D Gukesh, Arjun Erigaisi lead the way as the golden generation of Indian chess finally comes of age in 2024

Viswanathan Anand had helped put India on the chess map, first in 1988 by becoming the country’s maiden Grandmaster and then in 2000 with his historic triumph over Alexei Shirov to become the first world champion from the cricket-mad nation. The ‘Lightning Kid’, however, was India’s lone representative in some of the world’s biggest events for more than two decades during which time he challenged some of the world’s best – from Soviet legends such as Garry Kasparov and Anatoly Karpov to current world No 1 Magnus Carlsen.

The year 2024, which will be coming to an end in a matter of a few days, will forever occupy a special place in the annals of Indian chess history, for the nation did find not one but multiple worthy successors to Anand’s rich legacy. Vishy was the lone flag-bearer through the 1990s and 2000s, all the way to the early 2010s. With D Gukesh and Arjun Erigaisi pulling off some incredible feats and the Indians firing as a unit in events such as the Chess Olympiad, one can safely assume that the ‘Golden Generation’ of Indian chess has finally come of age.

Gukesh caps off incredible year by becoming world champion

No Indian chess player has dominated headlines since Anand during his heyday the way Gukesh has in 2024, all the more so over the course of the last three weeks. The Chennai native, who was among the first batch of players joining Anand’s chess academy in December 2020, had surpassed his mentor to become the top-ranked Indian player in the world in August last year , marking a change at the top of the ladder after 37 years. Gukesh, however, was just getting started back then. And with his red-hot run across multiple events this year, he has finally announced himself to the world.

It had started with the Candidates Tournament in Toronto in April, for which Gukesh had qualified by virtue of occupying the highest place in the 2023 FIDE Circuit. Gukesh defeated compatriots R Praggnanandhaa and Vidit Gujrathi besides completing a double against Nijat Abasov. It was his victory over Iranian-French Grandmaster Alireza Firouzja in the penultimate round of the tournament that allowed the Indian to finish with a score of 9 out of 14 and be crowned the youngest champion in the tournament’s history at the age of 17.

Five months later, Gukesh would play a starring role in India’s historic campaign in the 45th Chess Olympiad , where India ended up winning maiden gold medals in the ‘Open’ as well as ‘Women’ sections. Gukesh appeared virtually unstoppable as he registered eight wins in 10 rounds, drawing the other two, and winning individual gold on Board 1.

The icing on the cake, however, was the 18-year-old becoming the 18th FIDE world champion – and the youngest as well as the second Indian at that – with his 7.5-6.5 victory over Chinese GM Ding Liren in Singapore last week. Gukesh was an overwhelming favourite heading into the match, given he had only recently gone on a 38-game unbeaten run in the Classical format, in which Ding had not won a game since January.

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Though Ding wasn’t quite the pushover that many a fan had expected him to be, collecting a surprise victory in the opening game and later levelling the scores at six-all, it was Gukesh’s never-say-die spirit as well as his game awareness that allowed him to triumph in the end and live up to his favourites billing.

“When I started working with him about four years ago, he was only 14. But though I realised what a huge talent he was, I would be lying if I said I knew it was going to happen in four years, I mean it’s remarkable the journey and the time (in which) he has managed to get there,” Anand told Firstpost in an exclusive interaction after Gukesh’s victory.

Arjun joins an elite list

It wasn’t just Gukesh who shone this year though. The Indian team had bulldozed their way to the top of the podium in the ‘Open’ section of the Chess Olympiad and Arjun had a substantial role to play in that clinical run. Like Gukesh, Arjun too blazed through the tournament unbeaten, winning nine games and drawing two and also winning individual gold – on Board 3. And unlike the others, he ended up playing all 11 rounds in the tournament.

While Gukesh hogged the limelight in the Candidates Tournament as well as in the World Championship, the crowning moment for Arjun came in October when the 21-year-old from Warangal became only the second Indian after Anand and the 16th player overall to attain the gold standard ELO rating of 2800 .

Arjun’s currently sits a spot ahead of Gukesh on the FIDE ratings at fourth, having risen as high as second in September , and it might be a matter of time before the two fight for the top spot – though dislodging five-time world champion Carlsen from his perch is far easier said than done.

Women go shoulder-to-shoulder with men in Chess Olympiad

While India have been dominant in the ‘Open’ section this year, with the likes of Praggnanandhaa and Gujrathi having made noteworthy contributions with the former defeating Carlsen during the third round of the Norway Chess tournament, 2024 was also a year in which Indian women made their mark in the sport.

After all, the Indian contingent for the Chess Olympiad returned home not with one but with two gold medals in their collection. The team comprising Harika Dronavalli, R Vaishali, Divya Deshmukh, Vantika Agrawal and Tania Sachdev had suffered a setback in the form of an eighth-round defeat against Poland followed by a draw against USA.

The Indians, however, rallied in the last two rounds, collecting a nervy victory over China followed by a comprehensive victory over Azerbaijan to join the men on top of the podium, beating Kazakhstan to the top spot. And like Gukesh and Arjun in the ‘Open’ section, Divya and Vantika won individual gold medals in Boards 3 and 4 respectively.

“This is the greatest moment for women’s chess in India. More women will be inspired to play chess thanks to this victory. They won’t be discouraged by the fact that chess is not part of the Olympics. They will be working harder, and a lot more youngsters will be coming in,” Vantika had told Firstpost on the sidelines of a felicitation ceremony that had been organised in New Delhi following the historic Olympiad campaign.

As Kasparov put it following Gukesh’s triumph in the World Championship and Indians shining collectively in global events, the future certainly appears bright. With 2024 being a watershed year for Indian chess, one certainly cannot wait to see what 2025 has in store.