was a Committee Member of the Kenya Chess Association from 1994 to 1996 and then Vice Chairman until 1999. I just seemed to be lucky in those days in attracting sponsors. I managed to get Hindu Council of Kenya, Delphis Bank (now M Oriental Bank), International Casino as sponsors for various events during that period.
I was voted out of office in 1999 (KCA) and concentrated on my business and MBA exams. I returned to chess administration in 2007 and decided to run all the activities via Nairobi Chess Club which has continued till date. I have been Chairman of the Nairobi Chess Club since 1993.
Kim with the prize winners of the recently concluded 58th Nairobi Chess Club Championship. (Source: Kim Bhari – Facebook)
I have found it much easier to get things done at club level as the pressure is less and it is much easier to organize.
We organised the first internet match in Kenya wherein ‘Kenya Simbas’ played the famous ‘Wageningen Chess Club’ of Holland. We also organised GM Dimitri Reinderman to visit Nairobi in 2011 and the “Battle for Migingo” between Uganda and Kenya, which was held twice.
SK: What, according to you, are the prerequisites of a good tournament?
KB: Planning, planning, planning! The other key points are good time-keeping and making sure that players who register on the day of the event play from round 2. This was a problem from many years ago and it is only now that players realise that some organisers will take entries on the day of the event but the players will start in round 2.
Honesty is another important point. If you promise a cash prize of “x” then you must pay “x” and not something else.
Willing to fund the event from your pocket at all times. There have been many events where the financial planning goes wrong when the number of players are not what you budgeted for and then the event makes a loss.
Transparency – At the end of every chess tournament I put up a summary of the income & expenditure for all to see what happened on the financial side. I have seen that potential sponsors like this disclosure.
Marketing – This is another vital aspect which must start at least 6-8 weeks before the event. I use Facebook and Twitter to do this for all my events.
SK: Last but not the least, with the Chess Olympiad round the corner, what do you think about Kenya’s chances?
KB: There has a lot of political wrangling which will affect the results. One of our key players CM Ben Magana has pulled out of the team due to personal reasons and this will affect the team.
Blitzkreig!
SK: Your favourite cuisine(s).
KB: Indian & Greek.
SK: Three must-visit places in Kenya.
KB: South Coast, Mombasa (beautiful beaches), Masai Mara (during the migration) and Samburu Game Reserve.
SK: Other games or sports that you follow.
KB: Hockey.
SK: Hobbies!
KB: Trying to improve my cartooning skills!
Kim Bhari, the cartoonist, at work 🙂 (Source: Kim Bhari – Facebook)
We caught up with Grandmaster Abhijeet Gupta for an interview just after he won the Commonwealth Chess Championship, which was held at Sri Lanka, Aug 2016. A renowned personality and a passionate Chess player, Bhaiyyu as he is called in Chess circles, opens up about Chess, life and more.
We are thankful to him for giving us his time and for sharing his experiences with us. Read on.
Victorious moment of winning the Commonwealth Chess Championship 2016. Photo Courtesy: Ruwan Gunaratne’s Facebook
Rucha Pujari: First of all, Congratulations Abhijeet on your recent Commonwealth victory, how do you feel?
Abhijeet Gupta: Thank you so much! I feel nice and it feels nice generally to win tournaments. But it is not like I am on the top of the world but it feels nice as I managed to come back from a disastrous start.
RP: You were the defending Champion, how confident were you when you started in Waskaduwa and how did you approach your games?
AG: I think until round four I was quite confident, but a draw with Aakanksha and I started doubting myself because I thought like one more draw and it won’t be enough as I then have to score 5 out of 5. As the tie break was number of wins, 7.5 with three draws wouldn’t be good enough. So there was some pressure after this point, but also I felt some sort of relief because I knew I have to win all the games, there was not much choice.
RP: You have been a very consistent player, can you share with us some of your secrets to success?
