Top 100 Indian Chess Players – FIDE ratings and titles received

Chess is an ancient Indian game, originally known as Chaturanga, which translates as four divisions of the military: infantry, cavalry, elephantry, and chariots, represented by the pawns, bishops, rooks, and knights. Over the years, Indian chess players have made their motherland proud on the international stage. And when it comes to making our country proud, no one did that as well as Viswanathan Anand, India’s first chess Grandmaster. He has inspired the youth to play this game, and with all his success and achievements, he has become a role model.

In this article, we will provide you with a list of the top 100 Indian chess players.

According to the International Chess federations (FIDE), out of the top 100 Indian Chess players based upon ranking in March 2022, 45 have received Grandmaster (GM) title. Here is an overview of the titles won by the top 100 players:

Titles	Number of Indian players
Grandmaster (GM)	45
Women Grand Master (WGM)	2
International Master (IM)	43
FIDE Master (FM)	5
Candidate Master (CM)	1
No title	4

Top 100 Indian Chess Players

Take a look at the list of the top 100 Indian Chess players:

Sr.no	Top 100 Indian Chess Players	Rating	Title
1	Anand, Viswanathan	2751	Grandmaster
2	Vidit, Santosh Gujrathi	2723	Grandmaster
3	Harikrishna, Pentala	2716	Grandmaster
4	Erigaisi Arjun	2660	Grandmaster
5	Narayanan.S.L	2658	Grandmaster
6	Nihal Sarin	2652	Grandmaster
7	Sasikiran, Krishnan	2650	Grandmaster
8	Adhiban, B.	2648	Grandmaster
9	Gupta, Abhijeet	2628	Grandmaster
10	Karthikeyan, Murali	2622	Grandmaster
11	Praggnanandhaa R	2619	Grandmaster
12	Sethuraman, S.P.	2619	Grandmaster
13	Puranik, AbhInternational Masteranyu	2618	Grandmaster
14	Sadhwani, Raunak	2616	Grandmaster
15	Gukesh D	2614	Grandmaster
16	Aravindh, Chithambaram VR.	2611	Grandmaster
17	Ganguly, Surya Shekhar	2609	Grandmaster
18	Lalith Babu M R	2558	Grandmaster
19	Narayanan, Srinath	2553	Grandmaster
20	Sankalp Gupta	2536	Grandmaster
21	Mendonca, Leon Luke	2536	Grandmaster
22	Shyam, Sundar M.	2528	Grandmaster
23	Sengupta, Deep	2528	Grandmaster
24	Visakh N R	2522	Grandmaster
25	Deepan Chakkravarthy J.	2520	Grandmaster
26	Stany, G.A.	2517	Grandmaster
27	Harika, Dronavalli	2517	Grandmaster
28	Iniyan, P	2516	Grandmaster
29	Mitrabha, Guha	2510	Grandmaster
30	Bharath Subramaniyam H	2508	International Master
31	Arjun Kalyan	2506	Grandmaster
32	Harsha Bharathakoti	2499	Grandmaster
33	Akash G	2495	Grandmaster
34	Pranav, V	2493	International Master
35	Debashis, Das	2491	Grandmaster
36	Raja Rithvik R	2490	Grandmaster
37	Aditya Mittal	2487	International Master
38	Karthik Venkataraman	2485	Grandmaster
39	Chanda, Sandipan	2485	Grandmaster
40	Aronyak Ghosh	2482	International Master
41	Raja Harshit	2482	Grandmaster
42	Saksham Rautela	2480	International Master
43	Raahul V S	2478	International Master
44	Rathanvel, V S	2477	International Master
45	Panchanathan, Magesh Chandran	2474	Grandmaster
46	Ashwin, Jayaram	2471	Grandmaster
47	Das, Arghyadip	2471	International Master
48	Ravi, Teja S.	2470	International Master
49	Koustav Chatterjee	2466	International Master
50	Krishna C R G	2466	International Master
51	Das, Sayantan	2459	International Master
52	Rahul Srivatshav P	2458	International Master
53	Pranesh M	2455	International Master
54	Nitish Belurkar	2447	FIDE Master
55	Neelash Saha	2445	International Master
56	Vignesh N R	2444	International Master
57	Prithu Gupta	2444	Grandmaster
58	Shyaamnikhil P	2442	International Master
59	Raghunandan, Kaumandur Srihari	2441	International Master
60	Ajay Karthikeyan	2436	International Master
61	Mohammad Nubairshah Shaikh	2436	International Master
62	Pranav Anand	2436	International Master
63	Samant Aditya S	2433	FIDE Master
64	Laxman, R.R.	2429	Grandmaster
65	Nitin, S.	2427	International Master
66	Harikrishnan.A.Ra	2422	International Master
67	Dhulipalla Bala Chandra Prasad	2422	International Master
68	Prasanna Raghuram Rao	2420	International Master
69	Srijit Paul	2419	International Master
70	Audi Ameya	2418	International Master
71	Dushyant Sharma	2416	FIDE Master
72	Bitan, Banerjee	2410	International Master
73	Prraneeth Vuppala	2409	Candidate Master
74	Neelotpal, Das	2409	Grandmaster
75	Aditya Vikram Paul	2409	FIDE Master
76	Gusain, HInternational Masteral	2408	International Master
77	Sammed Jaykumar, Shete	2408	International Master
78	Vaishali R	2403	International Master
79	Muthaiah AL	2403	International Master
80	Saptarshi, Roy	2402	Grandmaster
81	Harshavardhan G B	2402	International Master
82	Avinash Ramesh	2402
83	Shahil Dey	2400	International Master
84	Srihari L R	2400	International Master
85	Ajay Krishna, S	2399	International Master
86	Karthikeyan, P.	2397	Grandmaster
87	Viani Antonio Dcunha	2397	International Master
88	Moksh Amit Doshi	2396	International Master
89	Harsh Suresh	2392
90	HInternational Masteranshu, Sharma	2391	Grandmaster
91	Akshat, Khamparia	2390	International Master
92	Kulkarni Bhakti	2388	International Master
93	Vantika Agrawal	2381	Women Grandmaster
94	Hari Madhavan N B	2380
95	Nandhidhaa, P V	2380	Women Grandmaster
96	Panesar Vedant	2379	FIDE Master
97	Krishna Teja, N	2374	International Master
98	Hemant, Sharma	2374	International Master
99	Vardaan Nagpal	2372	International Master
100	Vignesh, B	2364

