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Key Points

Gautam Adani congratulated 19-year-old R Praggnanandhaa after he became India's top-ranked chess player. His victory at the UzChess Cup Masters pushed his live rating to 2778.3, surpassing world champion D Gukesh. Praggnanandhaa secured the title in dramatic tiebreaks against Uzbek players. The young grandmaster now ranks fourth globally behind Carlsen, Nakamura, and Caruana.

Key Points: Gautam Adani Hails Praggnanandhaa as India's Top Chess Player at 19

  • Praggnanandhaa overtakes Gukesh as India's top-ranked chess player
  • Wins UzChess Cup Masters in tiebreaks
  • Now world No.4 behind Carlsen and Nakamura
  • Adani lauds teen's historic achievement
2 min read

Youth is indeed our greatest strength: Gautam Adani hails Praggnanandhaa on becoming India's top-ranked chess player

Adani praises Praggnanandhaa after he becomes India's No.1 chess player at 19, surpassing Gukesh and Erigaisi in live rankings.

"India’s youth is indeed our greatest strength - Gautam Adani"

New Delhi, June 28

Gautam Adani, Chairman of the Adani Group, is "proud" of grandmaster Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa, who became India's number one-ranked chess player at the age of 19 following his profound success in the UzChess Cup Masters in Tashkent on Friday.

The young sensation in the world of chess, Praggnanandhaa, overwhelmed home favourite Nodirbek Abdusattorov with Black pieces on the final day to win the UzChess Cup Masters. After stamping his authority, Praggnanandhaa's live rating soared to 2778.3, making him India's highest-ranked player, leapfrogging the reigning world champion D Gukesh (2776.6) and Arjun Erigaisi (2775.7).

Before Praggnanandhaa, Erigaisi was India's top-ranked player but slipped to the sixth spot after a draw with fellow Indian Aravindh Chithambaram. In the overall chart, Praggnanandhaa is ranked fourth, ahead of Gukesh, who occupies the fifth spot with 2776.6. Magnus Carlsen (2839.2) remained at the top, followed by Hikaru Nakamura (2807.0) and Fabiano Caruana (2784.2).

"Congratulations @rpraggnachess! Proud of you! Winning #UzChess, becoming India's No.1 and World No.4, and you are still just 19! What an achievement! India's youth is indeed our greatest strength," Adani wrote on X.

At the beginning of the last day, Praggnanandhaa trailed Uzbek's Abdusattorov by a point and Javokhir Sindarov, another local star, by half a point. At the end of the round-robin stage, the 19-year-old caught up to the duo at 5.5 points, courtesy of a stellar win over Abdusattorov.

In the second round of tiebreaks, Praggnanandhaa secured a draw against Abdusattorov with White pieces and beat Sindarov with Black pieces. In the end, Sindarov's win over Abdusattorov confirmed the title for Praggnanandhaa.

"Wrapped up the #UzChessCup Masters with a win in the final round and wins in tie breaks. Tiebreaks were crazy indeed. Grateful for all the support that I have received so far. Onto my next challenge to Croatia," Praggnanandhaa wrote on X following his triumph.

With his latest success, Praggnanandhaa added a third title to his belt following his victories in the Tata Steel Chess Tournament and the Grand Chess Tour Superbet Classic Romania.

- ANI

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Reader Comments

S
Sarah B
While this is fantastic news, I wish corporate leaders like Adani would also invest more in grassroots chess development programs across rural India. Many hidden talents never get the opportunity to shine.
A
Ananya R
Chess is becoming the new cricket in India! So proud of our young grandmasters - Pragg, Gukesh, Arjun and others. They're showing the world what Indian brains can achieve. Time to make chess more popular in schools!
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Vikram M
At this rate, we might see an Indian world chess champion very soon! The way our players are climbing the rankings is unbelievable. Kudos to Praggnanandhaa for this stellar performance under pressure.
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Priya S
My 10-year-old son has started taking chess seriously after seeing Praggnanandhaa's journey. These young achievers are inspiring a whole generation! But we need more government support for chess infrastructure.
K
Karthik V
Interesting to see Adani tweeting about chess. Hope this means more corporate sponsorship coming for the sport. Our players deserve better training facilities and international exposure.

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