Latest news with #Aravindh
Indian Express
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Indian Express
Chess infrastructure gets major push to elevate competitive set-up through esports ecosystem
With the ever-growing popularity of chess and esports, the best of both worlds come together to develop chess infrastructure and push chess as an esports in the country. For this, Nodwin Gaming has partnered with and ChessBase India to collaborate on competitive chess development in India. The partnership brings together three organisations involved in esports production, online chess platforms, and grassroots community engagement. Under this arrangement, Nodwin Gaming will oversee production, broadcasting, and commercial planning. ChessBase India will contribute its network within the Indian chess community, while will provide platform support, tournament infrastructure, and creator tools. The partnership is aimed at focusing on creating new tournament formats, community events, and content initiatives aimed at expanding participation and viewership. This comes on the back of chess' inclusion in the upcoming Esports World Cup (EWC), where multiple Indian stars have signed contracts with Esports organisations. Arjun Erigaisi was among the first few players in the world to sign such a contract. He signed the deal with Gen.G. Earlier, Nihal Sarin and Aravindh Chithambaram also signed contracts with the Indian Esports organisation S8UL. At the time of writing, from India, only Arjun has confirmed his qualification in the EWC. Nihal and Aravindh participated in the qualifiers but failed to book their spot for the mega showdown in Riyadh. Aravindh participated in the first tier of 'Last Chance Qualifier' (LCQ) and can still participate in EWC through this. The Esports World Cup will be an event where the world's biggest esports clubs compete across 24 of the most popular esports titles. For the first time, the World Cup will also feature chess, which will be played online. The first edition of the Esports World Cup was held in 2024 and saw teams compete over eight weeks. The Esports World Cup 2025 is set to be the largest multi-title esports event in history which is expected to have at least 2,000 players and 200 teams competing for a combined prize pool of $70 million (approx. Rs 602 crore).
The Hindu
07-06-2025
- Sport
- The Hindu
Aravindh pips Praggnanandhaa on tiebreak to win Stepan Avagyan Memorial 2025
Aravindh Chithambaram beat compatriot R. Praggnanandhaa on tiebreak to win the Stepan Avagyan Memorial 2025 tournament on Friday in Jermuk in Armenia. In the final round, Aravindh - playing with black pieces - beat local player Aram Hakobyan. Praggnanandhaa beat Armenia's Robert Hovhannisyan with white pieces. At the end of the round-robin stage consisting of 10 players in the classical event, both Indians were tied for the first place with 6.5. points apiece. Aravindh prevailed due to the Sonneborne-Berger, a tiebreak system which factors in the strength of opponents each player has defeated. Aravindh ended up with $7,993 for finishing first while Praggnanandhaa won $4,770 for his second-place finish. Germany's Dmitrij Kollars secured the third place while American Sam Sevian finished fourth.
Time of India
07-06-2025
- Sport
- Time of India
A new era in Indian chess: Four grandmasters in top 10; R Praggnanandhaa leads FIDE Circuit
NEW DELHI: Indian chess is entering uncharted territory. For the first time in history, four Indian players now feature in the world's top 10 live ratings — a momentous leap for the nation on the global chessboard. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now The newest name to break into the elite ranks is Aravindh Chithambaram, who climbed to World No. 9 with a live rating of 2757.8. He joins D Gukesh, Arjun Erigaisi, and R Praggnanandhaa, cementing India's growing dominance in international chess. Aravindh's surge comes on the heels of a hard-fought victory at the 6th Stepan Avagyan Memorial in Jermuk, Armenia. He and Praggnanandhaa both finished with 6.5/9, but Aravindh claimed the title thanks to a better Sonneborn-Berger score — a tiebreaker determined by the strength of opponents faced. Final-round drama in Jermuk The tournament couldn't have been closer. Aravindh and Praggnanandhaa, who are also training partners under coach RB Ramesh, drew their first-round encounter and remained locked in step for much of the event. Entering the final round, both were tied at 5.5 points and needed a win to take the title. Praggnanandhaa struck first, defeating Robert Hovhannisyan of Armenia. Aravindh, playing black, responded under pressure by toppling Aram Hakobyan, sealing a flawless performance: 4 wins, 5 draws, zero losses. For Praggnanandhaa, the result was bittersweet. 'It was a good tournament for me,' he told Chessbase India, 'but I missed that one chance in Round 2 against Jonas Buhl Bjerre. That win would've made the difference.' Praggnanandhaa leads the circuit Despite finishing second, the 19-year-old continues his blazing run in 2025. He now ranks sixth in live ratings (2774.2) and leads the FIDE Circuit standings with 83.59 points from five events. His consistent form, including wins at Tata Steel Masters and GCT Romania Classic, and top-three finishes in Prague, GCT Poland, and now Jermuk — puts him in pole position to qualify for the 2026 Candidates Tournament. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Close behind is Aravindh with 41.32 points from just three events — proof of his rapid rise and potential to catch up. What's Next? The momentum doesn't stop here. Both Aravindh and Praggnanandhaa are slated to compete in the Uzchess Cup, kicking off June 18 in Uzbekistan. They'll be facing elite opposition again — including Ian Nepomniachtchi, Nodirbek Abdusattorov, and Arjun Erigaisi. Indian chess has never looked stronger, and this new generation is proving it's here to stay.
