New National champion Nandhidhaa sets sights on becoming a GM
Nandhidhaa.
Chennai
All’s well that ends well is how P.V. Nandhidhaa will be feeling after winning her maiden National title. Having won trophies across various age groups at the national level, the 28-year-old from Salem clinched the top prize at the 50th National women’s chess championship, overcoming a quality field.
The new National champion and WGM has now set her sights on reaching 2500 Elo rating and also becoming a GM (only three Indian women — K. Humpy, D. Harika and R. Vaishali) are GMs.
The triumph didn’t come on a platter. The Tamil Nadu player won a tense last round game to emerge champion.
“I felt a lot of pressure going into the final round. Thankfully, my parents, and husband and coach (M. Shyam Sundar) were around. They motivated me before the game and it turned out to be a good one,” Nandhidhaa told The Hindu. The stunning win by the Indian men’s and women’s teams at the recent Olympiad seems to have spurred Nandhidhaa. She said the young players in the team have a wonderful mindset, which she hopes to emulate.
“I am amazed with kids like Gukesh and others. Their mindset is wonderful. They want to give their best in every game.
“There is a lot to learn from the youngsters. Winning the Olympiad was a huge thing. They maintained their intensity in every match,” Nandhidhaa, who is aiming to be among the country’s top five players which would allow her to be part of teams in various events, said.
She also welcomed the admiration and love chess was getting across India, especially in Tamil Nadu.
Having qualified for next year’s World Cup, she is keen to make it count after a first-round exit in the 2023 edition.
About the upcoming World championship match between Gukesh and Ding Liren, she said, “I think Gukesh is the favourite. He should not put himself under pressure. I hope he wins.”
Nandhidhaa, who featured in the Olympiad at Mamallapuram near here in 2022, is eager to be part of the national team at the marquee event again and show that she belongs to the big league.
Published – October 15, 2024 09:08 pm IST
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