Telangana’s Arjun shines in Riga, finishes credible third

Hyderabad: Telangana chess player Arjun Erigaisi added another feather in his cap. Playing in a strong field, which included top chess players from the world, the 18-year-old from Warangal finished third with 13.5 points from 18 games in the Lindores Abbey Blitz Tournament in Riga, Latvia. Speaking from Latvia, the Grandmaster said he was elated […]

Hyderabad: Telangana chess player Arjun Erigaisi added another feather in his cap. Playing in a strong field, which included top chess players from the world, the 18-year-old from Warangal finished third with 13.5 points from 18 games in the Lindores Abbey Blitz Tournament in Riga, Latvia.

Speaking from Latvia, the Grandmaster said he was elated with the result. “I had no expectations before entering the tournament as it had top players. I just wanted to give my best and gain experience. But finishing among the top three was a great feeling since it was a strong field. Playing with them was also a very good experience,” added the youngster.

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He recorded 13 victories, a draw and suffered four losses in the tournament. Though he was tied with American ace Fabiano Caruana on 13.5 points for the second place, Arjun took third place after tie-break score. At one point, he recorded nine victories out of as many games to lead the field before falling out in the final stages of the tournament.

He recorded impressive victories over the likes of top players Levon Aronian, David Howell, Rauf Mamedov and Caruana. Speaking about his favourite match of the event, he said, “Winning 2-0 against Levon in the second round and a win over Caruana in the sixth round are my favourite matches in the event. They are top players and winning against them was a great feeling. After winning nine games, I was leading and then I thought I could finish on the podium. But I didn’t think much and put myself under pressure,” he added.

He also achieved 107.2 blitz rating points from this tournament alone that propelled him into the top 30 in the world rankings and top three in the country. “Yes, the ranking points are very good. Now I will have 2723 blitz rating points and I have 2629 rating points in classic chess format. I want to do well in the classical format and improve a lot,” revealed the first GM from the Telangana State.

Five-time World Champion Viswanathan Anand was impressed with Arjun’s performance. “Congrats to @ArjunErigaisi. A great performance in such a strong field! looking forward to having him in Kolkata. @tschessindia,” the former World Champion wrote in his tweet.
Arjun said the encouragement from such players boosts their morale. “It is a great gesture. It motives us a lot. I am also happy to be part of Westbridge Anand Chess Academy. I take classes online from his academy,” he revealed.

On asking whether he prefers blitz or classic format, the GM said, “Switching formats is a bit difficult for all players. I generally play fast game so blitz suits me. Right now, blitz is my strength but I want to do well in classical format,” he concluded.

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