Only 15 chess players have touched 2800 Elo points on the FIDE rating list . Arjun Erigaisi was the last to reach there, and it has been two years since. Maxime Vachier-Lagrave crossed the mark in 2016. With a peak rating of 2819, the French Grandmaster is the seventh strongest player in chess history. He is a former World No. 2, and won the World Blitz championship in 2021. MVL, as he is often called, has been playing regularly in India and is now in Bengaluru for the Tech Mahindra Global Chess League. He has played in every single edition of the league. Excerpts from an interview Vachier-Lagrave gave The Hindu:

You have played in every season of the Global Chess League…

I think it is really fun. The idea of having people can cheer on at the venue is nice, and you have all the best players in the world. It is also interesting to see the prodigies in the teams and how they go on to make it big later.

You had Javokhir Sindarov as a prodigy, and now he is a challenger for the World Championship match. And we had D. Gukesh (who will play Sindarov in that match) for the first three seasons as well.

It is also a lot of fun to watch these innovations, such as the time control with no increment. And everyone in the team having the same colour for a match is really a nice experience.

Do you like the system of getting more points with black pieces than white?

That is enjoyable. And it is good to have games that don’t last too long and are easy to watch.

And it is better for the television audience, too.

Yeah, that you don’t want to be glued for four hours, and sometimes nothing happens for 30 minutes.

How do you find the idea of playing with no increment for the first 40 moves?

When I was a kid, we barely had digital clocks, so it is alright. I still prefer the digital clocks, but we have increment after the 40th move, so it is not as ruthless.

What are your thoughts on the upcoming World championship match between Gukesh and Sindarov?

You never know with matches, how it turns out. At the last World championship, Gukesh was coming in really strong, while Ding Liren looked like he couldn’t play chess. Suddenly, you know, Gukesh was under pressure.

It was the same with the previous match, when Ding played against Ian Nepomniachtchi. It looked as if Nepo was winning it. So the form doesn’t really matter when it comes to the World championship match. Yes, Gukesh has been struggling a little bit with his results, but I think he has also been experimenting and, you know, got maybe too much out of his comfort zone.

But in general, when he is playing really well, he is a formidable opponent. I remember having some really good clashes with him. And he had some exceptional performances at the Olympiads.

One thing that I noticed about Gukesh is that, especially ever since he became World champion, it seems like he has to prove a point with every game he plays.

And sometimes that, you know, you cannot have as much energy as that to be there for every game, fighting it out. And, you know, he always takes a lot of risks. And when he is in very good shape, he has a lot of energy, it works out well for him, I think.

But if you get even a slight drop in energy, the consequences can be brutal because his chess requires so much energy and so much confidence as well.

From my point of view, a defining turning point could be the next Olympiad. If Gukesh capitalises on the confidence gained from his performances in his previous two Olympiads, and does a great performance again in this Olympiad (starting next week at Samarkand), he can go into the World championship in a much better mood.

I think it would be very helpful for him if he gets a little bit of confidence back. He needs some sort of break to be certain that he can play his best chess again.

If he plays like he can, there is simply no favourite in my mind. You have two very strong young players who will be fighting it out.

What makes Sindarov different? He has been brilliant for the last year or so, having won the World Cup and then that absolutely dominant performance to win the Candidates…

He seems to be handling his nerves very well. And of course, his calculation is very good. But like at some point, you know, the difference is some little make or break.

The margins are very narrow, of course, in top level chess. So, it could also be like a very good break.

We will see what happens in the World championship match and before that at the Olympiad as well.

He is an extremely strong player and he is having a very good year. But there are so many good players around.

The Olympiad is coming up right after the Global Chess League and India is the defending champion…

The Indian team is so strong. And we don’t know who will be playing on the top board. If France gets to play against them, I will probably be more interested in finding out who is on board one, so that I could prepare.

You will be playing at the pilot event of the newly launched Total World Chess Championship tour…

That is a very exciting event. I am glad that I have managed to qualify, and I hope to make it to the main cycle.

