8-YO Indian chess genius takes the world by storm

IMAGE: Divith, centre, who has a FIDE rating of 1784 points currently, won four matches on the trot. Photograph: Kind Courtesy FIDE World Cadet Chess Championship/Facebook

On a pleasant November afternoon in Hyderabad, a cherubic six-year-old, his face framed by oversized spectacles, displayed remarkable play in a challenging endgame to leave none other than India’s World Championship hopeful, D Gukesh, “shocked” by his skill and composure.

He wasn’t able to defend successfully and lost the position to Gukesh and Arjun Erigaisi in a simultaneous exhibition chess event. But he earned high praise from the Gukesh: “This boy is playing exceptionally. I am shocked actually.”

Two years down the line, an 18-year-old Gukesh is locked in a battle for the world crown with Chinese Ding Liren in Singapore.

The Hyderabad boy, now eight, meanwhile, has emerged as the latest Indian chess sensation by becoming the under-8 champion at the world cadet event in Montesilvano in Italy.

Divith, who has a FIDE rating of 1784 points currently, won four matches on the trot, including the last two against higher-rated opponents, to finish in a three-way tie with compatriot Sattwik Swain and Ziming Guo of China. But the Telangana boy clinched the gold with a better tie-break score.

Divith’s journey into the world of chess started at a tender age, with his software engineer parents taking note of his curiosity and love for solving puzzles.

“Initially, he enjoyed solving puzzles. As the complexity increased, his interest grew,” his father Mahesh Reddy recalled while talking to PTI from Italy.

The family enrolled Divith in a local puzzle institute. However, the early experience didn’t work out, leading them to explore other avenues.

When Divith was just six, he participated in the U-8 National Chess Championship.

It was there that his father saw his child excel that prompted him to contact their coach and from there onwards began his journey under Rama Krishna Polavarapu.

As his coach is from of Visakhapatnam, most of learning happens online. The decision to train online was a strategic one, as Reddy and his wife wanted to “save time and minimise travel”.

Divith’s schooling also moved online to complement his chess journey.

“I saw a world champion in him and had to pursue my wife a lot to stop his regular school and dedicate his time fully to chess. With the COVID-19 pandemic, in a way, it also worked to our advantage,” Reddy said.

“His tactical abilities were crazy, even at this very young age, he developed tactics far ahead of his years. Even now, his games are highly complex and tactical.”

“He admires (Garry) Kasparov and enjoys attacking games similar to Kasparov’s style. He has often won games from completely losing positions because of his sharp tactical sense. However, this complexity sometimes leads to losses as well.”

The early results were not encouraging and he could never win any classical tournament, finishing poorly at seventh in the U-7 Nationals.

“Our initial goal was the U-8 World Championship, but we stopped pursuing it after a month.”

April marked a breakthrough when Divith won the world rapid age group title in Armenia and also a bronze in blitz. He also finished fifth in classical format in U-8 World Cup.

“This year has been challenging but so rewarding,” Reddy said of his son, who has competed in 8–10 rated tournaments, including three world events.

Currently Abhimanyu Mishra of the USA holds the record for the youngest Grandmaster, at the age of 12 years, four months, and 25 days.

Reddy is confident that Divith’s extraordinary potential will allow him to achieve this feat even sooner.