Top 10 Indian Chess Players

To emerge as talented in chess, one has to recognize the rules, apprehend patterns, assume quickly, practice, and evaluate one’s gameplay. Indians aren’t a long way back when it comes to excelling at a game whose original roots trace back to our very own country. Every chess player desires to achieve the highly proclaimed and prestigious title of “Grandmaster,” and many Indians have secured success in doing so, and there are many more to come soon.

The top 10 active Indian chess players have an average rating of 2671, ranking fourth in the world, behind the top three rank holders-Russia, the United States, and China. Here are the top 10 Indian chess players:

Top 10 Indian Chess Players	Rating
Anand, Viswanathan	2751
Vidit, Santosh Gujrathi	2723
Harikrishna, Pentala	2716
Erigaisi Arjun	2660
Narayanan.S.L	2658
Nihal Sarin	2652
Sasikiran, Krishnan	2650
Adhiban, B.	2648
Gupta, Abhijeet	2628
Karthikeyan, Murali	2622

Let’s take a look at the top 10 Indian chess players and their playing styles.

Vishwanathan Anand

• Birth Place: Tamil Nadu
• Standard Rating- 2751
• World Rank – 15
• Titles – Grandmaster (1998) and International Master  (1985)

Viswanathan Anand, aka “The Madras Tiger”, also known as “Vishy Anand”, received his Grandmaster title in 1988. He is the undisputed champion when it comes to chess. Born and brought up in Tamil Nadu, he was an astounding chess player from a very early age. He is a three-year FIDE champion, and his winning streak started in 2007.

He has been conferred with the Arjuna Award, Padma Bhushan, Padma Shri, Padma Vibhushan, and Khel Ratna award by the Government of India. Anand’s style is distinguished by a deep understanding of chess and a good grasp of tactical opportunities and patterns. He surprised his opponents with great speed and agility as a young player.

Vidit Gujrathi

• Birth Place: Maharashtra
• Standard Rating- 2723
• World Rank – 25
• Titles – Grandmaster (2013), International Master (2009), and FIDE Master (2005)

Hailing from Nashik, Vidit received the Grandmaster norm back in 2013. In the year 2018, he successfully crossed the 2700 rating. He makes chess seem easy. He can introduce changes into his game quite quickly without affecting his results. Vidit may come across as a positional player, but he knows how to attack.

Harikrishna Pentala

• Birth Place: Andhra Pradesh
• Standard Rating – 2716
• World Rank – 26
• Titles – Grandmaster (2001) and International Master (2000)

The third rank in the best Indian chess players list is deservingly reserved for Harikrishna. In 2001, he conquered his Grandmaster norm, and he became the seventh player among the youngest ones to receive this prestigious title. He has shown skill and intelligence throughout his chess career with his consistent opening repertoire and solid game style.

Arjun Erigaisi

• Birth Place: Telangana
• Standard Rating- 2660
• World Rank – 73
• Titles – Grandmaster (2018), International Master (2018), FIDE Master (2017), and Candidate Master (2016)

Telangana-born Arjun Erigaisi is an Indian chess Grandmaster. Having earned the Grandmaster title at the young age of 14 in 2018, he became the 32nd youngest man ever to do so. Among the many Indian Grandmasters, he is the 54th one.

