Changes in my game showing results: Grandmaster R Praggnanandhaa
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4 in the live rankings. It also firmly placed him in contention for a 2026 FIDE Candidates berth.
The 19-year-old kicked off the season with a memorable win at Wijk aan Zee, followed it up with a joint-first finish at the Superbet Chess Classic in Romania, and then clinched the UzChess Cup in Tashkent, which put him in pole position on the FIDE Circuit leaderboard with 86.28 points. While the World Cup and Grand Swiss later this year will be decisive, for now, the Chennai youngster is well and truly in the driver's seat.
'This year has been good for me so far and I hope it continues. We made some changes in my game and it's showing results. Last year, things didn't go my way. Ramesh sir and I worked and tried to find things to change…Those were the difficult things. Now there are a lot of tournaments coming up…Candidates, Grand Swiss, GCT..And I'm trying to focus on all of them and take one at a time,' Pragg said on the sidelines of the 'Chola Chess' academy launch here on Wednesday.
When asked if he feels on track for the Candidates seat, Pragg said: 'I'm giving my best and we will see…There are a lot more important tournaments lined up. In the FIDE Circuit, anyone can come up and catch me. For me personally, I will take each tournament separately and I want to give my best for every tournament. Let's see how it goes.'
Anand hopeful that Pragg will qualify for Candidates
Pragg had qualified for the Candidates last year but finished fifth in the prestigious tournament. Five-time world champion
, who has closely tracked Pragg's rise, believes the teenager has got 'extra motivation' to perform better.
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'He's (Pragg) having a sensational year overall. I think for him, missing out (on winning) the Candidates last year is a reaction this year. He's got that extra motivation. As he himself noted, the most important thing is not to be leading the FIDE Circuit now…It's to be leading when it ends. Hopefully that'll happen. Otherwise, he's still got chances through the Swiss or the World Cup. But his biggest lead is in the FIDE Circuit.
And good luck to him. I'm really hopeful he will qualify for the Candidates, but I don't want to jinx anything,' said the 55-year-old.
'Gukesh showing signs of progress'
Meanwhile, Gukesh has had an uneven run after being crowned the youngest world champion. And in recent weeks, the Chennai boy had to deal with some jibes from World No. 1 Magnus Carlsen.
'I think he's (Gukesh) showing signs of progress and after all, he's playing all the best players in the world now, constantly.
As for the jibes, they come with the territory. You cannot expect to be a world champion and say people will just be nice to me. You have to face that and I don't see anything to be concerned about his game,' said Anand.
I'm enjoying chess now: Anand
Anand himself finished runner-up at the recent Leon Masters, showing he still has a move or two left. 'More than others, I take it one step at a time. I might play a tournament and not play for some time. But I'm enjoying the stage that I am in…where I'm not playing full-time, but I'm still able to come back and enjoy a bit of chess. I probably won't do it (stop playing) in secret.'
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