Arjun Erigaisi
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YEAR-WISE DEVELOPMENTS
2022
Feb: India’s no.4
Amit Sampat, February 3, 2022: The Times of India
Nagpur: Three months after he checked in as the world’s youngest blitz master in the elite 2700 Elo club, Arjun Erigaisi scaled a new high in the classical format of chess by becoming country’sbest junior master and India No 4in the Open category. As per the live ratings, the 18-year-old climbed 49 places after becoming the fourth Indian to win the Tata Steel Challengers chess tournament in Wijk Aan Zee, Netherlands. Arjun’s title-winning effort gave him 26. 5 rating points and Warangal’s 2633 Elo Grandmaster took his tally to 2659. 5 to join the top 100 club forthe first time inhis career. He is n ow IndiaNo 4 a fter five-time champion Viswanathan Anand, Vidit Gujrathi and Harikrishna Pentala. While the World Chess Federation (FIDE) will update the rating p oints next month, the 129th ranked Arjun moved 49 places up to a careerbest 8 0th p osition.
Among the junior masters in the world, Arjun jumped five places to become world No 4 and h as pipped Nihal Sarinfor India’s No1 spot.
Arjun’s heroics earned him the praise from none other than world no 1 Magnus Carlsen. While Arjun felt “special while meeting, speaking and taking a picture with Carlsen”, the world champion found some similarways of him and the y oung Indian GM’s style of play. Much like Carlsen’s triumph in the Masters group, Arjun too finished on top of the table in the Challengers category with a round remaining. “He is going to be 2700 soon. He is by far the best player (in the Challengers) and he really plays chess in a way that I enjoy!” Carlen said about the Indian youngster.
With eight wins and five draws Arjun remained unde- feated collecting10. 5 p oints in 13 rounds and left quite an impression on the Challengers. He has now qualified to play alongside Carlsen in next year’s Tata Steel Masters Group. Coincidently, 18 years ago when Arjun was born, Carlsen sco red 10-5 points in the Group C of the same Tata Steel chess tournament.
Mentored by GM Srinath Narayanan since 2018 and Anand as part of the Westbridge Anand Chess Academy, Arjun was elated with his performance. “It’s a great feeling to set a goal prior to the tournament and actually get it accomplished,” Arjun told TOI. On his interaction with Carlsen, Arjun said, “I asked him if I can take a picture with him, and he replied ‘of course’ and later he congratulated me and said very well done. ” He signed off by setting his next goal of “entering the 2700 club in the classical format. ”
2024
June: Stepan Avagyan Memorial
Amit Sampat, June 19, 2024: The Times of India
Nagpur : India’s 20-year-old super GM, Arjun Erigaisi, won his second classical title of the year. In the Stepan Avagyan Memorial round-robin tournament, which concluded at Jermuk, Armenia, India’s highest ranked Grandmaster lived up to billing and emerged victorious by a margin of 1.5 points. He had a performance rating of 2823.
The India No. 1, who became world No. 4 after his impressive show in the French Team Championship, gained almost 20 rating points in just two tournaments. Arjun is holding on to his fourth position in the live world ratings with 2778.1 Elo and is 17 points away from surpassing world No. 3 Fabiano Caruana of the US. In live ratings, Arjun trails Magnus Carlsen, Hikaru Nakamura and Caruana.
In the eighth and penultimate round of the tournament played late on Monday night, Arjun utilized his opening advantage well to defeat Russia’s GM Volodar Murzin (2650 Elo) in 63 moves and emerged triumphant with a game to go. In the final round on Tuesday afternoon, Arjun defended well with his black pieces and completed the formality by playing out a 43-move draw against Armenia's GM Manuel Petrosyan (2625 Elo) to seal his victory. In April, Arjun had won the Menorca Open.
Arjun finished with 6.5 points after winning four games and splitting the point in five rounds. American GM Sevian Samuel and Iran's Tabatabaei M Amin (2713 Elo) followed Arjun on the podium with identical five points.
Arjun will now take a break from Classical chess and shift his focus to the shorter formats. In a chat with TOI, Arjun said, “It’s a good feeling to end on a high before taking a long break in Classical.” On his second title of the year, he said, “I have been able to make the most of my opportunities and this has been a fantastic tournament for me. These tournaments are n ever easy as the level of competition is very high. I am happy with the way I played to clinch my second title of the year.”
Later this month, Arjun will play in the Leon Masters, which will be played in the rapid format. With a couple of FIDE Circuit eligible rapid and blitz tournaments scheduled next month, Arjun is looking to make his mark in the shorter format now.
The Fide Circuit that was introduced last year is a path to qualify for the Candidates tournament. A player who tops the circuit leaderboard during eligible tournaments in 2024, will earn his spot in the 2026 Candidates. With 57.6 points in his kitty, Arjun is now at second position on the FIDE Circuit, the points of his Armenia triumph not included.
Dec 2024: became the youngest world champion
Sunny Baski, Dec 15, 2024: The Times of India
Arjun Erigaisi had been playing chess since when he was 7. But things were getting a little tough. How do you go around the world taking part in tournaments and still keep up with the rest of your class? Something had to give. Would it be chess? Or school? His father, a neurosurgeon, and his mother, a homemaker, knew how passionate Erigaisi was about chess.
