Indian Grandmaster Vidit Gujrathi said it’s a pity that he couldn’t make a deeper run at the Chess World Cup in Goa after his third-round defeat to USA’s Sam Shankland, but attributed the poor result to inadequate training as compared to his previous showings at the global showpiece event in 2021 and 2023, when he reached the quarter-finals on both occasions.
‘Felt I was better than him’
Despite losing 2.5-3.5 after the second set of tie-break games against Shankland, Gujrathi, 31, felt he played better than his opponent. However, Gujrathi also reckoned he handled the result better than he has done in the past. “I dealt with it [loss] better than my previous tournaments. Generally, I am very upset when I lose. This time I was upset because I felt I was the better player throughout the match. So, it did bother me, but I moved on from it. Probably it helped that I was surrounded by my loved ones, who helped me get over it,” said Gujrathi, adding that he only had himself to blame for the result.
Training not good enough
“It’s a pity that I didn’t go further, especially given that I reached the quarter-finals in the past two editions, but it was also expected because the training which I had done was not at the same level as the previous tournaments. So, I have only myself to blame.”
When asked what the two-time Chess Olympiad gold medallist does to recharge and reset from a loss like this, he answered: “Unlike the other tournaments, the beauty of the World Cup is you don’t know how long you will last at the tournament, so you block your calendar till the end of the month [laughs]. That’s why I had time on my hands after getting knocked out. I never really get time to take vacations, but as I was in Goa with my family, I decided to extend my stay for two-three days. This small vacation helped me mentally because it’s hard to understand for a bystander how intense the tournament can be,” Gujrathi said, while going on to explain how draining a chess tournament really is. “In chess, you prepare a lot before a game. The preparation doesn’t stop at home and even during a tournament, you prepare for like six hours — three hours before the game and three hours the night before it. The game itself can go for up to six-seven hours. And the pressure you feel is a lot. So, it’s very important to unwind. This time I was able to do it because of a vacation, but generally, I just move on to the next tournament,” the 2023 Asian Games silver medallist added.
Gunning for GCL title
Gujrathi, who has a peak Elo rating of 2747, is now focusing on the Global Chess League (GCL), which is to be held in Mumbai from December 13 to 24. The 2023 Grand Swiss champion is looking forward to winning the franchise-based tournament with his team Triveni Continental Kings for the third consecutive time on home soil. “It’s amazing that GCL is played in India because I feel it belongs here. The concept was visualised here and the amount of fans Indian chess has, I don’t think any country can match it. As a player, you want to have that [support]. It’s amazing that it’s happening in Mumbai, The players will be
surprised with the attention the fans will give them. As for me, I will do my best to help my team win again,” he said.
