World's youngest GM stares at crossroads

AND just like that, one of the most promising youngsters has been eliminated in the second round of the World Cup.

- SWAROOP SWAMINATHAN @ Chennai

A few days after revealing to a few national media that he wasn't satisfied with his progress, Abhimanyu Mishra, the world's youngest Grandmaster ever, has been shown the door in the second round by AR Salem Saleh.

In a rook-bishop endgame, Salem, playing with Black, was not only up a pawn but his pieces were very active, in sync and controlling both flanks. In the end, Mishra resigned with the engine predicting a mate for Black down the line.

Mishra, who had checked into Goa a day before the second round began (he had received a bye in the first round), had said: "There are many people online and so on who say that in the last four years, my rating should be a lot higher.

Frankly, I agree with them. I believe I should be much higher than what I am currently sitting at." While it may be hard to understand this from an Indian perspective, the reason why Mishra's career is at a crossroads is because of a severe lack of corporate or government funding. The elite of Indian chess D Gukesh, R Praggnanandhaa and Arjun Erigaisi to name three-have one or both but it's a far cry for US GMs.