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For the upcoming Asian Games set to begin on September 23 in Hangzhou, India will be represented by a formidable team of 10 chess players. Among them are Koneru Humpy, who has won two gold medals in the past, and Dronavalli Harika, who has claimed a bronze medal. In the individual rounds, Vidit Gujrathi and the young talent Arjun Erigaisi will participate in the men's section, while Humpy and Harika will compete in the women's section.
The men’s team consists of: Gukesh D, Vidit Gujarathi, Arjun Erigaisi, Pentala Harikrishna, and R Praggnanandhaa. The women’s team is represented by Koneru Humpy, Dronavalli Harika, R Vaishali, Vantika Aggarwal and Savitha Shri. All the players are returning from the GCL (Global Chess League), which saw them face tough international competition from super grandmasters such as Fabiano Caruana and Magnus Carlsen. The teams will be looking to build on recent successes in team-based chess. Both the women and men’s team secured bronze in their respective Chess Olympiads.
Chess to gain new wind in the country with Indian Chess League
Chess is returning to the Asian Games after 13 years. Sanjay Kapoor, AICF President said that he was confident Indian players will represent their nation well and continue to win medals at the international stage.
The AICF will also begin proceedings to tender the Indian Chess League. Based on the success of the IPL, it will feature franchised teams competing head-to-head for the tournament. It is a more grassroots focussed approach aimed at improving the popularity of chess in the nation. "We have to change our mindset to grow. We've got to think about our lacunas, our shortcomings and we have to work on that all the time. In three years' time we will not need any government funding,” said Kapoor.
Additionally, the AICF will be providing more than 6000 chess boards to each state chess association as well as funding of up to INR 7 Lakh annually.
