All India Chess Federation (AICF) president Sanjay Kapoor said Indian chess has entered the "golden era" and the country will have over a hundred Grandmasters within two years.
For years, five-time World Champion Viswanathan Anand dominated the conversation on Indian chess and rightly so. However, the dynamics have changed in the past decade with youngsters like R Praggnanandhaa, D Gukesh and Arjun Erigaisi making rapid progress in the international arena. "There was one Vishy (Anand) before but now I believe the golden era of chess has started in India," Kapoor told PTI. "Anand is a stalwart of the game.
He is the face of Indian chess. But now we'll have many faces and that will be very good for Indian chess," he said. India produced its 83rd Grandmaster -- Aditya Samant -- in July this year and Kapoor said the country will get its 100th GM sooner than later. "Many men and women players are coming up.
We have 83 GMs now and in two years, we'll have at least 100-100-plus Grandmasters," he added. Teenaged GM Praggnanandhaa caught the country's imagination as he defeated world number two Hikaru Nakamura and number three Fabiano Caruna en route his silver medal at the FIDE World Cup.