On that tour, the classical bit is going to be of a duration of 45 minutes and they are calling it fast classical…

I am okay with that. Of course, it matters how I perform individually. But I also care about how chess will evolve as a game and as a spectator sport.

And there is now more money in chess too, especially when you compare with the time you started out…

Yes, chess is on the rise. And I think it is a good opportunity for the game. You have many more players coming into the game. You have many more investors coming too, and trying to get a cut of the action. And I think that is really nice. And we get to experiment a bit.

This is all good for the game. And we need to find out what will be the ideal format for spectators to watch. We also need sometimes the players to evolve a bit and to be ready to give them some of their energy, not only towards the preparation.

As a player, I know preparing for your game is important, but you should also be able to give something back to the game.

R. Praggnanandhaa has been having a great time of late…

I think early last year, he also had some great six, eight months, but then there was a toll of playing so much.

And he had a disappointing Candidates.

But I think he has been working on his stamina and is also able to fight it out always. But we always knew that Pragg was also an exceptionally strong player.

What is next for you after the GCL and the Olympiad?

There is the Total Chess World Championship in Budapest, and then the World rapid and blitz.

Only 15 chess players have touched 2800 Elo points on the FIDE rating list . Arjun Erigaisi was the last to reach there, and it has been two years since. Maxime Vachier-Lagrave crossed the mark in 2016. With a peak rating of 2819, the French Grandmaster is the seventh strongest player in chess history. He is a former World No. 2, and won the World Blitz championship in 2021. MVL, as he is often called, has been playing regularly in India and is now in Bengaluru for the Tech Mahindra Global Chess League. He has played in every single edition of the league. Excerpts from an interview Vachier-Lagrave gave The Hindu:

You have played in every season of the Global Chess League…

I think it is really fun. The idea of having people can cheer on at the venue is nice, and you have all the best players in the world. It is also interesting to see the prodigies in the teams and how they go on to make it big later.

You had Javokhir Sindarov as a prodigy, and now he is a challenger for the World Championship match. And we had D. Gukesh (who will play Sindarov in that match) for the first three seasons as well.

It is also a lot of fun to watch these innovations, such as the time control with no increment. And everyone in the team having the same colour for a match is really a nice experience.

Do you like the system of getting more points with black pieces than white?

That is enjoyable. And it is good to have games that don’t last too long and are easy to watch.

And it is better for the television audience, too.

Yeah, that you don’t want to be glued for four hours, and sometimes nothing happens for 30 minutes.

How do you find the idea of playing with no increment for the first 40 moves?

When I was a kid, we barely had digital clocks, so it is alright. I still prefer the digital clocks, but we have increment after the 40th move, so it is not as ruthless.

What are your thoughts on the upcoming World championship match between Gukesh and Sindarov?

You never know with matches, how it turns out. At the last World championship, Gukesh was coming in really strong, while Ding Liren looked like he couldn’t play chess. Suddenly, you know, Gukesh was under pressure.

It was the same with the previous match, when Ding played against Ian Nepomniachtchi. It looked as if Nepo was winning it. So the form doesn’t really matter when it comes to the World championship match. Yes, Gukesh has been struggling a little bit with his results, but I think he has also been experimenting and, you know, got maybe too much out of his comfort zone.

But in general, when he is playing really well, he is a formidable opponent. I remember having some really good clashes with him. And he had some exceptional performances at the Olympiads.

One thing that I noticed about Gukesh is that, especially ever since he became World champion, it seems like he has to prove a point with every game he plays.

And sometimes that, you know, you cannot have as much energy as that to be there for every game, fighting it out. And, you know, he always takes a lot of risks. And when he is in very good shape, he has a lot of energy, it works out well for him, I think.

But if you get even a slight drop in energy, the consequences can be brutal because his chess requires so much energy and so much confidence as well.

From my point of view, a defining turning point could be the next Olympiad. If Gukesh capitalises on the confidence gained from his performances in his previous two Olympiads, and does a great performance again in this Olympiad (starting next week at Samarkand), he can go into the World championship in a much better mood.

