Move over, Queen’s Gambit! The chess world just witnessed a real-life royal flush as India’s dynamic duo, Praggnanandhaa and Vaishali, along with their teams, checkmate-d the competition at the Chess Olympiad in Hungary. But the real MVP? That would be their mom, Nagalakshmi, who’s been crowned the unofficial “Queen of Chess Moms” by none other than the legendary Susan Polgar herself!
Susan Polgar meets “Amazing Chess Mom” – Nagalakshmi
Picture this: In the land of paprika and Rubik’s Cubes, Polgar, the former world champ, couldn’t resist fangirling over Nagalakshmi. “I had to meet this amazing Chess Mom, who devoted her life to raising two super Chess Stars!” Polgar gushed, probably while secretly wondering if Nagalakshmi could share her parenting playbook.
Mother – Secret behind Praggnanandhaa-Vaishali’s success
Meanwhile, Praggnanandhaa and Vaishali were busy making history faster than you can say “checkmate.” These sibling sensations became the first brother-sister act to both snag Grandmaster titles and crash the Candidates Tournament party. Talk about family goals!
But let’s not forget the secret sauce behind their success – Nagalakshmi’s homemade meals and laser-focused encouragement. While dad Rameshbabu is busy balancing books at the bank, mom’s been busy balancing pawns and knights in her kids’ lives.
The cherry on top of this chess cake? India’s teams bring home the gold in both men’s and women’s categories. It was such a big deal that even Susan Polgar couldn’t resist sharing a video of the Indian chess stars channelling their inner Rohit Sharma during the trophy ceremony. Who knew chess players could party like cricketers?
Glimpse of the Game
Now, if we talk about the Olympiad – the men’s team, led by Grandmasters D Gukesh, Arjun Erigaisi, and R Praggnanandhaa, secured the top spot with a dominant 3.5-0.5 victory over Slovenia in the final round, finishing with 21 points. The women’s team, featuring D Harika, R Vaishali, Divya Deshmukh, and Vantika Agrawal, also won 3.5-0.5 against Azerbaijan, claiming the gold with 19 points.
Game Changer for India in Chess – Nagalakshmi
As the dust settles on this epic chess saga, one thing’s clear: In the game of life, Nagalakshmi’s motherly moves have proven to be the ultimate winning strategy. Now, if only she could teach us how to win at family game night!
