Mumbai International Chess: Local teen Maniar holds Grandmaster Mikulas to draw

In a stunning start to the Mumbai International Grandmaster Chess Tournament, 13-year-old local talent Hriday Maniar held Slovak Grandmaster Manik Mikulas to a draw in the first round. Despite a rating gap of nearly 500 points, Hriday played with calm and precision, earning the biggest result of his young career.

The tournament began yesterday at the World Trade Centre in Mumbai, and Hriday’s performance quickly became the highlight of the opening round. His



draw against the seasoned Grandmaster is being seen as one of the biggest surprises of the day.

Aside from Hriday’s impressive result, the remaining 15 Grandmasters had little trouble defeating their opponents and moved smoothly into the second round. The nine-round Swiss tournament features 293 players from 18 countries. The event is organised by the Indian Chess School under the All India Chess Federation.