India Names D Gukesh as Top Board for Chess Olympiad 2024, Faces Morocco in Round 1

The 45th Chess Olympiad in Budapest is underway with India fielding strong teams in both the open and women’s categories, aiming for gold. The tournament, held from September 10 to 23, promises high-intensity action as the world’s top chess players compete at the BOK Csarnok events venue.

India’s open team has named young chess sensation D Gukesh as its top board. Gukesh, who is set to challenge for the World Chess Championship, leads a formidable lineup for India. Following him in the board order are R. Praggnanandhaa (Board 2), Arjun Erigaisi (Board 3), and Vidit Gujrathi (Board 4), with Pentala Harikrishna serving as the reserve player.

In a strategic decision, Gukesh will sit out in the opening round, with India’s lineup for Round 1 against Morocco being: Praggnanandhaa (Board 1), Arjun Erigaisi (Board 2), Vidit Gujrathi (Board 3), and Pentala Harikrishna (Board 4).

Despite the absence of Indian chess legend Viswanathan Anand from the open team, India’s lineup remains formidable. Arjun Erigaisi, ranked No. 4 in the world with a rating of 2778, leads the charge alongside Gukesh (ranking 7, rating 2764), Praggnanandhaa (ranking 12, rating 2750), Vidit Gujrathi (ranking 24, rating 2720), and Harikrishna (ranking 41, rating 2686). The team is captained by GM Srinath Narayanan.

Women’s Team: Harika Sits Out Round 1

In the women’s section, India is the top seed despite the absence of Koneru Humpy, India’s highest-rated female player. The team is led by GM Harika Dronavalli on Board 1, with R. Vaishali on Board 2, Divya Deshmukh on Board 3, Vantika Agrawal on Board 4, and Tania Sachdev as the reserve.

Like in the open section, the Indian women’s team has opted to rest their top board in the opening round, with Harika sitting out against Jamaica. As a result, Vaishali will take the top board, with everyone else moving up a board and Tania Sachdev filling in at Board 4.

Chess Olympiad Rules and Time Control

The Chess Olympiad follows the Swiss System, ensuring balanced competition across 11 rounds. Teams earn two match points for a win, one for a draw, and none for a loss. With 196 teams competing in the open section and 184 in the women’s section, the top four teams—India, China, USA, and Uzbekistan—are likely to face off in the latter rounds.

The time control for each game is set at 90 minutes for the first 40 moves, with an additional 30 minutes for the rest of the game, plus a 30-second increment per move starting from move 1.

India is poised to make a strong impact at the 45th Chess Olympiad, with both the open and women’s teams featuring top talents. As the tournament progresses, all eyes will be on key matchups, with the Indian teams aiming to bring home gold. With star players like Magnus Carlsen, Fabiano Caruana, and Ding Liren sitting out in the first round, India’s teams have a chance to build early momentum as they take on Morocco and Jamaica, respectively.