Abhijit confident it won’t be a Swiss miss

PUNE, JULY 12: Abhijit Kunte seeks to complete the final Grandmaster norm and thus achieve his dream of becoming the fourth Indian Grandm...

PUNE, JULY 12: Abhijit Kunte seeks to complete the final Grandmaster norm and thus achieve his dream of becoming the fourth Indian Grandmaster when he participates in the Biel Open Chess Championship (Switzerland), commencing on July 17.

Abhijit, who is also due to play the British Championship from August 2-14, is confident. “I had taken a break from active competition for sometime to prepare for these championships. I am fresh and relaxed in the one and a half months of good time that I had for preparating myself,” said the International Master in a chat with The Indian Express.

The last major tournament he played was the National `A’ in Nagpur in April. Since then he played only once — in the PSCB tourney in Sangli for his employers Indian Oil Corporation — before being busy with his sister, (International Master) Mrunalini’s wedding.

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Abhijit had participated in the Biel Open and at Poland last year. “It’s a tough championship. Last year there were 50 Grandmasters in a field of 80 participants which proved to be a good learning experience.”

The final GM norm has been eluding the 23-year-old Abhijit for sometime now. “There is pressure from family and friends. Everyone expects me to complete the final norm every time I go out to play. It’s frustrating and I don’t want any further delays. Otherwise it will be difficult for me,” he admits.

Abhijit will have the support of nine of his countrymen and fellow players in these two tourneys. They are: Pravin Thipsay, Sasikiran, DV Prasad, V Sarvanan, GB Prakash, S Vijayalaxmi, Swati Ghate, Safira Shenaaz and Bhagyashree Thipsay.