B. Savitha Shri was India’s surprise at the Chess Olympiad in Samarkand, Uzbekistan. The 19-year-old from Chennai went unbeaten and came home with two medals, The Hindu reported.
Quick Facts
| Age | 19 |
| City | Chennai |
| Title | Woman Grandmaster |
| Olympiad result | Individual gold, reserve board |
| Olympiad record | Eight wins, two draws, no defeats |
| Team result | Bronze for India’s women |
A Debut Without a Defeat
It was her first Olympiad. She won her first four games and finished with eight wins and two draws.
“I wasn’t really expecting it. When I had four wins from four games, I thought I should keep pushing. As long as I score, it is better for the team,” she said.
Her two draws mattered as much as the wins. Both saved the team from defeat and kept it in contention for a medal.
Her Team-Mates
India’s women’s team also included Koneru Humpy, R. Vaishali, Divya Deshmukh and Vantika Agrawal.
“All of them are such senior players. They kept motivating me to play all the rounds,” Savitha said.
She was rested for the match against Poland, which India lost. She does not question it. “It was the captain’s decision. I completely agree with it,” she said.
How She Started
Savitha learned the game at four, watching her brother play.
- 2018: won the under-12 title at the World Cadets championship
- Four years later: bronze at the World Rapid championship
What It Cost the Family
Her father, Krishnan Baskar, was working as an electrical technician in Singapore. He gave up the job to support her.
“I got a chessboard for ₹500 and thought it was all that I needed to spend,” he said.
The costs proved far higher. The family could not afford to support two chess-playing children, and Baskar asked his son to give up the game and concentrate on his studies. At one point they pledged gold jewellery to pay for her tournament travel.
He says more support is still needed for players trying to compete at the top level.
Source: The Hindu (October 2026).
Featured image: Indian players at the 2016 Chess Olympiad (file photo; Savitha Shri is not pictured). Photo by Andreas Kontokanis, licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
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