Lalith Babu makes it to World Cup team
VIJAYAWADA, August 13, 2015
Updated: August 13, 2015 05:52 IST
For the 22-year-old chess Grandmaster Musunuri Lalith Babu, the Middle East sojourn has turned out to be a productive one for he was selected for the coveted World Cup event to be held at Baku, the capital city of Azerbaijan, in September. Based on his performance in the ongoing Asian Continental Chess Tournament in United Arab Emirates, he booked his berth in the six-member Indian team.
A feather in the cap
The selection is a feather in the cap of Lalith Babu for he would be playing against the best of players in the world circuit as it is a qualification tournament for the prestigious World Chess Championships.
The World Cup will not be a cake walk for the champion for the fixture is held in the knock-out format. “If you lose in the first round, you have to pack our bags. However, the players can prepare in proper way as the draw will be released well in advance,” says Grandmaster’s mother Padma. She says Lalith is presently coached on-line by Uzbekistan Grandmaster Alexandar Goloshchapov.
“After playing blitz and rapid formats in the UAE tourney Lalith will straight away head to Nagpur to play the National ‘B’ tournament which is a qualifying tournament for the 2016 World Olympiad. After Nagpur tourney, Lalith will prepare for the National “A”, the next qualifying tourney for the Olympiad.”
Year 2015 so far has been encouraging as the Grandmaster has garnered 40 Elo points to enhance his rating to 2571. He also joined Indian Oil Corporation as an officer in Vijayawada.
“For the commerce graduate, who brought laurels to Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh and India getting a job had become imperative as he wanted to lessen the burden on his parents especially while meeting the expenses to play aboard. Now that he (Lalith) got a job he can shape his career in a proper manner,” says senior chess coach V.R. Bobba.
Based on his performance in the ongoing Asian Continental Chess Tournament in United Arab Emirates, Lalith Babu books his berth in the six-member Indian team. The World Cup will be organised at Baku, the capital city of Azerbaijan.
Source: http://www.thehindu.com