The great Viswanathan Anand is the undisputed king of Indian chess. At 54, past his prime, the five-time world champion still remains India's best. However, the younger generation is coming through, and two of them, Arjun Erigaisi and D Gukesh, are in prime position to emulate their hero.
Gukesh could become only the second men's world champion from India by the end of this year. The 18-year-old from Chennai is the challenger to reigning world champion Ding Liren in the title clash set to be held in Singapore between November 25 and December 13.
While Gukesh waits for his moment, Erigaisi has seized his by becoming only the second Indian, of course after Vishy, to cross 2800 Elo points in FIDE live ratings. The Elo rating measures players' relative skill level, with 2800 being the mark of exceptional genius. To put it into perspective, only 16 players have crossed 2800 Elo points in the history of the game in the standard format. World No. 1 Magnus Carlsen holds the record for the highest-ever Elo of 2882, while among active players, only three others have a rating of 2800+.
On Friday, Telangana native Erigaisi crossed that barrier in live ratings in the fifth round of the European Chess Club Cup after beating Russian GM Dmitry Andreikin. His live rating is 2802.1.
Vishy's kingdom
Vishy was just 16 when he became India No. 1. It was 1986, the same year Diego Maradona delivered Argentina the FIFA World Cup. Anand had surpassed GM Pravin Thipsay to reach the pinnacle of Indian chess. But he was there to stay and remained the best for 30 long years.
Vishy's reign as India's top-rated chess player would continue until mid-2023, but there was a brief pause on March 15, 2016, when Pentala Harikrishna became India's No. 1. By reaching the live rating of 2763.3, Harikrishna edged Vishy, who had slipped up slightly after a defeat to Sergey Karjakin. But that joy only lasted a day or so as Vishy bounced back to reclaim his position as India's no. 1. He remained there until August 2023, when Gukesh surpassed his super-senior from Tamil Nadu.
At 17, Gukesh also became the youngest in history to break into the 2750 club. Since then, Gukesh and Erigaisi have stayed above Anand in FIDE ratings. Anand is currently tenth in FIDE live ratings on 2750. Gukesh is ranked fifth on 2784 Elo points.