IM Aradhya Garg Wins Shri Dhanpat Rai Sachdeva Memorial 2026; Reflects on GM Dreams and Helping Others

Aradhya 1st Title of the year in India

IM Aradhya Garg is giving a consistent performance this year. He got two podium finishes at Maharathi 3rd Maharathi Rapid and Blitz 2026. Here at Shri Dhanpat Rai Sachdeva Memorial, he maintained his consistency and won the tournament. In the last round, 5 players were on 7/8 points, and the other 4 drew their game, while Aradhya scored a win.

Interview with Aradhya after his Victory

Question: Why did you decide to take part in this tournament?

Answer: I had decided to take part in this tournament quite some time ago, in April itself. There were many reasons-it was being held in Delhi, from where I live; it had an attractive prize fund, it was a classical-rated tournament with 2 rounds on 4 days and 1 round on the final day, and I could test my endurance in this way, and it was a strong tournament. Before the tournament, I expected some other strong players to also take part in the event, but they opted out of the tournament before it started.

Que: When you saw the field for the event, what did you feel?

Ans: When I saw the Starting Rank List, I believed it was strong. I started as the 6th seed, and I knew it was going to be challenging. I knew it was not going to be easy and was prepared for it. However, I was more focused on doing what is in my control and doing it to the best of my ability.

Q: The first round, you got a walkover, and then for the next 4 rounds, you faced players below 1900 Elo. How do you see such games? Are they interesting to you?

Ans: This specific tournament was very interesting for me as there were 2 rounds for the first 4 days (which equals 8 rounds and is most of the tournament, given that the tournament is 9 rounds in total). In effect, for the first 5 rounds, I faced players below 1900. However, they were not easy games at all. Also, the 2nd round was very interesting and not easy. I was in trouble for quite some time in the game, also, but was lucky to escape with a win. These games are challenging because the opposition has a lot to gain (experience, potential rating points) and little to lose (very few rating points). It is always a challenge, and a lot of these players are often not easy to beat, too. If we see the final ranking list, we can see a lot of such players proving themselves and making a mark for themselves in this tournament also.

Check out the Round 2 game against Reyansh Arora

Que: How was your game against Ajay Santosh, a strong, talented IM from India? Did you consider that to be an important encounter?

Ans: Definitely! I have known Ajay for a long time, around 3 years now. He is quite strong. I did consider this to be an important encounter, but then again focused on what I could control. It was a very important game. After the game, he told me that he mixed up his openings.

However, when needed, he defended with precision and showcased a lot of resilience. It was a well-fought game which eventually ended in a draw. I believe I could have posed more practical problems than I did in the game, but he did defend very resourcefully.

Que: Also, do tell us about your draw against Ido Gorshtein.

Ans: This was an important encounter in the penultimate round. I was again White against Gorshtein. He surprised me in the opening (on the 1st move!) with the Dutch. The game was long and tense. He seemed to be well-aware and well-prepared in the opening, and I was especially impressed with his understanding when he played ….Bf5! exchanging my important light-squared Bishop. I could have pushed when he played ….dc5, but I did not notice that I could have an advantage there. Also, he again defended very resolutely and resourcefully in the endgame, and I did not gain any realistic chances.

Que: In the final round, you beat the talented youngster Rosh Jain - can you take us through the game, your preparation, mental setup and how you managed to outwit him?

Ans: This was a very interesting encounter. Rosh had done very well in the tournament before the 8th round-he was in joint lead and was the only one to have drawn with the top seed of the tournament. He, however, faced a tough loss in the 8th round against Ajay Santhosh.

I believed this would be a blow for his overall chances to win the Championships, as he now trailed 5 players with half a point with just 1 round to go. I certainly did not expect him to go for the King’s Gambit, but I believed it was a possibility before the round, but not a very realistic one. I was prepared for a long game. The last round started half an hour before than usual(the 1st, 3rd, 5th and 7th rounds started at 9:30 AM and the last round started at 9:00 AM), so there was not much to prepare, but I did have a look at some of his games and had decided how to approach the game.

