Kerala

Making his move for Grandmaster title

Right Moves: International Chess Master K. Ratnakaran

He is making the right moves once again. International Master K. Ratnakaran has retained his place in the Indian teams for various international tournaments.

The Railway staffer from Kozhikode booked his berth through his fine performance at the recent National ‘A’ chess championship at Mangalore. In India’s most prestigious domestic tournament, he finished fifth (the top six are automati cally selected for the National squad). He exceeded the expectations, once again. Just as he did in the last edition of the tournament, in Chennai last year, when he had taken the runner-up slot, the finest ever performance by a Keralite in the 53-year history of the event.

“I am glad that I am in the Indian team once again, but I should have done better than a fifth-place finish,” says Ratnakaran. “It was my loss to Pravin Thipsay in the final round that let me down, as I lost a crucial a point; I had to pay the penalty for playing rashly early on in the game.”

That loss meant he had to get at least a draw from his final round encounter with M.S. Thejkumar from Mysore. He did that without too much trouble.

Though Ratnakaran was only seeded seventh at Mangalore, he was one player all his 12 competitors were wary of, because of his natural skills and the unusual moves he is capable of. Even when things seem to be lost for him, he will find a way to get out of the mess. So much so that many stronger players would not like to take any chances against him.

“I agreed to draw my game with him because I thought he would produce something out of his hat and surprise me,” says Neelotpal Das, a Kolkata-based Grandmaster, after finishing sixth at Mangalore.

It is indeed because of sheer talent that Ratnakaran has made it big in the highly competitive world of Indian chess. Unlike most of our top players, he has had to win several battles off the chessboard, including the death of his father in tragic circumstances, before he could begin making winning moves. Even as he was blossoming as a promising player, his family couldn’t even afford a computer for him, which is an essential tool for a chess player.

Ratnakaran, though, was fortunate that his hometown, Kozhikode, hosted several national and international tournaments at what was an important stage of his career. He honed his skills in those back-to-back events.

Then a bronze medal at the Asian junior championship at Teheran in 2001 made people sit up and take notice; it was the first ever medal by a Kerala player in an international chess tournament. He hasn’t looked back since.

The International Master title and the National ‘A’ runner-up spot last year made him more confident than ever. His next goal is to become a Grandmaster.

“You need to play in international tournaments regularly if you want to hunt for a Grandmaster title, that’s why I badly needed to make it to the Indian team at the Mangalore National ‘A’,” he says.

P. K. Ajith Kumar

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