2024-05-14 11:29:33
New Delhi: P Shyamnikhil became India’s 85th Grandmaster by achieving his third and final Grandmaster (GM) norm at the Dubai Police Masters Chess Tournament recently. Shyamnikhil, who started playing chess at the age of eight, had to wait 12 years to achieve this feat with the third norm. Shyamnikhil needed just one win and eight draws to complete the long-awaited GM norm, which he achieved in the tournament played in Dubai. The 31-year-old player achieved the required 2500 ELO rating points, which is the minimum requirement to become a GM, with two Grandmaster norms in 2012.
It took 12 years to complete the third norm
P Shyamnikhil had to wait for 12 years to complete the third norm. After achieving the GM feat, this player from Nagarkoli, Tamil Nadu said, ‘I started playing at the age of eight. My parents taught me this game but I could not play any tournament for three years. After winning the Under-13 State Championship, opportunities opened up for me as I could play the Asian and age group World Championships.
Shyamnikhil achieved his first GM norm in Mumbai Mayor’s Cup 2011. She achieved the second norm shortly thereafter at the age of 19 during the Indian Championships and then completed the rating requirement in early 2012. He missed his final norm at the Dubai Open in 2012. He has failed to take advantage of many opportunities since then. He said, ‘I played tournaments in Europe only in 2017, till then I was trying to play in Vietnam or UAE and try to achieve the final norm, but these places are not so easy because the tournaments are very strong. ‘ The 2022 Commonwealth champion said, ‘Now that I have achieved the GM norm, I can play more freely.’