Sandeep Singhal and Viswanathan Anand together set up the WestBridge Anand Chess Academy four years ago, which is today a fountainhead of chess talent in India. WestBridge is also Gukesh’s sponsor.
In an interview published in India’s “The Week” magazine, Viswanathan Anand talked about young Indian talents, how the pandemic impacted chess, his ongoing career as a professional player, among other topics. Referring to his young compatriots, Anand said: “They are all in the 2,700-plus group (rating). And they are all under 20. That just does not happen; it is really something special”. | Photos: Amruta Mokal
Gukesh is spearheading India s rise: Anand dailyexcelsior.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from dailyexcelsior.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Gukesh is the youngest player in the game’s history to cross an Elo rating of 2750 a distinction previously held by world No 1 Magnus Carlsen | Latest News India
India has seen the rise of many fine chess players who have done exceedingly well in their junior years and have even become strong grandmasters, but have stumbled on their path towards becoming world class players. There was definitely something missing when it came to development of these talents. As on today, it is widely agreed in the chess world that India has the best crop of young talents with players like Gukesh, Arjun Erigaisi, Praggnanandhaa, Nihal Sarin, Raunak Sadhwani and many others. In order to ensure that their potential reaches the right destination, Vishy Anand decided to start off with the WestBridge Anand Chess Academy (WACA) in December 2020. How did it all begin? How does this academy function? And how has been the journey of WACA since inception? Get to know all of this and more in this article.