Chess tournaments Chess strategy Computer chess Chess players FIDE Chess variants Chess rules and history
Home :: Chess :: Players

Pendyala Harikrishna

Born May 10, 1986
Guntur, Andhra Pradesh, India
Title Grandmaster
Peak rating 2755 (January 2016)

Pendyala Harikrishna (born May 10, 1986) is a chess player from Guntur, Andhra Pradesh, India. Harikrishna became the youngest grandmaster from India on September 12, 2001. As of January 2016, he is ranked No. 2 in India (behind ex-world champion Viswanathan Anand) and No. 14 in the world.

Chess career

In November 2004, he won the World Junior Chess Championship. In August 2006, he won the Chess960 (Fischer Random) Junior Chess Championship, beating Arkadij Naiditsch 4½-3½ in the final.

As of early 2012, GM Harikrishna is playing first board for chess club Eppingen in Chess Bundesliga, and he is a member of Spanish chess club Solvay since 2007 (first board). Harikrishna is also the first board for BPCL A team, which has won PSPB Inter Unit Chess Tournaments in 2010 and 2011. In international team competition, Harikrishna has represented the Indian team in six Chess Olympiads since 2000.

In May 2011 he won the Asian Chess Championship. In January 2012 he won group B of the Tata Steel Chess Tournament. This result qualifies him to participate in the A group in 2013, considered one of the strongest tournaments each year.

As a debutant in A group of the Tata Steel Chess Tournament in January 2013 Harikrishna finished in the first half (7th place) and reached an Elo rating of over 2700.

In August 2013 he won Biel chess tournament (Masters Open Tournament) with 8½/11 and the Biel Rapid Tournament with 7½/9.

In June 2015, he won the 10th Edmonton International Chess Festival with a score of 7.5/9 (+6,-0,=3), including a 5/5 start.

Away from chess, Harikrishna is majoring in political science, sociology, and public administration at DR. B. R. Ambedkar Open University (Andhra Pradesh Open University).

He is also employed at Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd. in Hyderabad from June 2010.

Championships

National achievements

International achievements

Team results

Harikrishna has represented India at seven Chess Olympiads, making his debut at the age of 14 years 5 months during the 34th Chess Olympiad held in Istanbul with results as follows:

Olympiad Individual result Team result
Istanbul 2000 6.5/11 (27th) 8th
Bled 2002 3.5/10 (102nd) 29th
Calvia 2004 5.5/11 (62nd) 6th
Turin 2006 8/12 (14th) 30th
Dresden 2008 6/10 (13th) 16th
Khanty-Mansiysk 2010 6/10 (19th) 18th
Istanbul 2012 5.5/10 (12th) 35th

Other team results

Notable chess games

Sample game

a b c d e f g h
8
8
7 7
6 6
5 5
4 4
3 3
2 2
1 1
a b c d e f g h
The position after 14...Qa7. Here white plays 15.Bb4! As Ra1 directly gives black the chance of pinning the Bishop with Ra8!! and now the threat of Ra1 cannot be stopped.

The game shown here was the final knockout match in the Carlos Torre Memorial Tournament 2007, in Mérida, Mexico. Here Harikrishna, with white, is facing Vassily Ivanchuk, who was world number 2 at that time.

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3!? g6 3. Nbd2 d5 4. e3 Bg7 5. b4! ( 5. b3 c5 ) 5... O-O 6. Be2 b6 7. Bb2 Nbd7 8. b5! Bb7 9. O-O a6 10. a4 axb5 11. axb5 Rxa1 12. Qxa1 Qa8 13. Ba3 Re8 14. Qb2 Qa7 15. Bb4! Bf8 16. Ra1 Qb8 17. Ne5 e6 18. Bxf8 Nxf8 19. Ndf3 Ne4 20. c4 f6 21. Nc6 Bxc6 22. bxc6 Qd8 23. Qb4 Qd6 24. Qxd6 Nxd6 25. cxd5 exd5 26. Ne1 Ne6 27. Nc2 f5 28. Bd3 Ne4 29. g4! Kf7 ( 29... fxg4 30. Bxe4 dxe4 31. Ra7 Rc8 32. Nb4 with the idea Na6 followed by d5. ) 30. Nb4 Rd8 31. f3 Nd2 32. gxf5 gxf5 33. Kf2 f4 ( 33... Kf6 34. Rd1 Nb3 35. f4 would leave black tied up to the defense of the f5-pawn. ) 34. exf4 Ke7 ( 34... Nxf4 35. Ke3 Nb3 36. Ra7 Ne6 37. Nxd5 Rxd5 38. Bc4 Ra5 39. Rxc7+ Kf6 40. Bxe6 Kxe6 41. Rd7 Nxd4 42. Kxd4 ) 35. Re1 Kd6 36. Re5 Nxf4 37. Ke3 Nxd3 38. Kxd3 Nxf3 39. Rh5! 1-0

Results Timeline for Chess World Cup

Year 2005 2007 2009 2011 2013 2015
Chess World Cup 3R 1R A 2R A 2R
COMMENTS