AG: To be honest, I don’t consider myself as consistent. (laughs) Because seriously, I have my ups and downs. If you look at my rating graph it is not straight line, I gain and I also lose some at times. You can’t call someone who loses some 20 points in one tournament, consistent. You can call someone consistent who may be gaining less, but gaining all the time. That’s what I think.
Very Focused. Source: Abhijeet’s Facebook
RP: How do you train regularly? How much importance do you give to physical fitness?
AG: I think fitness is important. If we talk about Sri Lanka, I used to spend time swimming, playing table tennis, going to morning walks on the beach. I feel if you are doing all these exercises, any sort of physical activity, automatically your brain also relaxes.
When I am at home, usually I like to get up early, start working by 10-10.30. Take a break at lunch, then again work till 5-6, workout for an hour.
Generally I try to put in as much work as I can, even if I can’t follow a routine. I see that I put 5-6 hours of work in a day on Chess.
I normally work on my own, I have a permanent coach, you must be knowing Vishal. Sometimes we work together, he helps me once in a while.
RP: How is your relationship with Vishal Sareen?
AG: He is more like a brother to me than coach. You can say our relationship has changed over the years, first he was a coach when I was very young. I started with him when I was fifteen. It’s been like more than eleven years now, and now we are at such a stage that I can talk with him about various things in life.
RP: Coming to the topic of Indian Chess, what are the changes that you observed personally in the last ten years?
AG: The good thing that I have seen about Indian Chess is that, first of all we have many Grandmasters now. Then we have many young players, who have a lot of potential. So, it is nice to see that of course. Ten years ago this was different, now we have many upcoming players who can become GM’s and WGM’s, so it is a nice change.
RP: You have travelled a lot and played in many tournaments. Based on your international experience, what will be three things you would like to suggest to make Chess in India better?
AG: First of all we don’t have this concept of stars. I mean in any Sport you have a star and by that you attract all sort of money, players, you know. In Indian Chess I think we believe in mass. It is a good thing that we have many players who are strong, but it is also true that apart from Anand and Harikrishna no player has been able to cross the 2700 barrier.
It brings me to the next point. The reason behind that is that we don’t play enough against very strong opposition, we do play once in a while. But to develop, you have to play against them consistently. For that we should have more elite level tournaments or leagues.
In a way it also helps the whole Chess community because now we have one Anand right, if this plan goes on Harikrishna will become a more renowned personality in India. And see, any Sport gets popular because of one guy. In any field if you see, people follow that way. In Chess we only have Anand right now. If we get more personalities like that I am sure more sponsors will come, more players will come, more kids will take up Chess and all those things.
Then we should have at least one tournament, maybe like National Championships which should attract all big players.
RP: Moving on to the next question, which are some of the Chess books that you like and that have helped you to make progress?
AG: I really liked My System by Nimzowitsch, but that was 10-15 years ago. The last time I read it I was around 2400. It’s a book that you will like as a beginner, and there is something new to learn every time you come back to it.
Recently I read this Gelfand’s Positional Decision making in Chess and it left a deep impression on me. I finished it in one sitting, when I was travelling to some tournament. Also I liked Learn from the Legends by Marin.
RP: You have an amazing fighting spirit. How do you motivate yourself to keep giving your best?
AG: It is actually the other way around. Normally when I lose a game, it obviously affects me. But I have this attitude that it is not the end of the world. This thing, I think improves with experience. My attitude is that this is just a game.
Always positive and taking one thing at a time. Source: Abhijeet’s Facebook
RP: How do you handle defeats and such situations?
AG: Umm, let us talk about this particular tournament. When I drew with Aakanksha, I got really upset as I was even White, just out of mind and I was just not myself. I didn’t do much about it then, played table tennis, went for a swim, slept early. And yeah next day although it was not a very nice game I managed to win. Last three games I feel that I did not play so bad. First part was terrible, I was lucky to score 5/6. But last three games you can say that, I didn’t make any mistakes at least.
RP: So talking about your fighting spirit, do you think it comes naturally to you or it is something you have built up over years?
