Of family ties and IM titles

PUNE, May 5: Who will become the first International Master from the Gokhale family? A quick smile flashes across the face of Chandrashek...

PUNE, May 5: Who will become the first International Master from the Gokhale family? A quick smile flashes across the face of Chandrashekhar. For he has closed in on his elder brother Jayant in the race for the IM title, winning the second norm at the Commonwealth chess tournament at Bikaner (Rajasthan) recently. On the other hand, meanwhile, Jayant is at the very threshold with an Elo rating of 2369, just waiting to break into the 2400 figure for the title.

The smile, however, disappears with the next question. When do you expect to make it? And suddenly Chandrashekhar’s face bears a more serious expression. “I might have to wait for almost a year,” he says, indicating the difficulties faced on the road to becoming an IM.

Why so? Chandrashekhar says it is because of the lesser number of tournaments that are held in the country. “After the Commonwealth there is only one such tourney the Goodricke chess at Calcutta in February 2000, where I can hope to make it. Or otherwise, it can be reached faster by playing abroad only. Similarly, it took me almost two years to win the second norm.”

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Very true considering that Shekhar, as he is known among the chess fraternity, had to wait almost 27 months to get the second norm after winning the first in the 1996 Commonwealth chess at Calcutta. And the most significant thing is that, during this period, he only had four opportunities to try for it. At Goodricke in Calcutta last year, where he missed the norm narrowly. Later in Spain, where he went on his own, he did not do well at the first meet in Linares, but at Ubeda he once again missed it narrowly. Shekhar finally managed to win the second norm in his fourth attempt at Bikaner.

“This is not only with me. Take the case of Abhijit (Kunte), who is on the brink of becoming Grandmaster. But there are not too many GM tourneys in India, which is why it is taking him so much time,” feels Shekhar, adding that, “In such cases, the motivation of the player goes down. He starts feeling lonely and then the negative thinking starts.”

The list does not end here. Apart from Abhijit, there are many players like DK Sharma, Sandeepan Chanda and Shriram Jha, who are very close to getting the IM title, but for them too it will take more time, before they finally have the title as the prefix of their names.

“And when we do get such a meet, the pressure is very intense because we know that if we do not do it here, we will probably have to wait for another year.” Shekhar also adds, “We need more GM and IM tourneys in India, only then will we have more rated players in the country, and only then will the level of chess will improve.”

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The only other solution is, “To play abroad!” Which is what the Indian Airlines employee Shekhar is considering after the National B’ in August 1999. “After getting the second norm, I can now take the gamble of going abroad to play a few tournaments, if they are lined up one after another as it is difficult to go for just one tourney. And moreover, this time, there won’t be as much pressure!”