The subsequent transfer for Pragg, Gukesh: Viswanathan Anand believes fatigue, bodily health and consistency are the challenges awaiting India’s prodigies

Viswanathan Anand has no qualms in admitting he mis-calculated. Just three years in the past, in December 2020, when he had began the Westbridge Anand Chess Academy (WACA), he remembers considering that the gamers he had taken beneath his wings — Praggnanandhaa, D Gukesh and Nihal Sarin — would wish 5 – 6 years to enter the elite membership of 2700-rated gamers. It’s an elusive membership within the sport, with present membership of 35 individuals.

Gukesh reached the fabled mark in July final yr inside two years of Anand’s prediction. Pragg adopted in July this yr. Arjun Erigaisi can be part of the membership, with Nihal simply six factors away.

“The reason I say this is a golden generation is because all of these guys are still teenagers — with the exception of Arjun, who became 20 two days ago — which means, very conservatively, for the next 10 years at every top tournament as Indians we can hope for one of our players to be there. It’s a great time to be an Indian chess fan,” Anand instructed journalists on the sidelines of the Tata Steel Chess India match.

On Monday, Pragg had instructed journalists at Kolkata that he feels he has the potential to be a world champion. It’s a measure of how a lot {the teenager} has grown in confidence.

“It’s good that he feels this confident. But again, you have to prove it, and very few people do. I don’t say that to mock him or anything. He will need to be aware that there are a lot of tough steps ahead. Even if your odds are very good, you will need to pull it off. Because only one person will get through and it’s a very high bar,” says India’s first grandmaster.

Until the era of prodigies are able to clear that ‘very-high bar’, there are just a few extra steps they should take, believes Vishy.

“The (next step) is akin to the difference between being a tourist at a place and living there. It’s nice to qualify for the first time. Then you have to be consistent, you have to do it regularly. If you keep on playing the Candidates, and you’re established there, that’s the next step (before making it to the World Championship). Maybe with all of these guys that’s the challenge, to bring consistency into it,” he says.

He additionally warns that whereas the jumps these guys have made are ‘spectacular’ now the opposite high gamers shall be engaged on figuring them out.

“This is a very talented group of individuals. Whether they outperform the previous generation (of Indians), we’ll see. Once they smell the world championship, they’ll want it,” says the person who has worn the world champion’s crown 5 instances.

Non-stop chess

While so much has been spoken of how the present prodigies began very younger, received good teaching early on and received a whole lot of early aggressive publicity because of the web, Anand factors out simply how a lot chess the present lot have been enjoying. He says he has round 4000 recorded video games within the database. Six-seven years in the past, he may look on the database and will inform which participant was younger based mostly on what number of video games they’d performed: those that had round 800 video games in opposition to their names would inevitably be younger. Today gamers are including 500 to 600 video games a yr, because of the sport logging on.

With the present era enjoying a lot chess, there’s additionally the worry of them getting fatigued.

“Fatigue is a big part of chess in modern times. The players will have to pay a lot of attention to physical fitness. All the top players in the world follow it, these guys will need to do it as well,” he says.

“There is such a thing as too much chess. They will need to learn to stop once in a while. Right now they’re hungry for chess. The schedule they have coming up is very demanding. But if they want it, they should go for it. It’s also different when you’re a teenager. When you’re 19, nothing matters.”

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Even although the following era has made the leap and is on its method to fill his huge footwear, Anand is at all times requested if he nonetheless needs to contend. If the present era’s emergence will push him to play full tilt. He factors out that final yr he performed seven classical video games. This yr he’ll play even fewer.

“Part of me is tempted to play extra video games on a regular basis. Part of me additionally remembers why I eased off. There’s a stress. But primarily, (if I needed to be a completely energetic participant once more) I’ll find yourself working tougher and tougher to maintain up however will get much less and fewer good points. Like each different sport, chess is a bodily sport. I really like these different roles. I give it some thought so much, certain. But ultimately I’m blissful the place I’m.

“I don’t feel myself in competition anymore. I’m very happy that I can step aside and India is being well represented in elite tournaments. This is all you can hope for. I would rather have this than something else. This is a very good situation. It’s kind of the way you want to leave a sport.”