AG: I think I have built up over the years. For me every game is a new game, it doesn’t matter what has happened. When I won the Commonwealth, or generally if you could see from my facial expressions, I won’t be like too happy or all those things. Life goes on. I don’t get into pressure so much, even when I have to win the last game or all those things.
RP: Which was your most memorable moment of your career?
AG: Winning the World Juniors was definitely one of them. Also winning the Indian Championship meant a lot to me. And this year winning the Reykjavik Open also felt good, as there were many strong players and I crashed the field. So I will go for these three, in that order.
Apart from the tournaments, winning the Arjuna Award was very memorable for me.
RP: You have achieved a lot of milestones in your career. Looking ahead, what is your next personal goal?
AG: I would like to cross 2700 because I was close a couple of times like 2660-70. And somehow, okay you called me consistent but I feel I am not as consistent as I want to be. So this consistency part, I would like to be more consistent (laughs). Also I want to break in top 100. I am putting efforts, let’s see.
Crossing 2700 and breaking into top 100 are Abhijeet’s next goals.
RP: What would be your message for upcoming players?
AG: Enjoy the game, you have to be passionate. You have to be passionate about playing Chess or anything you do in life. If you ask me, I am like if I don’t see Chess for one day I feel like I have wasted my day. So you have to find something in life you can’t live without and if Chess is that one thing, I am sure you will do well. And never lose hope, I have seen many people losing a game or playing bad in one tournament, they will lose hope and want to quit Chess. It has happened to me as well. But I am sure if you are passionate, if you love something you will definitely come back and it will actually make you stronger, as a person and as a player.
Blitzkrieg!
RP: Which according to you, is the best Chess game played so far?
AG: One of the recent game I saw is Carlsen – Kramnik, it was a blitz game I think, anti – Berlin where Carslen takes his king out.
AG: Sports, I am a biggest sports enthusiast. Music, so mostly these two. And yes I do like to read too.
RP: Which Olympics Sports are you following keenly?
AG: Literally everything, like A to Z. I like to follow all sports, but it is also about the stars. I like to see Phelps swimming, Bolt running, such particular stars. I like to see Neymar playing for Brazil. And I also really like to watch our Indian players compete.
RP: Have you tried Pokemon Go?
AG: No, actually in my city it is not that active, we don’t have that many Pokemons. And on IOS you still can’t play officially you know. So yeah, I haven’t played yet but I have heard about the game and people playing it. I would love to try, but I simply can’t do right now (laughs).
RP: Movies which you can go back to again and again are…?
AG: Oh, Departed. Then Dark Knight, Chak De.
RP: Carlsen or Karjakin?
AG: Carlsen, any day.
RP: Okay and lastly, what do you liked to be called Abhijeet or Bhaiyyu?
AG: What’s there in name? As long as people are calling me, I don’t mind. (laughs)
A couple of weeks back, Grandmaster Vidit Santosh Gujrathi won the Lake Sevan Tournament, a category 16 event with talented young Grandmasters competing, for the second time in his career. An affable person that he is, Vidit readily agreed for an interview with us and went on to talk about his victory, the Indian Chess Team, his first steps into the Chess world, and much more!
(Source: sevan.chessacademy.am)
Shubham Kumthekar:Hello Vidit! Hearty congratulations on winning the Lake Sevan tournament for the second time. How good does it feel?
Vidit Gujrathi: It feels great to win such a strong tournament. It had been a long time since I won an individual tournament, which made this win even more special.
SK: This tournament is traditionally characterized by a field of young and upcoming strong Grandmasters, which leads to meaty play more often than not. How do you approach a closed event like this, where every player is willing to fight it out?
VG: It is definitely more fun! I had some plan before the tournament, but as it always happens, you never completely follow it. During the drawing of lots, I understood that I will play 5 blacks and 4 whites, so it meant that I had to try and put pressure in every game.
