From facing Carlsen as a kid to a perfect 7/7: Savitha Shri’s rise continues at Chess Olympiad

A bronze medallist at the World Rapid championship in 2022, the 19-year-old WGM is making the right moves at the ongoing Olympiad in Samarkand.  | Photo Credit: Flickr/FIDE

She was a wisp of a girl when she faced Magnus Carlsen in a simultaneous display ahead of the Norwegian’s World Championship match against Viswanathan Anand in the city back in the year 2013.

B. Savitha Shri has come a long way since that moment and is currently among the top Indian women chess players.

A bronze medallist at the World Rapid championship in 2022, the 19-year-old WGM is making the right moves at the ongoing Olympiad in Samarkand. She has been the star performer, winning all seven games on the fourth board after eight rounds. She was rested in the fifth-round match against Poland.

The Chennai player, who trains under R.B. Ramesh, said the coach had been a great support and helped her make giant strides.  “He (Ramesh sir) analyses games and offers psychological support. We work a lot on the middle and end-game,” Savitha Shri told The Hindu.

On his part, Ramesh said, “Over the board, she does the most practical things without much hesitation when most players would hesitate.”

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The work put in with the acclaimed coach appears to be paying off at the Olympiad, and there is no one happier than her father Krishnan Baskar.

The teenager said World championship challenger R. Vaishali was like an “elder sister” and was always ready to help. “I approach Vaishali akka whenever I have any doubt. She gives me advice and I look up to her.”

Having matched wits with someone (Magnus Carlsen) who would go on to become one of the greatest-ever, Savitha Shri is now holding her own against the game’s elite as she aims for the skies.