Chess: In a sport where young players often set records, Tamil Nadu’s Shyam Nikhil, known for his patience, has been sworn in as India’s 85th Grandmaster at the age of 31. He became an International Master (IM) in 2010 at the age of 18, earning two of the three terms required to become a Grandmaster (GM) within a year. By 2012, he had also scored 2500 rating points.
While expectations were high in the Tamil Nadu chess community that Shyam would soon become India’s 28th Grandmaster, his fate had other plans. His search for the title of Grandmaster continued for 12 years. Meanwhile, Shyam Nikhil, who completed the third term this week, became India’s 85th Grandmaster.
This is in stark contrast to Gukesh’s record as he challenges for the World Chess Championship crown later this year. He became India’s youngest Grandmaster at the age of 12.
“It took a long time to win the title of Grandmaster. But it finally happened. It was always within touching distance. In these 12 years, I never felt that I couldn’t get it. I was very confident at the beginning that I would get the third rule because I have the strength.
But later, due to external pressures and many mistakes, at some point I started feeling frustrated that I had to get the third term,” a relieved Shyam told The Indian Express after the Dubai Police Global Chess Challenge in the United Arab Emirates.
During this trying period, father K. Ponnusamy, who worked as a data entry operator in the Government Rapid Transport Corporation, and mother P. Shanti, a housewife, gave him encouragement.
“My parents were the ones who introduced me to chess and stood by me even when the results were not in my favour. I would like to dedicate this title of Grandmaster to my parents.I missed the third rule on many occasions even though it came within touching distance.
Before this event in Dubai, I played a tournament in France where I missed the third regulation by half a point. In an event in 2012, I again missed the third regulation by half a point. In 2020, I needed a win against a Russian grandmaster in the last round of an event. Before I ran into a timing problem and failed, I was clearly winning.
The miss was very painful. If I had won, I would have got the title of Grandmaster and finished runner-up in the event, which would have given me a prize money of Rs 4 lakhs or something. “I lost and finished 30th and took home Rs 10,000,” said Shyam.
In 2014, when Shyam had everything to reach the third rule, he came close and missed. This event took place in India. As he had already earned his first two terms in India as well, the rules dictated that he earn one abroad.
When he finally got the third fate to win the Grandmaster title, many of his peers like Srinath Narayanan, Shyam Sundar and Athipan Bhaskaran, who have now become coaches, sent him their congratulations.
“I don’t remember who among us became the International Master first, but I was once the highest rated in this group in 2008. Then I was rated 2375. At one point, we were at the same level, but somewhere I lost momentum,” admits Shyam.
Prodigies like Gukesh became grandmasters early in their careers, almost living out of their suitcases, driven by a passion to win titles in tournaments around the world. Gukesh’s father also put his own life on hold to travel with him full-time.
For Shyam, financial constraints made it rare for him to play in European tournaments. There he says that getting the terms and rating points is easy. The fact that he was an emerging player based in Nagercoil in an era when chess engines and the Internet were still making their presence felt continued his quest for the third rule.
“To play in Europe, you also have to show bank statements, which we didn’t have then. It was only after ICF joined the railways that we had to go abroad continuously from 2017,” he says.
Shyam admits that over the years, the rule of thirds was not always at the forefront of his mind.
“At one point the primary focus was to improve my rating because to win the Railways team in the national tournament you need to maintain a good rating. Only the top 10 players (top 7 by rating and top 3 in inter-Railway matches) can play in the Railways team. If you are in the team, you get extra leave for training,” says Shyam, who joined as a junior clerk under sports quota and later rose to office superintendent.
Now that the long-awaited goal has finally been achieved, what’s next for him? When asked, he says, “One is to improve my rating. But I definitely want to improve the quality of my chess game. I want to play games that I can remember.”