SK: Which one of your games from Lake Sevan did you like the most? Can you tell us something about it? VG: From a purely objective point of view, I was happy with my technique against Onischuk as it was my first win after a few draws. But, the game against Sevian from the penultimate round will definitely be the most memorable as it was a tough game that lasted 5.5 hours. A championship game which lasts this long, is for sure very stressful and nerve-racking 🙂
After a series of draws from Round 2 to 5, Vidit won a crucial game against Vladimir Onischuk in Round 6. (Source: sevan.chessacademy.am)
SK: Your results at the Lake Sevan tournaments have been noteworthy – an impressive victory in 2014, a respectable third place in 2015 and another victory this year. What is it that you like about the event or brings the best out of you?
VG: I always thought my chess playing style is more suited to Closed tournaments than Open events. Also, somehow I am more motivated to play when I play a strong GM every round.
SK: Now, let’s move to this picture! How did you end up here? 🙂
(Source: Lennart Ootes Twitter)
VG: I was seconding Anish for the Paris and Leuven legs of the Grand Chess Tour. (Editor: We did not probe Vidit more about his work with Anish due to the sensitivity of the topic.)
SK: You have been a key member of the Indian Chess team for quite some time now. The current team seems to be on a roll, with a historic Bronze at Olympiad 2014 and a memorable Gold at the recent Asian Nations Cup under its belt. What check-boxes are you guys ticking right?
VG: I think we, as a team, have developed a strong bond which helps us in team tournaments. We all, in the team, are good friends and get along very well. Also, our coach GM R B Ramesh always keeps us in good spirits.
The victorious Indian Chess Team at the Asian Nations Cup 2016. (Source: www.chessdom.com)
SK: Let’s backtrack. You hail from Nashik, a city not really known for producing titled players. How did your journey into the chess world begin and what challenges did you have to tackle?
VG: I started playing chess when I was about 7 years old. My dad taught me chess and whenever I lost to him, it angered me to learn more! There were a lot of challenges, but now it feels good that I got past them.
SK: You come across as a superbly prepared player. What is your approach to chess preparation?
VG: I feel I have improved my overall chess strength in the last few months. It is hard to exactly point out how I prepare, but recently I have been doing it in a more disciplined way.
SK: What, according to you, is the biggest achievement of your career so far?
VG: Winning two strong Category 16 tournaments. (Editor- Lake Sevan 2014 and Lake Sevan 2016)
Vidit had triumphed at the 2014 edition of Lake Sevan in convincing fashion. (Source: sevan.chessacademy.am)
SK: India is experiencing a ‘chess boom’ of sorts. However, what areas, in your opinion, need to be developed or improved upon?
VG: I think there have to be more opportunities. Few years ago, there used to be a lot of closed tournaments, which have completely stopped now. Closed tournaments really help in improving the game and I feel there is an urgent need for more such opportunities in India.
Blitzkrieg!
SK: Three things that you are generally found doing apart from Chess.
VG: Watch American TV shows, something related to technology, and as my friends say, I am with my phone.
SK: Your favourite cuisine.
VG: Italian
SK: If you could be an anime character for a day, who would you like to be?
VG: Tough question, I don’t like Anime anymore.
SK: If not a chess player, then …
VG: Something like a detective!
SK: The most influential movie quote you have ever come across.
VG: It’s from Rocky. “It ain’t about how hard you hit, but about how hard you get hit and keep moving forward!”
Next in our series we bring to you an interview with Harika Dronavalli, who has just won the Women’s Grand Prix at China. A very consistent and passionate Chess player, she is an inspiration for all of us. We are grateful to her for giving us her time, amidst her preparations for the next tournament.
(Courtesy: thenewsminute.com)
Rucha Pujari: Congratulations Harika on your recent Grand Prix victory. Amazing performance! Can you share with us how you prepared for this tournament? What was your aim before you entered the field?
Harika: Thank you. I didn’t do any special preparation specially for the tournament, but in general I continuously work on chess. I aimed to win the tournament but I didn’t think about it much during the event.
RP: What were the crucial stages for you during the tournament? How do you handle these situations and pressure during important games?