In 2015, Arjun bagged a silver medal in Korea’s Asian Youth Championship. In 2021, he became the first Indian to qualify for the Champions Chess Tour 2021. Having been placed 2nd in October 2021 at the Junior U21 Round Table Open Chess Championship (Classical), Bulgaria, in the very next month, he ranked 3rd/82 in the Lindores Abbey Blitz Tournament held in Riga. Later, he went on to win the Rapid section of the Tata Steel India Chess Tournament (Rapid and Blitz), followed by winning the Tata Steel Chess 2022 Challengers in January 2022.

As praised by Magnus Carlsen, “He plays chess in a way that I enjoy! You can just sense that he knows how to play!” He has a tremendous strategic eye and can switch between game styles effortlessly.

S.L. Narayanan

• Birth Place: Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala
• Standard Rating- 2658
• World Rank – 79
• Titles – Grandmaster (2016) and International Master (2014)

Having earned the Grandmaster title in 2016, Sunilduth Lyna Narayanan became the 41st Indian Grandmaster. In his initial years, he was professionally trained by former Kerala State Champion P. Sreekumar and later in his subsequent years by International Master Varugeese Koshy.

In 2014, he won the highest prize at the National junior championship. After succeeding in a decisive final round, he bagged a bronze medal at the 2016 World Junior Chess Championship. He emerged victorious in the Ellobregat Open 2019, his first tournament victory on foreign soil.

A man who always loves keeping the fighting spirit within him alive no matter what, his balanced playing style and razor-sharp mind have heavily contributed to his power-packed and consistent performances, making him one of the fastest-growing players in Indian Chess.

Nihal Sarin

• Birth Place: Kerala
• Standard Rating- 2652
• World Rank – 87
• Titles – Grandmaster (2018), International Master (2017), FIDE Master (2015), and Candidate Master (2014)

Famous for “chess genius” or “wizard” of India, he received the title of Grandmaster at 14 years old only. He is the first among the younger ones to have passed the 2600 rating points of FIDE. His calm composure has proved him unbeatable after expert chess players got Check-mated by him.

Krishnan Sasikiran

• Birth Place: Tamil Nadu
• Standard Rating- 2650
• World Rank – 94
• Titles – Grandmaster (2000) and International Master (1999)

Krishnan is nicknamed the “Indian Wall”. He has excelled himself to be an outstanding chess maestro from time to time. His father, a coach and excellent chess player himself inspired him to take up this sport. Krishnan defeated chess maestro Vishwanathan Anand in 2002, and the Indian Government awarded him the Arjuna Award.

Sasikiran’s opening preparation and tactful understanding of the opponent’s gameplay is very high.

Bhaskaran Adhiban

• Birth Place: Tamil Nadu
• Standard Rating- 2648
• World Rank – 97
• Titles – Grandmaster (2010) and International Master (2008)

A Tamilian by birth, Adhiban Bhaskaran came into the limelight when he won the U16 Asian Championship, Tashkent, in 2007.

In 2008, he won the U-16 World Youth Championship 2008 and the following year, i.e. in 2009, the 47th Premier National Chess Championship. As an Indian Representative at the Asian Games,2010, he brought home a bronze. He also won the Tata Steel Challenges tournament in 2016, three times with a tie. He became the second Indian to bag the title of winning at the 33rd Reykjavik Open tournament, Iceland, in 2018.

Adhiban, aka The Beast, is widely known for his conservative but hyper-aggressive style of play.

Abhijeet Gupta

• Birth Place: Bhilwara
• Standard Rating- 2628
• World Rank – 143
• Titles – Grandmaster (2008) and International Master (2005)

Abhijeet Gupta is an Indian Grandmaster, having won the Commonwealth Chess Championship five times. Among his long list of achievements, a few significant ones include winning the World Junior Chess Championship in 2008, ranking 1st in the 13th Dubai Open Chess Championship, the Indian National Premier Chess Championship, and The Commonwealth Chess Championship in 2013 and 2015, and many more. For his immense contribution to Indian Chess, he was awarded the Arjuna Award in 2013.

Murali Karthikeyan

• Birth Place: Thanjavur
• Standard Rating – 2622
• World Rank – 157
• Titles – Grandmaster (2015) and International Master (IM)

Born in Thanjavur, Karthikeyan started learning chess at the age of five. Karthikeyan Murali, an Indian chess player, was awarded the Grandmaster Title (GM) by FIDE in 2015. Karthikeyan is a two-time national champion.

His most notable victory includes bagging a medal in Chess at the 2017 Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games – Men’s team rapid U-23. Already a world champion in the under-12 and under-16 respective chess championships, he went on to win the Indian National Premier Championships in 2015 and again in the following year and was placed 2nd in the Gibraltar Masters 2019.

Alongside being an excellent solver and a chess composer, his queen sacrifice against Alireza Firouzja is considered one of the best moves in his gameplay.

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