Siddharth Jagadeesh admits he is a competitive chess player. - ST
SINGAPORE: Nothing ventured, nothing gained is an old saying that many successful entrepreneurs hold dear in the business world. Singaporean teen Siddharth Jagadeesh found that maxim to be true on the chessboard too.
After claiming the international master (IM) title – the second-highest rank in chess – in March 2022, Siddharth hit a plateau.
For about a year, his Fide (International Chess Federation) rating remained in the 2,380-2,420 range. After speaking to his coaches at the Singapore Chess Federation, the 17-year-old realised that he had been too conservative in his play and was paying too much respect to his opponents.
He adopted a riskier approach and reaped the rewards earlier in May, when he beat three higher-ranked players en route to becoming Singapore’s fifth and youngest chess grandmaster.
With a Fide rating of 2,508, he completed the required three norms for attaining chess’ highest rank at the May 14-22 Sharjah Masters in the United Arab Emirates, pending ratification by the world federation.
Siddharth told The Straits Times: “After becoming IM, I stagnated for a year, because I faced the problem of giving too much respect to players ranked higher than me.
“I had mediocre results. I kept learning but my rating wouldn’t go up and I wouldn’t make any norms. It was confusing because I was working on the game, but results weren’t improving.”
The turning point came after he set a target of becoming a grandmaster before his national service enlistment in 2026. His coaches, including Uzbek grandmaster Andrey Kvon, also convinced him to stop settling for draws against higher-ranked players.
Siddharth said: “I bought into a new strategy that was more aggressive, and results started improving slowly.
“I started to play full games against these players, not be happy with a draw at all times and try to take my chances when they come. I knew it’d bring me gains in the long term.”
And it worked a treat for him, as he achieved a goal he had set for himself when he started playing chess at the tender age of seven.
Singapore has four other grandmasters – Wong Meng Kong, 60; Wu Shaobin, 55; Kevin Goh, 40; and Tin Jingyao, 23 – and one woman grandmaster, Gong Qianyun, 39.
Kvon, who has coached Siddharth since 2022, explained that the teenager was “holding himself back... and always being happy with compromises”.
He added: “The ‘new strategy’ was nothing else but encouragement to play fighting chess and be willing to take risks.”
Siddharth, who was born in India, moved to Singapore when he was 1½ years old. He gained citizenship with his family in 2022.
His parents, who also have a 16-year-old daughter Tarini, have been trying to provide him with the best playing opportunities. That included enrolling him into an online school in 2023. He is currently a grade 11 student, equivalent to the first year of junior college.
His father Jagadeesh Balakrishnan said: “We were thinking of a way to let him submit homework during late evenings after his games had finished... Flexibility drove us to adopt the online curriculum.”
The 47-year-old delivery lead, together with his wife Anitha Jagadeesh, 42, a programme manager, have spent large sums of money to support him.
Balakrishnan added: “We frequently took job breaks or long leave to travel with him for chess events. We prioritised his chess goals... and invested all that we could earn to ensure he is able to chase his dreams.
“His dedication is incredible, so we’re glad to support him to learn, play and grow.”
With the grandmaster title in the bag, Siddharth wants to make the most of his future opportunities, as he will now be able to play in most tournaments against other grandmasters without paying a fee.
He added: “It relieves a lot of pressure, because I don’t have to chase after the title any more. Now is when it gets more exciting.”
Siddharth, who will return to an international school in 2025, is targeting SEA Games medals and a top-100 world ranking.
But he added: “To turn professional in chess, you need to be very good, maybe top 40. If I’m good enough, I’ll definitely consider it, but not now.” - The Straits Times/ANN
