viswanathan anand

12-year-old Aarav Sarbalia is gaining recognition as a rising chess talent. Alongside his on-board progress, his structured social media content has attracted prominent followers, including Judit Polgar and D Gukesh's coach, Vishnu Prasanna. Supported by his family and guided by top coaching, Aarav is building momentum toward his long-term goal of achieving the Grandmaster (GM) title.

Chess enthusiasts are finding joy beyond competition through initiatives like 'Chess and the City' and 'Chess Chai Connect' in Chennai. These gatherings offer a relaxed environment for people of all ages to play, connect, and enjoy the game, fostering a real-life community.

Tamil Nadu's chess prowess shines as R Vaishali eyes the Women's World Championship after her Candidates victory. Young A S Sharvaanica's U12 rapid title further highlights the state's growing talent. While these successes inspire, experts note the need for greater support and sponsorship to elevate women's chess participation and achieve global dominance.

Vaishali Rameshbabu has become the women's world championship challenger after a dramatic win in Cyprus. Five-time world champion Vishy Anand praised her excellent preparation and resilience, calling it a proud moment for Indian chess. Vaishali attributed her comeback to focusing on game quality after earlier shaky performances.

2025 saw third edition of Chennai Grand Masters. R Vaishali, the nation's toast at the moment, was invited to compete in the Challengers section, which includes relatively lower-rated players than the Masters field. Vaishali had a nightmarish tournament, finishing rock bottom. The winner of the Challengers section was Munirethinam Pranesh, a baby-faced assassin on the board.

R Vaishali, the new World Championship Challenger, expressed her joy and ambition upon returning to Chennai. She aims to emulate Indian chess legends like Koneru Humpy and D Harika, emphasizing the importance of mental strength and support systems. Vaishali hopes her success inspires more girls to pursue chess professionally, highlighting recent triumphs by Indian women in the sport.

R Praggnanandhaa began his second Candidates tournament with a strong victory against Anish Giri, playing with remarkable accuracy for nearly five hours. Meanwhile, on her debut, Divya Deshmukh secured a draw against Anna Muzychuk, and R Vaishali also drew her game against Bibisara Assaubayeva after navigating time trouble.

The FIDE Candidates 2026 saw a day of draws in Cyprus, with all games ending in a tie. Indian talents Divya Deshmukh and Vaishali Rameshbabu played a thrilling game, featuring a brilliant queen sacrifice by Vaishali. In the Open section, R Praggnanandhaa drew against Wei Yi, while Hikaru Nakamura salvaged a draw from a difficult position.

Sixteen-year-old Mayank Chakraborty has made history as the first Grandmaster from Assam and Northeast India. His landmark achievement in Sweden follows years of immense sacrifice, including his mother, Dr. Monomita Chakraborty, resigning from her medical career to support his journey. While celebrated as India’s 94th GM, Mayank’s family now seeks government and corporate backing to sustain his elite professional career.

Daniel Rensch is a chess master, author and chief chess officer at chess.com. In this conversation, he discusses his memoir, ‘Dark Squares’.

Lucknow gears up for the Times of India Sports Awards on March 21, 2026, celebrating India's athletic excellence in 2025. The event will honour top performers across various sports, with a distinguished jury selecting the winners. Chess talent shines with nominees like Praggnanandhaa and Divya Deshmukh showcasing remarkable achievements.

India slipped to 25th in the 2026 Gender Equality in Chess Index (GECI), highlighting gender imbalance in the sport. Despite strong performances by elite women players, female participation in youth championships remains low, and many girls drop out early. Experts say social pressures, financial hurdles and lack of structured support limit opportunities, stressing the need for better grassroots development and long-term systems to promote women’s chess.

Five-time world chess champion viswanathan anand on Monday said he looks "for people who have plotted gaps in my game" when it comes to choosing his team.

Former multiple world champion viswanathan anand stunned reigning champion Magnus Carlsen of Norway in the ninth round of World Rapid championship in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday. Playing with black pieces, the Indian, on an unbeaten run, won in 34 moves due to a superb endgame.

World chess champion viswanathan anand of India is back at the helm of the FIDE (wordl body) rating list for March 2011.

India's viswanathan anand has no plans of calling it quits just yet as he says his morale is on a high after beating a "complicated" Boris Gelfand.

It may be difficult for viswanathan anand to take the lead in Sao Paulo but by the time he finish the 10-round event in Bilbao Masters, he could turn the tide.

World champion viswanathan anand's absence from this year's Chess Olympiad in Turkey in August is not such an earth-shaking affair.

viswanathan anand failed to capitalise on chances that came his way and played out a draw with tail-ender Levon Aronian at the London Chess Classic.

Five-time world chess champion viswanathan anand's father, K Viswanathan, died here on Thursday following brief illness.

After enduring an agonizing three months of self-isolation in Germany and a 14-day quarantine period on his arrival in India, viswanathan anand finally got to be with his family --- wife Aruna and son Akhil --- here on Sunday.

Bihar CM Nitish Kumar congratulated viswanathan anand on wining the World Chess Championship title for the fifth time, in Moscow on Wednesday.

viswanathan anand, a five-time world chess champion, is moving towards mentoring and sports administration. He commends young Indian players like D Gukesh and R Praggnanandhaa for capitalizing on opportunities. Anand shares thoughts on India's Chess Olympiad prospects and considers chess's Olympic inclusion while discussing his semi-retirement plans.

viswanathan anand, Indian’s first grandmaster, who received an honorary doctorate degree at IIT-Kanpur on Tuesday, says chess needs to be promoted more in India.

Kichcha Sudeep to battle Indian chess grandmaster viswanathan anand in a game of chess to raise money for fighting Covid-19, this Sunday on June 13. Read more about here...

viswanathan anand inaugurated the Global Chess League's new Experience Centre in Plano, Dallas, a hub for chess, technology, and innovation. The centre aims to enhance fan engagement and player development through AI, analytics, and digital platforms. It will foster collaboration with universities and tech partners to shape the future of the game.

Former world chess champion viswanathan anand on Tuesday released a book for children which deals with the adventures of a visually impaired young boy.

viswanathan anand, who's also a director at Olympic Gold Quest, analyses what it takes to train a sportsperson at the highest level.

“I want to be a world champion. One day I will become like viswanathan anand, Magnus Carlsen, world chess champions,” says Samrath J Rao.