Adani Group To Back R Praggnanandhaa

This move comes as a major boost for the young player who is counted among India’s brightest chess talents today

Adani Group chairman, Gautam Adani, announced on Friday that it will back the 18-year-old Grandmaster R Praggnanandhaa. The announcement comes as part of the conglomerate’s commitment towards supporting sportspersons as they move ahead in their quest to bring glory to India.

Announcing the decision, Adani said, “We are extremely proud to support the dynamic Praggnanandhaa. The speed and efficiency with which he has progressed in the sport is nothing short of remarkable, and truly an example to all Indians. There is nothing more noble than representing the nation and winning laurels at the highest levels, and the Adani Group is wholeheartedly devoted to supporting athletes in this journey.”

This move comes as a major boost for the young player who is counted among India’s brightest chess talents today. Expressing his views on the decision, Praggnanandhaa said, “I am extremely keen on ensuring that my country does well on the global stage. Whenever I play, my sole aim is to win more laurels for the nation. I would like to thank the Adani Group for putting their trust in my abilities.”

Praggnanandhaa became the world’s youngest chess player to reach the World Cup final in 2023, and the second Indian after Viswanathan Anand to achieve the feat. The young player became popular in 2022 after defeating Magnus Carlsen multiple times. Based out of Chennai, Praggnanandhaa started playing chess at the age of 5 and went on to become the country’s youngest and then world’s second youngest Grandmaster at the age of 12 in 2018. 

Praggnanandhaa also won the silver medal at the Hangzhou Asian Games in 2023. He is also the fifth-youngest person to ever receive the title of Grandmaster after Abhimanyu Mishra, Sergey Karjakin, Gukesh D, and Javokhir Sindarov. His elder sister, R Vaishali, is also a Grandmaster, making the siblings the world’s first ever brother-sister Grandmaster duo. 

The Adani Group has so far extended support to 28 talented individuals across sports like boxing, wrestling, tennis, javelin throw, shooting, running, shotput, brisk walking, and archery, via the conglomerate’s ‘#GarvHai’ initiative, it informed. The list includes Commonwealth Games’ gold medallist wrestlers Ravi Kumar Dahiya, Deepak Punia, and boxer Amit Panghal. Dahiya and Punia also won silver medals at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics 2020 and the 2023 Asian Games.