Shubhi Gupta, a chess prodigy from Ghaziabad
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Shubhi Gupta, a chess prodigy from Ghaziabad

"I really enjoy playing chess. Not even a single days go by that I don't play it."

Shubhi Gupta, a chess prodigy from Ghaziabad

Crossings Republik: While other children would go out and play, she'd sit inside her home with her father with a chess board in between, pondering over her next move. Even while spending time on the internet, she'd play online chess. What started as a mere 'time pass' game eventually became a passion for her and in June 2022, 12-year-old Shubhi Gupta represented India in her first international tournament, the 'Western Asian Chess Championship', in the Maldives. Here she bagged a silver medal in the tournament which had 'Classical', 'Rapid', and 'Blitz' categories.

Shubhi, a resident of GH7 society of Crossings Republik, is playing chess for as long as she can remember, with her father on the opposite end of the board. She was just 8 when she competed in her first inter-school competition and secured third rank. Just like her inspiration, the legendary chess player Viswanathan Anand and Arjun Erigaisi, Shubhi now dreams of achieving great heights as a chess player and bringing accolades and glory to India.

After Shubhi's parents recognised her talents, they enrolled her in a chess academy where she began her chess coaching in 2018. After a few months, in March 2018, she competed in the Ghaziabad district chess competition and secured the fourth rank. Soon after, she began competing in other district and state-level competitions and won several prizes. Her biggest achievement to date came in March 2019 when she participated in the Ghaziabad District Chess competition and secured the first position in the under nine age category. Here she had defeated players much elder than her.

According to her parents, when in 2020, all chess tournaments stopped, Shubhi didn't stop playing. She started playing chess on online sites such as Chess.com and liechess.com and kept practising. While playing in competitions, Shubhi tells us that she makes sure to be calm and composed. "I don't get nervous while playing in competitions. I am totally relaxed so I can focus and carefully plan my next move", says Shubhi.

Every day, Shubhi dedicates four to five hours to chess, even while she is not preparing for any competitions. However, when any competition is near, she spends more time in her chess coaching to practice. Shubhi has also mastered how to balance between her school homework and chess. She tells us, "I try to finish my homework in the school itself with the help of my teachers so I can dedicate more hours to my chess practice." For Shubhi, chess is something that brings her joy. She says, "I really enjoy playing chess. Not even a single days go by that I don't play it. I think it's one of the best parts of my life."

Credits: Supplied

Seeing their daughter achieving so much at such tender age, her parents, Pradeep Gupta and Urmila Gupta feel immense pride. They both wish to see Shubhi achieving great heights. For the future, Shubhi is preparing to compete in the World Cadets and Youth Championship.