They knew he was winning tournaments. So, they worked out a deal: if Erigaisi managed to become a grandmaster by the time he was in Class 10, he could forget about studies, else, he would have to prioritise academics. In the end, Erigaisi did one better, becoming a grandmaster when he was in class 9, a 14-year-old.
Now, at 21, he is India’s top-ranked chess player in the International Chess Federation (Fide) rankings. Gukesh Dommaraju is a notch below him.
On Thursday, Gukesh, 18, became the youngest world champion, beating Ding Liren of China. But in Fide ratings, Gukesh is now at No.5, while Erigaisi is at No.4. Magnus Carlsen of Norway is at No.1, a spot he has held since July 2011.
Less than two weeks back, Erigaisi achieved a feat that went largely uncommented outside of niche chess circles. On Dec 1, he crossed 2800 points in the Fide live chess ratings, making him only the second Indian after Viswanathan Anand to get there.
While Gukesh is now the undisputed teenage hero of India, Erigaisi’s feat shows the depth of India’s extraordinary chess talent.
A Summer Camp Did It
But Erigaisi might never have become a chess player. He was seven years old and spending time at a summer camp. It was a fun place. The kids could swim, skate, play badminton and some other games, like chess. Erigaisi took to chess like a duck to water. Everyone was stunned at how good the 7-year-old was. That changed everything.
Soon, he was enrolled in BS Chess Academy in Hanamkonda in Telangana. And, then, he was taking part in tournaments. In between, he tried to get his mother E Jyothi to learn chess, but that did not go quite to plan. She was there with him, though, accompanying him to outstation tournaments, and watching him win. Before long he was 14, and a grandmaster. His life had taken a serious turn.
College Dropout
Erigaisi lives in Telangana’s Warangal, where he was born and where he grew up. When TOI met him at his house, the 21-year-old opened up about his life, what he has gained and what he has missed.
“My rise to becoming a grandmaster and securing a position among the world’s top four chess players would not have been possible had I prioritised school over chess,” he says. From the time he was in class 6, school became just a side show. He went there only to take his exams. Eventually, he dropped out of a degree programme. “My parents backed my decision to focus on chess instead of school. They encouraged me to excel at competitions,” he says.
“My mother has been accompanying me to tournaments since 2010, when I was seven years old, and travelled to countries like Vietnam, Hungary, Serbia, Switzerland, and Russia. My father provided financial support for our travels,” says Erigaisi.
The single-minded focus on chess and the loss of school time, however, also meant that he hardly had a social life or the company of friends. “My interactions with friends were limited to chess tournaments and, even then, I could only meet them after matches,” he says.
While the inability to spend time with friends had left a young Erigaisi disheartened at times, he has since made peace with his life, finding companionship among those who share his passion for chess. “I share a good bond with Indian chess players, particularly Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa and Raja Rithvik Rajavaram,” he says. “Despite competing against one another, we maintain a healthy balance between rivalry and camaraderie. We have played against each other in many tournaments and, during matches, our concentration remains solely on the game at hand. Once the competition is over, we seamlessly transition to discussing diverse subjects — from films to personal stuff.”
TT, OTT, Insta
The other thing they love is a friendly game of table tennis. “I rank table tennis as my second favourite sport after chess,” he says. “Many chess players, including myself, have fun playing table tennis when we have a little leisure time on our hands after tournaments,” he adds. “Even Praggnanandhaa and Gukesh play table tennis. Both disciplines demand tactical thinking as players in either sport need to anticipate their opponents’ next ploy and quickly decide their move.” When not playing — chess or table tennis — Erigaisi enjoys films on OTT. Jr NTR is his favourite actor.
The grandmaster is quite a star himself on social media, with a following of more than 70,000 on Instagram and nearly 30,000 on X. But early advice from his mother ensures he remains grounded despite the attention. “I view myself as an ordinary person rather than a celebrity. I feel grateful for the continuous stream of supportive messages on Instagram. I feel fortunate to receive such encouraging responses from my followers,” he says.
The calm may well be a part of the mental and psychological frame of mind that’s so essential for a player of a cerebral game like chess. But Erigaisi is quick to admit that maintaining emotional composure is not always easy, especially at a tournament. “Accepting defeat and proceeding to the next match proves difficult and is a struggle for many. Although setbacks affect me temporarily, I analyse my previous moves and enhance my tactics for better performance. In fact, I give my absolute best and take whatever comes my way,” he says.
Recounting examples of how he strategises for games against top players like Carlsen or Fabiano Caruana, Erigaisi says the game varies with each opponent. “While facing top-20 competitors, my opening strategies require careful adjustments, but when competing against players ranked beyond the top-20, I adopt a more aggressive approach with daring moves, leveraging my strength to take calculated risks,” he says. “Amongst all competitors, I regard Carlsen as the most formidable. His exceptional ability to handle diverse positions across classical, rapid, and blitz formats makes him a truly remarkable player,” says Erigaisi.
