FIDE match-ups: Pressure on Gukesh, underdog tag may suit Vaishali

Dommaraju Gukesh vs Javokhir Sindarov; R. Vaishali vs Ju Wenjun – the match-up is now ready for the FIDE World Championship battles at the yearend. The historic presence of an Indian each in the top battles is a testimony of the growing clout of the country as a chess power which had, till some years back, been riding piggyback on the talismanic figure of Vishy Anand for nurturing any global ambitions.

 While Gukesh will be taking on Sindarov, the 20-year-old Uzbek sensation to defend his crown in what would be the battle of two youngest aces ever – Vaishali will be up against the Chinese superwoman Ju, who has already won the world title five times since 2018. However, one of the most respected voices of Indian chess feels that between the two, pressure could be less on Vaishali as she would go in as the proverbial underdog.

 Speaking to National Herald, Dibyendu Barua, the second Grandmaster in the country after Anand said: ‘’The men’s battle will be a fascinating one between two youngsters but the pressure will be on Gukesh as a defending champion. Sindarov has come in like a bolt from the blue in the past year – winning the FIDE World Cup and now storming through the Candidates without losing a single game.’’   

The dates and venue of the two summit clashes are yet to be decided – which are usually held separately with the men’s one in November-December and the women’s early next year. There is a buzz of the two taking place together and Barua, a Vice President of the All India Chess Federation (AICF) of India, did not rule out an Indian bid for the same with two Indians in the fray. FIDE will throw open tenders for playing hosts soon.

 Reflecting on Vaishali’s calm and resilient display in the Candidates in Cyprus, Barua said the 24-year-old had shown remarkable temperament during her campaign. ‘’It’s not easy when you have lost the sole lead as late as in 12^th round, draw the next game and prevail in a must-win game in the 14^th round to close in on the title. It shows she has matured into a big occasion player and developed control over emotions,’’ he analysed.

 The task ahead for Pragnanandhaa’s sister, however, will not be easy as Ju is an extremely canny competitor – despite not playing too much of classical chess anymore. Last year, the only classical chess she played outside of her World Championship match against Tan Zhongyi was at the Norway Chess tournament where she finished fourth behind eventual champion Anna Muzychuk, Lei Tingjie and India’s Koneru Humpy.

 ‘’While Ju could be the favourite on paper, Vaishali should approach the contest with a nothing-to-lose attitude. For the last 15 years or so, the Chinese had been dominating the women’s game but the time has come to challenge that,’’ remarked Barua, who now runs his academy in Kolkata.

 The current slump in form for Gukesh doesn’t worry Barua too much and he feels it’s a wise move by his think tank to be selective about his choice of tournaments in the lead-up to the Worlds. ‘’This kind of phase is not uncommon in top players and I am sure he will work with his team on the mistakes made of late. They will start on his prep for the big game where the first three to four games will be extremely important to set the tone,’’ he said.   

 Sindarov, incidentally, was on a roll in the Candidates – prompting an experienced commentator like GM Peter Leko to say ‘’he makes equal positions look completely winning.’’ He put to shade two of the pre-tournament favourites Hikaru Nakamura and Fabiano Caruna but then, Gukesh created a similar impact when he became the youngest ever to win the Candidates two years back and then cap it with the world title.

 It seems a great time to be an Indian chess fan after all!