It was a see-saw battle in the final of Chessable Masters, an online chess tournament, that Grandmaster R Praggnanandhaa lost to World No. 2 Ding Liren in the tiebreakers. The clash -which went down to the wire -ended at around 2. 20 am and by 8. 45 am the 16-year-old had arrived at his school to appear for the Class XI state board exams. Praggu has been performing the balancing act with aplomb by planning his day in such a way that there was sufficient time to not only study for his exams, but also prepare for the battles against the world’s top-rated players.
“The last few days have been incredibly tiring. It’s a first for me -writing exams and playing a tournament simultaneously. I had the computer applications exam and it went well,” Praggu said. Praggu’s long-time coach RB Ramesh said it was a tribute to the youngster’s mentality that he managed to handle his matches and the exams at the same time. “His biggest asset is to be able to stay in the moment. To write an exam just hours after that heartbreaking loss shows his character,” Ramesh said.
After losing on Day 1 of the final, Praggu showed nerves of steel to win the second leg 2.5-1.5 and take the clash into the tie-breakers. The first game started with the Semi-Tarrasch opening and both players were solid in their play to split points after 41 moves. The second clash came to life with a queen exchange. Praggu was able to capitalize on a good position and win that contest. “That particular win gave me enough confidence to take the match deep,” said Praggu. Ding and Praggu drew the next two games as the final headed into the tie-breakers comprising two blitz games and then an armageddon game if needed. Praggu had an advantage in the first blitz game but failed to press home the advantage and the match ended in a draw. In the second blitz clash, Praggu committed an error and Ding was quick to capitalize on it to win the clash and with it the title. Ding praised Praggu for giving him a hard time.
