Chess in India


has risen in popularity in India in the last few decades primarily due to chess Grandmaster and former World Champion Viswanathan Anand.
As of May 2020, the FIDE World Rankings of the top Indian male and female chess players:
It is believed that the game originated from India as a successor to Chaturanga or Shatranj. The All India Chess Federation is the governing body for chess in India.

Player statistics

FIDE, the World Chess Federation, lists 65 Indian Grand Masters, 10 Woman Grand Masters and 123 international master.

Men

The Top 10 Indian grand masters as of May 2020 are listed below.
Player NameStandard Rating
Anand V2753
Vidit G2726
Harikrishna P2719
Adhiban B2659
Sasikiran K2647
Sethuraman S.P.2644
Aravindh C2641
Parimarjan N2639
Surya Shekhar G2635
Nihal S2620

#PlayerBirth yearGM TitleRatingWorld rank
11969198828161
319942013272623
219862001271926
4199220102701212
5198920082634151
6198320032619188
7198720022613208
8----
919812000266685
10198320032597256

Viswanathan Anand is currently No. 15 in the FIDE World Rankings and the former World Champion. Viswanathan "Vishy" Anand is an Indian chess grand master and former world chess champion. He became the first grandmaster from India in 1988, and is one of the few players to have surpassed an Elo rating of 2800, a feat he first achieved in 2006

Women

The Top 10 women Indian chess players are listed below as of November 2013.
#PlayerBirth yearTitleRatingWorld rank
11987GM26183
21991GM248426
31986WGM244142
41989WGM241461
51979IM239970
61987IM238078

Blind players

The Top blind Indian chess players are listed below as of October 2013.
#PlayerBirth yearRatingStateWorld rank
119922054Karnataka
219942022Gujarat
31998Maharashtra
41982Maharashtra
519771861Maharashtra
619661860Karnataka
71858Maharashtra
819721853Karnataka