I think it would be very helpful for him if he gets a little bit of confidence back. He needs some sort of break to be certain that he can play his best chess again.

If he plays like he can, there is simply no favourite in my mind. You have two very strong young players who will be fighting it out.

What makes Sindarov different? He has been brilliant for the last year or so, having won the World Cup and then that absolutely dominant performance to win the Candidates…

He seems to be handling his nerves very well. And of course, his calculation is very good. But like at some point, you know, the difference is some little make or break.

The margins are very narrow, of course, in top level chess. So, it could also be like a very good break.

We will see what happens in the World championship match and before that at the Olympiad as well.

He is an extremely strong player and he is having a very good year. But there are so many good players around.

The Olympiad is coming up right after the Global Chess League and India is the defending champion…

The Indian team is so strong. And we don’t know who will be playing on the top board. If France gets to play against them, I will probably be more interested in finding out who is on board one, so that I could prepare.

You will be playing at the pilot event of the newly launched Total World Chess Championship tour…

That is a very exciting event. I am glad that I have managed to qualify, and I hope to make it to the main cycle.

On that tour, the classical bit is going to be of a duration of 45 minutes and they are calling it fast classical…

I am okay with that. Of course, it matters how I perform individually. But I also care about how chess will evolve as a game and as a spectator sport.

And there is now more money in chess too, especially when you compare with the time you started out…

Yes, chess is on the rise. And I think it is a good opportunity for the game. You have many more players coming into the game. You have many more investors coming too, and trying to get a cut of the action. And I think that is really nice. And we get to experiment a bit.

This is all good for the game. And we need to find out what will be the ideal format for spectators to watch. We also need sometimes the players to evolve a bit and to be ready to give them some of their energy, not only towards the preparation.

As a player, I know preparing for your game is important, but you should also be able to give something back to the game.

R. Praggnanandhaa has been having a great time of late…

I think early last year, he also had some great six, eight months, but then there was a toll of playing so much.

And he had a disappointing Candidates.

But I think he has been working on his stamina and is also able to fight it out always. But we always knew that Pragg was also an exceptionally strong player.

What is next for you after the GCL and the Olympiad?

There is the Total Chess World Championship in Budapest, and then the World rapid and blitz.

Vachier-Lagrave is currently playing in the Global Chess League.
| Photo Credit: K. Murali Kumar

Gukesh has been going through tough times.
| Photo Credit: B. Velankanni Raj

Nodirbek Abdusattorov playing against Hans Niemann at the Quantbox Chennai Grand Master Chess Tournament on Thursday, July 16, 2026.
| Photo Credit: B. VELANKANNI RAJ

Tari.
| Photo Credit: Flickr/Norway Chess

Aravindh Chithambaram is rated by India’s most successful chess coach R.B. Ramesh as the country’s most talented player since Viswanathan Anand. He began well enough, and came up with some incredible performances, but, later on, was overshadowed by a bunch of other Indian prodigies that took world chess by storm. Over the last couple of years, Aravindh has finally shown what he is capable of: last year, he rose to World No. 11. There is time still for the 26-year-old to do even better. Excerpts from an interview:

You finished runner-up at the Prague Chess Festival earlier this year. You had won that event in 2025. That was one of the best performances of your career…

The victory at Prague will remain super special for me. It was such a strong tournament, with players like Anish Giri, Vincent Keymer, Wei Yi and R. Praggnanandhaa. There is this award for the best game in every round, and I wanted to get it even more than the victory. And I finally got the award for the best game of the tournament — for the one against Anish. I was close to winning the title at Prague this year, too. The standard of my chess was actually good this time as well.

You recently became the first Indian to qualify for this year’s Esports World Cup, to be held in Paris in August.

Esports is a huge opportunity for all the professional players like me. Events like these are important for players who make a living out of chess. I am happy that chess is also now part of the Esports community. It is getting bigger and bigger, and it is nice to see that. Over the last two years, I have been trying to focus both on over-the-board tournaments and online events. And I am glad that I have been able to do it.

