Arjun’s hometown erupts in joy

Warangal : But for his boyish looks evolving into a youthfulness with a grown-up moustache, Arjun Erigaisi didn’t change at all. Watching him closely since 2018 when he first hit the headlines becoming the first Grandmaster from Telangana, his hunger for success continued to multiply. His live Elo rating on Saturday (November 30) shows 2800.9 (Classical), behind Magnus, Caruana Fabiano and Hikaru Nakamura, the other exclusive members of the 2800 plus club.

Until recently, Arjun may not have been the most talked-about player compared to D Gukesh and R Praggnanandhaa, but he set that record right by climbing the ladder superfast. The setbacks in 2023 made him stronger as Arjun started to wield the willow and his relentless pursuit of victory brought him almost 90 rating points in just one year. The number one India player is sometimes referred to as a ‘mad man’ of chess, and some of his friends say that Arjun breaths chess and eats Elo rating points.

Since he broke that coveted 2800 Elo rating mark, much was written about Arjun’s success. While Arjun was on song all these years putting up stellar performances at the global circuit, his hometown, Warangal, didn’t see him much. Saturday was an opportunity for the chess fraternity and scores of schoolchildren who gathered at the Kaloji Kalakshetram appeared joyous to witness the felicitation of the son of the soil.

Hanumakonda district collector P Pravinya was right to say, “I hope Arjun’s presence would do a world of good to the children if they draw inspiration from him in their chosen field.”

Warangal West MLA Naini Rajender Reddy, MP K Kavya, Chess Network coordinator Sudheer Babu, Telangana Chess Association representatives Major Siva Prasad, Basiri Rajgopal, K Karunakar Reddy, Anam Chinni, T D Tommy and Arjun’s first coach Bollam Sampath greeted Arjun on the occasion.