Gautam Adani meets chess prodigy Praggnanandhaa, extends support

Chess Grandmaster R Praggnanandhaa on Friday (January 5) received support from the Adani Group as he met the group’s chairman Gautam Adani.

The Adani Group, in a press release, said that it is committed to supporting sportspersons as they go full throttle in their quest to bring glory to India.

Speaking after meeting Praggnanandhaa, Adani Group chairman Adani said, “We are extremely proud to support the dynamic Praggnanandhaa. The speed and efficiency with which he has progressed in the sport is nothing short of remarkable, and truly an example to all Indians. There is nothing more noble than representing the nation and winning laurels at the highest levels, and the Adani Group is wholeheartedly devoted to supporting athletes in this journey.”

Adani took to his X (Twitter) page to post a picture of their meeting and wrote, “It's a privilege to support Praggnanandhaa as he continues to win laurels in the world of chess and make India proud. His success is an inspiration to countless young Indians to believe that nothing is more gratifying than standing on the podium to celebrate our nation's greatness. Praggnanandhaa represents what India can and will be all about. I wish him all the very best. Jai Hind.”

“I am extremely keen on ensuring that my country does well on the global stage. Whenever I play, my sole aim is to win more laurels for the nation. I would like to thank the Adani Group for putting their trust in my abilities,” said Praggnanandhaa.

In 2023, he became the world's youngest chess player to reach the World Cup final, and only the second Indian after Viswanathan Anand to achieve the feat. In 2022, the shy and soft-spoken teenager caused heads to turn in the world of chess by defeating Magnus Carlsen multiple times, shining the spotlight on India’s progress.

The Chennai-based Praggnanandhaa, who loves mathematics and unwinds by watching TV or listening to Tamil music, also won the silver medal at the Hangzhou Asian Games in 2023.

Praggnanandhaa, who started playing at the tender age of 5, went on to become India’s youngest and the then world’s second-youngest Grandmaster at age 12 in 2018. He is the fifth-youngest person ever to achieve the title of Grandmaster after Abhimanyu Mishra, Sergey Karjakin, Gukesh D and Javokhir Sindarov. Incidentally, his elder sister R Vaishali is also a Grandmaster, which makes the siblings the world’s first-ever brother-sister GM duo.

The Adani Group, through its flagship #GarvHai initiative, has supported 28 talented players across sports such as boxing, wrestling, tennis, javelin throw, shooting, running, shotput, brisk walking, and archery.

Among those who benefited are Commonwealth Games gold medallist wrestlers Ravi Kumar Dahiya and Deepak Punia and boxer Amit Panghal. Dahiya and Punia also secured silver medals at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics 2020 and the 2023 Asian Games.