Harika: Game against Humpy (Koneru) was the most crucial one and it changed the whole tournament scenario. But most important one was the last game. I try to stay positive and focused during crucial situations but I should admit it’s very difficult.
Winning Round 7 was crucial for Harika (Courtesy: chengdu2016.fide.com)
RP: There have been discussions going on about the Women’s World Championship cycle – how do you look at the current format and what are your views?
Harika: Current cycle is a bit complicated for the spectators and may be a bit unfair for the player who wins the World Championship Match. But personally for me it doesn’t make difference. I just try to concentrate on chess and try to prove in every opportunity that is given.
RP: You are one of the only two women in India to have become a Grand master. How was your journey, and can you share with us some of the defining moments of your career?
Harika: If I look back at the journey, it feels so beautiful now but I had my ups and downs like for everyone. I tried to learn from the failures and never gave up on my goals. Most memorable ones are when I won my first National title, World youth title, Commonwealth titles, Asian Women title, World Juniors title, Asian Games medal, World online championship and of course the most precious Bronze medals in the world championship. Above all the most special one was when I received the Arjuna award, the prestigious sports award in the country.
RP: What does Harika like to do besides Chess? 🙂
Spending time with family & best friends, watch movies & serials, cooking, reading books.
Living in the moment (Courtesy: @HarikaDronavali)
RP: Next question is on behalf of all Chess players. How do you work on Chess? How much importance do you give to other factors like diet, fitness and psychology?
All the other factors are very important and I try to work on chess and fitness everyday.
RP: A lot of people are following your games. They want to know where you are playing next.
Chinese league, Olympiad, Grandprix and World Blitz Rapid championships.
(Courtesy: Harika’s Facebook)
RP: What would be your piece of advice to aspiring players?
Believe yourself. Aim high and don’t give up on your dreams at any given situation.
Blitzkrieg!
RP: Do you have a favorite movie?
Harika: Chak de (India)
RP: Summer or winter?
Harika: Summer, Anyday 🙂
RP: The book you are currently reading is…?
Harika: Total Recall
RP: If you were to be a chess piece, which would you want to be and why?
Harika: Queen because very powerful and most important.
Starting with this post, we, at Follow Chess, will be kicking off our interview section, wherein we will bring across various interesting personalities from the chess world, be it the players, the organisers or other stalwarts from the chess fraternity. While the chess stuff will traditionally form the integral part, we will also be aiming to make the interviews as fun as possible. A set of offbeat questions, collectively named the ‘Blitzkrieg’, will deal with the non-chess aspects, with the idea of highlighting the lighter side of these well known personalities.
To kick start the series, we bring to you an interview with the man himself – Viswanathan Anand! Vishy, who recently won the Leon Tournament, was extremely kind and readily agreed for an interview!
(Courtesy: Lennart Ootes)
Asim Pereira/Shubham Kumthekar: First of all, hearty congratulations on being awarded the honorary doctorate by IIT Kanpur. How good does it feel?
Viswanathan Anand: It feels very good. It is a great honour (to be awarded the doctorate). I really enjoyed my trip to IIT Kanpur.
AP/SK: This comes on the back of a 4th place at Leuven and a victory at Leon. What do you make of your play in these events?
VA: I was happy with my play in Leon. With Leuven, I did not know what to expect. I generally tend to evaluate my performance based on my results against the Berlin and I wasn’t very optimistic.
During the Leuven tournament, I was doing very well. However, I ended up giving far too many chances. I could have secured a higher position. But again, I can’t really double guess as to what could have happened. Overall, yes, I would have liked to score more.
Thinking Away: The Madras Tiger finished 4th at Leuven, which featured ten of the strongest current players. (Courtesy: Lennart Ootes Twitter)
AP/SK: You have now won the Ciudad de Leon tournament a record nine times. What is it about Leon that brings the best out of you?
VA: I like Leon. It is a nice and short tournament – usually lasting about 4 days. I also like the town a lot and have plenty of friends there. All in all, it feels really good.
This victory at Leon was my first in 5 years. I’m happy to have overcome Wei Yi in the final round.
