My immediate priority is to improve the rating and crack the top 10: Harshavardhan

G.B. Harshavardhan must have heaved a sigh of relief after becoming India’s latest Grandmaster, achieving the title in his hometown, four years after securing his first norm.

The 22-year-old is happy to end the wait after coming close several times. Now, he is keen to improve his rating and break into the top echelons of the sport.

“My immediate priority is to increase my rating and crack the top 10,” Harshavardhan, son of noted FIDE trainer K. Gopalakrishnan, told The Hindu.

Watching his father train players probably drew him to chess and he began playing when he was four. He quickly impressed with his skills and did well in age-group tournaments, winning medals at will. Among the notable triumphs were the FIDE World Youth Online under-18 gold in 2021 and a triumph in the Asian Juniors the next year.

However, despite the victories, the GM title kept eluding him after he had earned his maiden norm in 2022. “There were a lot of missed norms. The rating dipped a bit. I am happy I was able to achieve the third and final norm in Chennai,” said Harshavardhan, who is now coached by GM Deepan Chakkravarthy.

A B. Com graduate, he has now decided to focus completely on chess. “I want to play in Europe and improve my rating. It is also important that I learn from my mistakes,” said Harshavardhan.

For now, he is delighted to join the elite club of GMs and would be musing ‘better late than never’.