Possessing the ability to trump the fiercest rivals in the classical chess style, world champion D Gukesh and Arjun Erigaisi will spearhead India’s challenge at the Norway Chess tournament, where they will compete against the likes of Magnus Carlsen and Hikaru Nakamura from Monday.
Norway Chess, comprising six players in the men’s and women’s sections and played in a double round-robin format, is one of the most prestigious events on the chess calendar. India will be represented in the women’s section by two-time women’s world rapid champion Koneru Humpy and R Vaishali.
This is the first time India has two players in the men’s section, raising hopes of going all the way and clinch the maiden title for India in the tournament, which was first played in 2013. At that time, it featured 10 of the best players in the field, including five-time world champion Viswanathan Anand.
Anand, who has played the tournament six times and finished runner-up in 2015, had recently said that he expected a “a very exciting battle” as both Gukesh and Arjun will not lack motivation or the determination to go after five-time world champion Carlsen, who has won half a dozen titles here.
The presence of four Indians in the field also speaks about the growth of chess in the country, though the task of getting past the likes of Carlsen and American Grandmaster Nakamura and the Chinese women’s duo of Ju Wenjun and Lie Tingjie is easier said than done. Nakamura is ranked second in the world, behind Carlsen, and is one of the most difficult customers if the game goes into the Armageddon format in the event of a stalemate.
Both Gukesh (World No.3) and Erigaisi (No. 4) are ranked below him, and it would require immense grit and endurance to break through the defence of local hero Carlsen and Nakamura. Gukesh, following his world title-winning feat against China’s Ding Liren in Singapore last year, is searching for this elusive title. He struggled in the Freestyle chess tournament in Paris and lost the Tata Steel Masters title to countrymate R Praggnanandhaa earlier this year.
The Chennai teenager also could not put up an impressive show in the Superbet Classic in Bucharest recently with Praggnanandhaa winning the title. While Gukesh has seen a big slump since his world title-winning feat, Praggnanandhaa has been on fire this year. But it’s only a matter of time before Gukesh gets into the groove.
The women’s category, introduced last year, has women’s world rapid champion Koneru Humpy and R Vaishali competing for the title with Chinese heavyweights, women’s world champion Ju Wenjun and her challenger Tan Zhongyi. Humpy’s clash with Wenjun could decide who wins the title, given that the Indian has kept the fire burning in her for more than two decades and still looks hungry for more, as was proved when she won the world rapid title in New York for the second time last year.
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