Do you think chess could become even more mainstream by being part of Esports and could get new fans?

Yes, a lot of people now recognise me because of S8UL Esports [the team he represents].

The first turning point of your career was the Chennai Grandmaster Open tournament, which was held as a sidelight of the World Championship in 2013. You began as the 53rd seed but won the tournament ahead of 21 Grandmasters, at the age of 14.

Yes, and I also secured my first Grandmaster norm, before making even a single IM norm.

And your rating performance was 2728, while your Elo rating was 2335.

Chennai has always been lucky for me, I feel. It was my first big tournament win. And you know, in 2024, I won the Chennai Grand Masters, which changed my life completely. I did not have any expectations. It was such a strong tournament with so many strong players. I only wanted not to finish last; that was the aim basically. But things turned out differently, you know, when I won my game against Arjun [Erigaisi]. Winning the tournament mattered a lot. Because my career had been a bit stagnant till that point.

True. Expectations had been pretty high after you caught the attention of the chess world at a very young age. You had won the National Under-19 Championship when you were 12. Your coach Ramesh has said some big things about you. 

At some point, maybe I did not have any goals. And my mindset had changed a bit.

How did you come out of that situation?

I started doing things like putting in more effort than usual. I think that made a difference.

How much of an influence has Ramesh been in your life? He is the one who took you to Chennai from Madurai.

Yes, I moved to Chennai to get coached by him. He has been a huge support to me, not just in terms of chess. He was the one who got me sponsors that enabled me to play in tournaments abroad, and those events helped me secure my IM title. I remember him posting about me on Twitter and people from various countries contributed. He also got me a scholarship.

And it is not easy for Indian players to improve without support, as there are hardly any elite tournaments in India. The Chennai Grand Masters is an exception. And that tournament was organised as an opportunity for the likes of D. Gukesh and Arjun to fight for the last available slot in the 2024 Candidates. Gukesh went on to win at Chennai, then the Candidates and the World title match against Ding Liren.

Yes, that showed how such strong closed tournaments [instead of open events] could help the Indian players trying to break into the top tier of world chess. We need more tournaments like that, no doubt about it. That will be a big help for several players like me in India. I would also like to have an Indian championship with big prize money and all the top players taking part.

Something like the US Championship?

Yes. I would love to play in such a National Championship in India.

And it would be great from the marketing point of view as well, a Nationals that will have all the best Indian players, including Gukesh, Arjun, Praggnanandhaa and Nihal Sarin. It would be a big opportunity for players like you, S.L. Narayanan, V. Pranav, Leon Mendonca…

Indeed. With so many strong players in India, we should have a National Championship like that.

At the Prague Festival, you defeated Gukesh, who hasn’t been in great form for some time. Most people have now picked Javokhir Sindarov as the favourite in Gukesh’s World title match later this year.

I think we would see an equal fight in that match. Gukesh is going through a tough time. But everyone could go through such a phase, and it is a matter of time before Gukesh gets his form back. But it requires a lot of effort. And there is plenty of time for him to get back into shape. I am not surprised that Sindarov won the Candidates to earn the right to challenge Gukesh. He had a very good run at the World Cup in Goa [where he was the champion]. And he played exceptionally well in the Bundesliga, too.

And R. Vaishali will be playing the Women’s World Championship match against Ju Wenjun of China.

It would be an interesting challenge for Vaishali. She has the potential to win the World title. This is her first World title match. She will need a different kind of mindset to play the World Championship match. I hope she manages to do that. It is great that an Indian is playing in both the World title matches.

Published – May 30, 2026 02:43 am IST

World 10K Bengaluru run event ambassador Blanka Vlasic, a double Olympic medalist and two-time World Champion in high jump, during a press conference ahead of the TCS World 10K Bengaluru run 2026, in Bengaluru on April 23, 2026.
| Photo Credit: K. MURALI KUMAR