Praggnanandhaa Overtakes Rivals, Becomes World's Top Junior Chess Player: Giri Responds with Tongue-in-Cheek Remark

Giri's Jocular Remark on Praggnanandhaa's Ascent to Junior Chess Supremacy

Dutch Grandmaster Anish Giri, known for his wit, has stirred the chess community with a playful reaction to R Praggnanandhaa becoming the world's top-rated junior player.

"Keeping track of U20 players is totally pointless," the 31-year-old Giri, currently ranked world No. 10 with a live rating of 2748.0, jested. His remark subtly acknowledges the rapid rise of young chess prodigies who are now challenging seasoned professionals at the highest levels of the game.

The buzz follows Praggnanandhaa's impressive victory at the UzChess Cup Masters 2025 in Uzbekistan. The 19-year-old's performance catapulted him to a live rating of 2778.3, briefly making him the fourth-highest-rated player in the world and India's top chess player, surpassing even World Champion D Gukesh and Arjun Erigaisi.

Praggnanandhaa's path to victory was a hard-fought battle. He entered the final day trailing Nodirbek Abdusattorov and Javokhir Sindarov. A critical win against Abdusattorov in the last classical round forced a three-way tie. In the ensuing blitz tiebreaks, Praggnanandhaa maintained his composure, ultimately securing the tournament win in the second set of rapid games – marking his third major classical title this year.

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

The UzChess Cup victory adds to Praggnanandhaa's impressive 2025 season, which includes wins at the Tata Steel Chess Tournament and the Superbet Classic in Romania. He also recently finished as runner-up at the Stepan Avagyan Memorial.

While Giri's comment was made in jest, Praggnanandhaa's achievements highlight a significant trend: the future of chess is now, and it's flourishing in India.