R Praggnanandhaa: ‘Gukesh winning World Championship, Arjun Erigaisi cross 2,800 inspired me to work harder’ | Chess News

After making a triumphant start to the New Year, Grandmaster Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa said the performances of his compatriots D Gukesh and Arjun Erigaisi ‘inspired’ him to work harder.
The prodigious talent scripted a stunning victory in Wijk aan Zee, the Netherlands, at the Tata Steel Masters. In the final, Praggnanandhaa handed Gukesh his first defeat since being crowned the world champion last year. And in doing so, the 19-year-old became only the second Indian after Viswanathan Anand to win the prestigious event.
Praggnanandhaa received a warm welcome upon his arrival in Chennai on Tuesday and he reflected on the tournament win. After a sub-par end to the 2024 season his high standards, Praggnanandhaa admitted the recent performances his fellow Indian chess players motivated him to push harder.
“I didn’t have a great end to 2024. So I worked hard for it (the tournament). I am happy to have such a great start to this year. Gukesh also played well. It was an exciting tiebreaker,” Praggnanandhaa said. “Results from other Indian chess players like Gukesh winning the world championship or Arjun Erigaisi crossing 2800 (Elo rating in classical chess) inspired me to work harder. Another reason was that I wasn’t happy with my game. I wanted to play better. So I kept practising.”
© The Indian Express Pvt Ltd

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