Indian Express
06-06-2025
- Sport
- Indian Express
In a first, four Indian chess players in the top 10 rankings
For the first time in history, four Indians are in the top 10 chess rankings. Alongside D Gukesh, Arjun Erigaisi, and R Praggnanandhaa — now regulars among the world's elite — Aravindh Chithambaram has climbed to ninth place with a live rating of 2757.8. The milestone followed Aravindh's victory at the 6th Stepan Avagyan Memorial in Jermuk, Armenia, on Friday, where he edged out his close friend and training partner under coach RB Ramesh, Praggnanandhaa. Both players tied for first place with 6.5 points each after nine rounds, but Aravindh claimed the title due to a superior Sonneborn-Berger score (tiebreak points), due to his stronger performance against higher-ranked opponents. The tournament began with a draw between Praggnanandhaa and Aravindh, and the two remained evenly matched until the final round. Entering the last game, both Indians were tied at 5.5 points after eight rounds, needing a win to secure the title. Praggnanandhaa struck first, defeating Armenia's Robert Hovhannisyan, forcing Aravindh to win his game to clinch the event. Aravindh obliged, overcoming Armenia's Aram Hakobyan with the black pieces to claim the championship. Both players remained undefeated, scoring four wins and five draws each. However, Praggnanandhaa later reflected on a missed opportunity in the second round against Danish GM Jonas Buhl Bjerre, where he had a winning position. 'It was a good tournament for me, but I still missed this one chance in the second round. I could have probably won the tournament had that result gone my way, now it'll probably be tied for the first spot.' Praggnanandhaa told Chessbase India, accompanied by his trainer, Vaibhav Suri. 'Overall happy with my performance, I was mostly well prepared for almost all the rounds, just rue that game against Jonas otherwise I would have been on plus five,' he added. Aravindh's win in Armenia mirrored his earlier title win at the Prague Masters, where he outperformed Praggnanandhaa in a star-studded field featuring Wei Yi, Anish Giri, and Vincent Keymer. While Aravindh took the title, Praggnanandhaa's performance was equally impressive. The 19-year-old now sits sixth in the live ratings (2774.2) and leads the FIDE Circuit standings. With 83.59 points from five events — including wins at the Tata Steel Masters and Grand Chess Tour Romania Classic, a joint-second finish in Prague, third place in GCT Poland Rapid & Blitz, and now second in Armenia — Praggnanandhaa is the frontrunner to qualify for the 2026 Candidates Tournament via the FIDE Circuit. He holds a commanding 42.27-point lead over second-placed Aravindh (41.32 points), who has competed in three events. Both players will next compete at the Uzchess Cup in Uzbekistan, starting June 18, alongside strong players like Ian Nepomniachtchi, Nodirbek Abdusattorov, and Arjun Erigaisi.
Hindustan Times
03-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Hindustan Times
Chess: Four Indians in world's top 10 for first the time
Bengaluru: Away from the pitched battle between current and former world champions in the Norwegian city of Stavanger – which has India's D Gukesh sweeping the headlines – another Indian is quietly breaking barriers and raising the roof. For the first time ever, India has four active chess players in the top 10 of the live ratings – Gukesh - world No.4 (Elo 2782.3) Arjun Erigaisi - world No.5 (Elo 2772.6) R Praggnanandhaa - world No.7 (Elo 2765.9) and Aravindh Chithambaram - world No.10 (Elo 2753.5). The newest entrant to this elite group is 25-year-old Aravindh. The Grandmaster from Madurai breached Elo 2750 for the first time in his career over the last weekend after a dominant 27-move win against Xu Xiangyu in Round 3 of the Stepan Avagyan Memorial in Armenia. Praggnanandhaa is the other Indian in the field and the only other player rated above 2700. Apart from these four top-ten players, the three other Indian players in the 2700+ bracket are Viswanathan Anand (Elo 2743), Vidit Gujrathi (Elo 2720) and P Harikrishna (Elo 2703). Twenty-year-old Nihal Sarin broke into the Elo 2700 club at the Dubai Open last week, but has since slipped. For Aravindh, the climb up the rankings, even if belated, has been impressive. He broke into the scene as a 14-year-old who took down a clutch of Grandmasters to win the Chennai GM Open in 2013, held on the sidelines of the World Chess Championship between Anand and Magnus Carlsen. He was touted as the next big thing in Indian chess but inexplicably flew under the radar before returning with noteworthy performances last year. In recent times, he has pulled off a string of upsets – defeating American GM Hikaru Nakamura (2024 World Blitz Championship), Erigaisi (2024 Chennai Grand Masters), Alireza Firouzja (2025 Superbet Poland) and Jan-Krzysztof Duda (2025 Superbet Poland) and won the Prague Masters earlier this year. 'Aravindh should have perhaps reached this level five years ago,' says coach RB Ramesh, 'He had the potential but confidence was an issue. It was holding him back. He now realises that he's getting older and the younger players are getting ahead of him, Typically, in such situations a player can give up and begin to believe that their time is over with younger players taking over. But Aravindh has not given up, he is motivated to push back. There is a sense of urgency now.'