As there were 5 players on 7.0/8, the final standings would probably not be fully in my control. Hence, I decided to solely and fully focus on my board and decided not to look at the other boards at all. Out of the opening, I think I got a fine position, and I was especially happy with the moves ….Ba5 and …Bb6! And then …Nd4! I believed it was almost the turning point in the game. I was quite sure I had a firm advantage at that point. I was then also quite happy with …f3! Followed by ….Nf4, and it was clear that Black should be winning there. I am especially proud of …Qh1! Provoking Rc1 before going ….Qd5! My opponent resigned here. If I had played ….Qd5 directly, White had b3 when it is clearly not as clear as after …Qh1+ followed by …Qd5, where White is suffering irreparable material losses.

Que: You are someone who is not so young anymore. Born in 2000, you are 25 years old. How do you look at your chess career right now?

Ans: I am aware I am not as young anymore. I see myself primarily as a player, and whatever I want to do, I want to do revolving around Chess. My Live Rating would be somewhere around 2422-2423 so I am primarily focused on achieving the GM Title and going much further from there.

Que: You help a lot of people in chess and have a very kind heart. We are aware that you are helping Vaibhav Gautam, a differently abled player and guiding him. What inspires you to spend your time in this direction?

Ans: Thank you for the kind words! I really feel inspired by the act of helping others. I also read in Open: An Autobiography by Andre Agassi that the purpose of life is to help others. Also, my mother has deeply instilled in me that it is very important to help others without any expectations. I try to follow that consistently. These are some things that inspire me to spend time in this direction. Furthermore, the success of my students often feels like my own to me!

Que: What's next on your agenda, and how hungry are you to achieve the GM title?

Ans: I will be playing in the Aktobe Open 2026 and am preparing for that currently. I want to become a GM by next year for sure and am focusing my direction on achieving the important GM Title.

Que: What is your advice to some of the youngsters of Indian chess? What would be some of the pitfalls they can avoid in the years to come?

Ans: That is a very important question! I believe that, generally, young players should focus on creating more than consuming. I mean this with the best intentions in mind-creating opening files, notes, or physically exercising, doing their hobbies more than consuming content, reports, etc., is something I would advise them.

I would also like to say that (this goes for everyone, not just young players), they should focus and spend the majority of their time trying to improve themselves and upskill themselves consistently. This, I believe, is very important. As was said repeatedly in the book ‘Open-An Autobiography’: “Control what you can control. What you cannot control, you just cannot control”.

Que: Anything else you would like to add?

Ans: I would really like to thank the organisers for the splendid conditions and facilities provided to the players. The playing hall was well-lit, the washrooms were clean and hygienic, the parents' waiting area was clean, and food was being provided at subsidised rates. Also, the organisers were extremely warm and courteous. I would like to thank the Rai Sahab Council for making this event possible and wish them the best for many more events to come.

I would also like to thank my parents. They were quite happy with my achievement, and we had a small celebration afterwards. I would also like to thank my family, who were very happy with the victory and joined in the celebrations!

Lastly and perhaps most importantly, I would like to dedicate this victory to my two Grandmothers who lost their lives earlier this year. This loss was very hard, but I wish they were looking down from above and would be happy with this achievement.

Thank you!

If you are interested in following Aradhya's journey, you can follow his Twitter account: Here

A total of 363 players took part in this 5-day5-day FIDE Rating Classical tournament. The time control was 90 minutes with a 30-second increment from move 1. The total prize fund was ₹14,01,000, with the top 3 prizes of ₹2,00,000, ₹1,50,000 and ₹1,00,000 along with trophies

Editor's Note

The first time I met Aradhya was in 2019. It was the trials of Delhi University Admission, Aradhya, and I both applied from the Sports Quota. It was a 7-round tournament in the university complex, and he scored 7/7. The most impressive thing that I remember from that day is that he won the tournament after 6 rounds with 6/6, but still he refused to fix a draw (which is very common for many players). Him winnning that last round helped me as I secured 3rd place. Then I met him in Metro, college events and even in Rickshaws on the campus, and I can easily say that he is the most humble and down-to-earth chess player I have ever seen or met!!

Always ready to help, always smiling and ready to share his knowledge. I wish him a great success and the GM title that he is fighting for!!

Replay Available Games

Final Ranking after 9 Rounds

Details

Rai Sahab Council for Sports and Education: Facebook, Instagram

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