Arjun Erigaisi breathed a sigh of relief after receiving his US visa to compete in the upcoming World Rapid and Blitz Championships in New York
Erigaisi also requested External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, Sports Minister Mansukh Mandaviya and the All India Chess Federation (AICF) to help him get the visa.
He bagged the Menorca Open crown in April, finished second in TePe Sigeman Chess Tournament in May and also finished joint-fifth in the Sharjah Masters Open tournament.
'He was like a sponge. He soaked up everything we taught him -- and when it came time to play, he'd squeeze out exactly what was needed on the board during tournaments.'
It was a huge drama on the opening day as World champion Magnus Carlsen of Norway lost on time from a winning position in the longest game of the day.
Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa lost to World Champion Ding Liren in the Armageddon tie-breaker after the two played out a draw under normal time control in the second round.
Viswanathan Anand defeated an out-of-sorts Alexander Grischuk while Magnus Carlsen sealed the title at the Altibox Norway chess tournament with a round to spare, in Stavanger. Anand's chances to be in top three had ended after he lost to American Fabiano Caruana in the previous round.
Teenaged Indian Grandmaster D Gukesh shot into sole lead after defeating Firouzja Alireza of France in the 13th and penultimate round of Candidates' Chess tournament in Toronto on Saturday, his quest for the extraordinary placing him on the cusp of becoming the youngest ever World Championship contender.
World Champion D Gukesh began his campaign at the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam tour with a mixed bag of results, including three draws and a lone loss, signaling that he is adapting to the new format.
Pragg, Gujrathi out of contention
Magnus Carlsen banged the table while his game against World Champion D Gukesh was still in progress, an act that violated chess conduct rules.
Teenaged Grandmaster D Gukesh shocked world number 5 Fabiano Caruana as India 'B' pulled off a superb 3-1 win over number 2 seeds USA in the eighth round of the Open section of the 44th Chess Olympiad in Mamallapuram, Chennai on Saturday.
India's D Gukesh bounced back with a finely crafted game to outwit compatriot Vidit Gujrathi and regain his joint lead with Ian Nepomniachtchi of Russia after the eighth round in the Candidates chess tournament in Toronto on Friday.
Gukesh tried his hands at the Ruy Lopez as white but did not get much against Praggnanandhaa. Both the teenagers have been showing great skills here against the world's best and there was nothing to choose between them when pieces flew off the board in tandem. The game was drawn in 41 moves.
Grandmaster R Praggnanadhaa played out a solid draw with World champion D Gukesh in the eighth round of the Tata Steel Masters.
Former world champion Viswanathan Anand's hunt for an elusive victory continued as he played out a draw with American Wesley So in the fifth round of the Altibox Norway chess tournament, in Stavanger on Sunday.
Another game to end through repetition of moves was between Gukesh and Gujrathi.
Gukesh had a fine run, beating Constantin Lupulescu and Saric after drawing with Richard Rapport in the day's first game.
Teen sensation R Praggnanandhaa will enter as the favourite among the three Indian participants in the Candidates chess tournament that will get underway in Toronto from Wednesday to decide the challenger for the next world championship match.
Gukesh will have to carry with him the tag of world champion and along with it loads of expectations and increased scrutiny. But the 19-year-old is prepared to stand in the limelight.
16-year old Praggnanandhaa halted his three-match losing streak to shock the higher-rated Vidit Gujrathi
India's Vidit Gujrathi drew with Jan-Krzysztof Duda of Poland to take his tally to four points after the sixth round of Tata Steel Chess Tournament 2022.
Grandmaster R Praggnanandhaa and Vidit Gujrathi scored crushing victories, while D Gukesh held on to the joint top spot with a draw in a brilliant sixth-round outing for the Indian men's team at the Candidates Chess Tournament in Toronto.
Indian Grandmaster Vidit Gujrathi crashed through the defences of world number three Hikaru Nakamura of United States, while R Praggnanandhaa went down to compatriot D Gukesh in the second round of Candidates chess tournament in Toronto.
Indian chess icon Viswanathan Anand placed with nine points from seven rounds of Rapid (involving two mini-matches) and 14 rounds of Blitz.
In a solid start, the Indian ace started off with as many as six drawn games and ended with three decisive games in a row. But for his loss against Fabiano Caruana of United States in the previous round, the Indian ace could have been at the helm in the strongest chess tournament of the year.
Indian Grandmaster Vidit Gujrathi held World No. 1 Magnus Carlsen to a draw in the 11th round of the Tata Steel Masters chess tournament
Viswanathan Anand did not capitalise on his chances and had to settle for a draw.
World No. 1 Magnus Carlsen was in stunning form, winning all nine of his games to take a significant lead. He has 20 points out of a possible 27 going into the second half of the blitz on Sunday.
Former World champion Viswanathan Anand played out an easy draw against Sergey Karjakin of Russia to remain in joint second spot in the Sinquefield Cup chess tournament, in St Louis, United States.
Grandmaster Arjun Erigaisi believes the government's recent decision to stop cash rewards for attaining GM and International Master titles is 'not ideal' for the parents of chess players.
Grandmaster R Praggnanandhaa produced a spectacular game to get the better of fellow-Indian Vidit Gujrathi in the third round of the Candidates Chess tournament in Toronto on Saturday.
Continuing his dream run, Praggnanandhaa on Monday stunned Caruana 3.5-2.5 via the tie-break in the semi-finals to set up a summit clash with world number one and five-time world champion Magnus Carlsen of Norway at the FIDE's premier event.
Grandmaster R Praggnanandhaa wrote a golden chapter in Indian chess history by becoming only the second player from the country after Viswanathan Anand -- and the youngest -- to play in the FIDE World Cup final.
The triumph entitles Gukesh a clash against reigning world champion Ding Liren of China in the last quarter of the year.
Viswanathan Anand played out an easy draw against world No 2 Fabiano Caurana of Italy in the first round of Grenke Chess Classic in Baden-Baden, Germany. Playing his first tournament after winning the London Classic, the five-times world champion was pleasantly surprised as Caruana went for the Italian opening with white that does not find many followers in top level chess.
Koneru Humpy's non-participation in the event has not hampered the team's chances much as Vaishali has jumped significantly in rankings and is a force to reckon with in the women's circle.
Anand scored six wins and two draws to seal the Rapid title in Poland, Warsaw.
World champion Viswanathan Anand capitalised on a blunder by Vladimir Kramnik of Russia to beat him in the final round and finish second in the Zurich Chess Challenge that concluded in Zurich.
World champion Viswnathan Anand played out his second draw in the Zurich Chess Challenge, easily holding world number two Vladimir Kramnik of Russia to an easy draw in the second round in Zurich.
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