Carlsen in focus as high stars vie for honours

A top quality area will line up on the Tata Metal chess event. 
| Photograph Credit score: DEBASISH BHADURI

It will get darkish early in Kolkata presently of the yr. As Magnus Carlsen, the planet’s finest chess participant by far steps onto the stage, the practically full moon is clearly seen from the terrace backyard of Taj Bengal on Tuesday (November 12, 2024).

There’s a nice, mild breeze blowing throughout. The calm, although, is simply the prelude to the storm.

The Tata Metal Chess India event, which opens on Wednesday (November 13, 2024), must be something however calm — such is the format, fast and blitz, and the combination of gamers, Indian and abroad in equal measure.

It’s the sixth version of the event, however it has a brand new venue — the Dhono Dhanyo Auditorium, a state-of-the-art facility constructed at a price of ₹440 crore. It’s just a few minutes’ stroll from the earlier venue, the Nationwide Library.

India’s largest library has witnessed some breakthrough moments for the nation’s most fun skills, like Arjun Erigaisi, Divya Deshmukh and R. Vaishali — they’ve emerged as surprising champions over the previous few years. They’ve gone on to make India proud, the most recent event being the Chess Olympiad in Budapest, the place they helped their groups create historical past, rising because the champions amongst women and men.

R. Praggnanandhaa, Nihal Sarin, Vidit Gujrathi and S.L. Narayanan full the Indian line-up within the males’s part. The main focus, in fact, will probably be very a lot on Carlsen, who’s returning to the event that he received in convincing style in 2019. The Norwegian may count on some powerful combat not simply from his Indian rivals, however from Wesley So, Nodirbek Abdusattorov, Vincent Keymer and Daniil Dubov as nicely.

The ladies’s event additionally guarantees loads of pleasure. The Indian contingent contains Kneru Humpy, Vaishali, D. Harika, Divya Deshmukh and Vantika Agrawal. Aleksandra Goryachkina, Kateryna Lagno, Alexandra Kosteniuk, Nana Dzagnidze and Valentina Gunina will present the sturdy overseas flavour.