Chessable Masters, an online chess tournament, that Grandmaster R Praggnanandhaa lost to World No. 2 Ding Liren in the tie-breakers. The clash, which went down to the wire, ended at around 2:20 am IST on Friday, and by 8:45 am, the 16-year-old had arrived at his school to appear for the Class XI state board exams. Praggu has been performing the balancing act with aplomb by planning his day in such a way that there was sufficient time to not only study for his exams, but also prepare for the battles against the world’s top-rated players. “The last few days have been incredibly tiring. It’s a first for me, writing exams and playing a tournament simultaneously. I had the computer applications exam on Friday and it went well,” Praggu told TOI. Praggu’s long-time coach RB Ramesh said it was a tribute to the youngster’s mentality that he managed to handle his matches and the exams at the same time. “His biggest asset is to be able to stay in the moment. To write an exam just hours after that heartbreaking loss shows his character,” Ramesh mentioned.
