From Pratipadu to Belgrade: The journey of Harikrishna Pentala
30/10/2017 - On 16th of March, 2016 Harikrishna Pentala reached a live rating of 2763.3 and with it he overtook Vishy Anand on the live Elo rating scale. This was the first time in Indian chess that someone had moved ahead of Anand in the last three decades. Harikrishna is a genius, no doubt about that. By winning the world under-10 title, almost all the age category nationals, and world junior title, he had made it clear that he has the talent to be the best in the world. Yet, the journey to the top for Hari was not at all easy. He stagnated, he plateaued, but he never gave up. It's a story of grit and dedication of how a boy who learnt chess in a village of Andhra Pradesh went on to reach the top ten players in the world of chess! | Thumbnail image: Alina l'Ami