Chess Prodigy Praggnanandhaa Achieves Top Junior Ranking, Prompts Witty Response from Anish Giri

Dutch Grandmaster Anish Giri, known for his insightful commentary, sparked a lively debate in the chess community following R Praggnanandhaa's ascent to the top of the junior chess rankings.

Giri, currently ranked World No. 10 with a live rating of 2748.0, quipped, "Chess juniors nowadays have to be at least U16, keeping track of U20 players is totally pointless." This remark subtly highlights the exceptional talent emerging at increasingly younger ages, challenging established norms in the chess world.

This comment followed the 19-year-old Praggnanandhaa's impressive victory at the UzChess Cup Masters 2025 in Uzbekistan. This win propelled him to a live rating of 2778.3, placing him among the elite and making him India's highest-rated chess player, surpassing even the reigning World Champion D Gukesh (2776.6) and Arjun Erigaisi (2775.7).

Praggnanandhaa's path to victory was marked by resilience and determination. He started the final day trailing Nodirbek Abdusattorov and Javokhir Sindarov, but a crucial win against Abdusattorov in the last classical round forced a three-way tie. In the ensuing blitz tiebreaks, Praggnanandhaa demonstrated remarkable composure, ultimately securing the tournament victory in the second set of rapid games. This marked his third major classical title of the year.

Five-time world champion Viswanathan Anand lauded the young player's achievement, stating, "This win seemed the least likely with just two rounds to go… An impressive demonstration of character.”

This victory at the UzChess Cup adds to Praggnanandhaa's impressive 2025 record, which includes wins at the Tata Steel Chess Tournament and the Superbet Classic in Romania. He also secured a second-place finish at the Stepan Avagyan Memorial.

While Giri's comment might seem to downplay the significance of junior rankings, Praggnanandhaa's recent performance underscores a clear trend: the future of world chess is already making its mark, particularly in India.