When Praggnanadhaa was on the verge of qualifying for the Candidates, his coach RB Ramesh had told The Indian Express what it takes to “Be Like Pragg”.
Praggnanadhaa and Vaishali both managed to win their third round game at the ongoing Candidates chess tournament early on Sunday. While 19-year-old Praggnanadhaa defeated compatriot Vidit Gujrathi in the open section, 22-year-old Vaishali took down Nurgyul Salimova in the women’s section.
The siblings are the first brother and sister duo to feature in the prestigious Candidates tournament.
Both players have been shaped by RB Ramesh, who has been their coach since childhood.
Last year, at the FIDE World Cup, where Praggnanadhaa secured his spot at the Candidates, even former world champion Magnus Carlsen had told Praggnanadhaa that he wanted to “be like Pragg”, one of the biggest compliments the Indian grandmaster has been paid.
So how does one go about being like Pragg? Does the man who shaped Pragg have any advice he would offer kids who would like to get better at chess?
“The main thing I see with kids these days is that many children want to achieve big things. I see nothing wrong with that. But they don’t want to take that responsibility. It’s like they’re outsourcing right from the word go. They think, ‘let the coach make me a better player. I don’t have to do much work.’ That’s the general attitude of many young kids I have seen these days. They have to take ownership of their progress. They have to play the main role in their own success. Only then the other factors will be helpful. If they outsource everything to trainers, it’s be heartbreak after a few years,” Ramesh had told The Indian Express before the Candidates started.
What it takes to ‘Be like Pragg’
At the FIDE World Cup, Praggnanadhaa had gone on a giant-killing run, defeating Hikaru Nakamura and Fabiano Caruana in successive rounds.
In the middle of a tiebreak drama, Carlsen walked up to Pragg right after the Indian had defeated Nakamura and congratulating him. Later on, Carlsen was asked what he had told Pragg.
He explained: “My chess club, Offerspill, have a camp going on right now for young, talented players in Stockholm, Sweden. Ramesh, Pragg’s personal coach, is the main coach at that camp. One of my friends who attended it told me that Ramesh was always telling them ‘be like Pragg, be like Pragg’. So I told Pragg that we all want to be like him today.”
When The Indian Express had asked Ramesh last year what it took to “be like Pragg” he had explained: “We do a lot of sessions where we train without moving pieces on the board. We just discuss the moves verbally and we analyse positions. But we don’t move any pieces. Most players train by moving pieces on the board, but when you do that your visualisation skills will not be so good. That’s why Pragg is probably the best among all the other players in his generation when it comes to visualisation.”
Ramesh had added: “When I asked kids at Magnus’ club if they were doing enough to ensure their growth in chess or they felt they could do more, everyone there said they could do more. They said they had other commitments: partying with friends, playing video games, social media. Then I told them the case of Pragg. How he’s also a teenager, but he’s taken a conscious decision to stay away from these things as much as possible to just focus on chess. That’s the price he’s been paying for chess excellence. That’s why I told them they should be like Pragg.”
Finally, Ramesh had revealed why Pragg stands out even among talented players who love the sport.
“Pragg is extremely ambitious. Most players have self doubts that prevent them from dreaming too high. But in Pragg’s case there is very minimal self doubt. He dares to dream about going all the way to the top. He knows he needs to yearn for it! I have seen many talented chess players. Everyone of them loves chess. But Pragg loves chess even more,” Ramesh had said.
Source:indianexpress.com