NEW DELHI: Indian chess Grandmaster R Vaishali has outlined her primary ambitions for the year, focusing on achieving consistent performances and aiming for a spot in the prestigious Candidates Tournament.
The 23-year-old had a notable year in 2024, marked by significant achievements including earning the Grandmaster title, contributing to India’s gold medal at the Chess Olympiad in the women’s category, and securing a bronze medal at the World Blitz Championship.
Vaishali’s objectives are clear: to maintain a steady performance level and to qualify for the Candidates Tournament, an event that determines the challenger for the World Chess Championship.
Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW!
Reflecting on her recent accomplishments, she emphasised the importance of these goals for her career trajectory.
“My main goal is to show consistent performance and play some good games,” Vaishali told PTI. “Of course, by the end of the year, I aim to qualify for the Candidates Tournament. I had the opportunity to play in the Candidates last year, and I hope to qualify for it again.”
Recently, Vaishali participated in the Tata Steel Chess Tournament‘s Challenger section, finishing ninth.
She acknowledges that there were missed opportunities that could have improved her standing, indicating a focus on converting advantageous positions in future competitions.
“Tata Steel is a strong tournament, and I think my performance was decent,” she said.
“Surely I could have scored a few points more, like I had some good positions, I failed to convert them, which I’ll work on and try to improve. Going forward, I want to focus on showing more consistent performance.”
An incident during the Tata Steel Chess Tournament involving Uzbek Grandmaster Nodirbek Yakubboev gained attention, but Vaishali remained focused on her gameplay, undistracted by the social media buzz surrounding the event.
“I didn’t know it was a big thing back in India. I was focused on the games and didn’t know what was going on in the social media,” she added. “Later I got to know, and okay, we all know what happened. It didn’t affect me in any way.”
Looking ahead, Vaishali expresses enthusiasm for participating in the upcoming Norway Chess Women tournament, a unique event that includes an Armageddon format for drawn classical games.
“Last year was a great experience. They’re bringing in this women’s tournament, new format along with the Norway main event. And personally, I really enjoyed playing in Norway because like I’ve also got the chance to see the top players playing alongside,” she concluded.
“The format is also very different. They have the Armageddon format if you make a draw in the classical game, we go on to the Armageddon game, which I’ve never played until the last Norway event. So I’m really looking forward to that.”
Also Read: China No. 1 Wei Yi lauds Gukesh and Praggnanandhaa, says ‘blitz games shouldn’t decide classical chess titles’ | Exclusive