By beating Wei Yi 2.5-1.5 in the Finals, Anand racked up yet another victory at Leon. (Courtesy: www.advancedchessleon.com)
AP: How was your post-game interaction with Wei Yi?
VA: It was quite limited. We briefly discussed a couple of variations … but couldn’t quite hang out with him…
AP/SK: You always seem to bounce back after a crucial loss, be it the World Championship match against Topalov, or Gelfand or the second match against Magnus. What is your secret? How do you ensure being in the best frame of mind before every game?
VA: (Laughs) Well, you are being very kind! I don’t think it’s always.
I will like to agree with you more, but let’s say you try to put it behind, you get a good night’s sleep and you start the next game. I mean, sometimes you just have to go through the motions as well and hope that it pays off. I don’t really think there is much of a secret!
AP/SK: Which events will you be playing next?
VA: I am playing St. Louis and then London after that.
AP: And then perhaps the Candidates directly? 😛
VA: Well, I will have to qualify again, so that will have to take place sometime next year. I don’t have to deal with that right now, but next year I will have to figure out how to qualify.
AP/SK: Let’s move to the hot topic – Brexit. You have been in Europe for a very long time, so how do you see it? Does this come as a surprise to you? How will it impact the Chess scene in Europe?
VA: I don’t know if it will affect Chess more that it will anything else. But for me it’s remarkable. For me it’s bizarre what they have done to themselves. Winning side didn’t expect to win at all. So they did not bother planning anything. And the losing side did not really plan on losing, they tried to be confident. At least from the outside, it looks like complete shambles and I get the impression that they were completely on their own. But maybe, on the inside, they are confident and they are not letting on, I don’t know. Anyway, it doesn’t make a very good impression.
AP/SK: You have been associated with the Olympic Gold Quest for quite some time and Rio Olympics are just around the corner. What do you think about India’s chances?
VA: I hope we will get more medals this time. All the athletes have put in a lot of efforts and they are quite promising in many of the categories. But from my own experience, when you play you always go there hoping for the best and you really don’t know what’s going to happen. But hopefully enough of our guys will do well. Any improvement on the last time will be good news.
The Olympic Gold Quest family, of which Anand is a key member. (Courtesy: OGQ Twitter)
AP: Will you be cheering them in Brazil?
VA: I don’t think so. I will be in St. Louis at least for some part of it (checks his dates) .. Yes, I will be unable to attend.
AP/SK: Away from Chess, what do you enjoy doing ?
VA: Generally, I chill.. I play with Akhil.. I do some Astronomy…
AP: (interrupts) busy watching your planet through the telescope?
VA: Yeah, right now it’s a very good view. You get Jupiter, Saturn, Mars, quite a nice sky!
I am also fond of movies. I liked Bridge of Spies very much. I also watched Kung Fu Panda 3 with Akhil (laughs). It’s a good movie. Then there is Angry Birds as well, but I was in Belgium at the time of its release, so I will have to catch up!
Blitzkrieg!
AP/SK: Do you cook?
VA: I can’t do any serious cooking. I can make ready-made pasta and stuff like that. I can manage!
AP/SK: Tea or coffee?
VA: Coffee in the morning and tea during the rest of the day.
AP/SK: Early bird or night owl?
VA: Bit of both actually. At tournaments, my schedule is pretty much midnight to nine in the morning. But in India, I wake up by 6.30-7, whenever Akhil wakes up!
AP/SK: If you could be a fictional character for a day, who would you like to be?
VA: (thinking)
AP/SK: Kung Fu Panda?
VA: (laughs) I don’t know, lets say it’s Kung Fu Panda! Will be of some use for me!
AP/SK: Vishy, obviously you have a massive fan following. But whom are you a big fan of?
VA: Lot of people. Right now, I am sort of rediscovering Muhammad Ali a bit. He was very impressive. I knew he was great, but recently when he passed, I have been watching all the YouTube videos and enjoying.
There are also those people you read about, you admire. Honestly, too many to name.
1) 
