Anuj Shrivatri becomes India’s 100th Grandmaster

Anuj Shrivatri became India’s 100th chess Grandmaster after winning the 7th ASEAN Plus Individual Open Chess Championship in the Philippines on Sunday. The 22-year-old is also the first Grandmaster from Madhya Pradesh, according to reports of the result.

Shrivatri, an International Master before the tournament, began with a loss and finished with seven points. One account said the event had nine rounds and that he ended half a point ahead of Vietnam’s Nguyen Duc Hoa, with Nouri Alekhine of the Philippines third on six. Another described his score as seven of a possible eight points. The reports do not explain the difference in how the tournament total was described.

The title was decided in the final rounds, with Shrivatri winning his last two games, according to one account. The tournament was held in the Philippines; reports place it in Ozamiz City and at the Asenso Global Youth Leadership and Sports Complex in Misamis Occidental.

The achievement came 38 years after Viswanathan Anand became India’s first Grandmaster in 1988. Shrivatri’s win brings the number of Indian Grandmasters to 100 and marks the first time a player from Madhya Pradesh has reached the title.