Truly A Grand Master! Nihal Sarin Clinches Second Consecutive Title

Indian chess sensation Nihal Sarin clinched the Master's section of the Serbia Open Chess Championship. This amounted to his second consecutive tournament trophy after he claimed the Silver Lake Open prompting his ranking amongst the elite World's top 100. The 16-year-old from Thrissur in Kerala played a draw with Grand Master Vladimir Fedoseev from Russia. He concluded with 7.5 points out of 9 to finish first in the 289-player field in the nine rounds of the Serbia Open.

The tournament gave Sarin a chance to showcase his incredible prowess in the game, and he most definitely did justice to it. The young player was only the eighth-seeded player with a rating of 2620 and finished with a breathtaking score of 2800. Nihal first competed in the Silver Lake Open held from June 23 to June 30 in Serbia. The competition had 131 players and 15 grandmasters, The Times of India reported.

Won GM Title At 14

Nihal Sareen won the coveted Grandmaster title in 2018 at the age of 14. He had won six games and drew three to remain undefeated. He began his battle in Serbia Open with two consecutive victories and ended with a draw and three successive wins in the final round. The Silver Lake Open was his first major title after the outbreak of Coronavirus.

Now that Open tournaments are finally returning this summer, several chess players are travelling to Europe to participate in these over-the-board tournaments. Many chess players have learnt new tactics, but the Kerala-based grandmaster showed signs of mature play.

Sarin was introduced to chess at the age of six by his father to keep him occupied during his school vacations. He was the youngest Indian to play in a World Cup at the age of 15 when he reached the second round. He was a world champion in the under 10 and 18 category and helped India clinch the Online Chess Olympiad last year.

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