Srihari L R becomes the latest International Master of India
15-year-old Srihari L R scored his final IM-norm at Vezerkepzo GM Oct-Nov 2021. He scored 5.0/9, performed at 2451 to become India's latest International Master. He scored his first IM-norm in January 2020 and crossed 2400 in the same month. The Covid-19 pandemic delayed him an opportunity to play over-the-board tournaments. However, that did not stop him from getting stronger and improving his game. He played his first over-the-board tournament in almost 18 months. After taking a tournament to get himself adjusted, he scored two IM-norms in consecutive tournaments. The Tamil Nadu lad's quest towards the coveted GM title continues in his next tournament, First Saturday GM November 2021 which starts today. Photo: Shahid Ahmed
Two IM-norms in 22 days
Srihari had scored an IM-norm and already crossed the 2400 rating barrier in February 2020. However, he had not played any over-the-board tournament since February 2020. He won Tamil Nadu State Junior Online few months ago this year which shows that he consistently worked on improving his game, so that when an opportunity arises, he is ready to seize it.
First IM-norm
Srihari scored his first IM-norm at EKA IIFL 5th International Open at Mumbai in 2019-20. He scored 5.5/9, including wins over IMs Abdimalik Abdisalimov (UZB), Denis Eraschenkov (RUS) and Robert Zysk (GER). He drew with Nguyen Van Huy (VIE), Aryan Gholami (IRI) and fellow countryman Nubairshah Shaikh.
Srihari - Abdisalimov, IIFLW GM Open 2019-20
18.d4 shows Black has made some positional mistakes and White capitalized on his opportunity.
Second IM norm
Srihari scored an unbeaten 6.0/8 to score his second IM-norm at Vezerkepzo GM October 2021. Thus, a loss in the last round did not make a difference in his norm chances. He defeated GMs Lajos Seres (HUN) and Tibor Fogarasi (HUN), IM Aldiyar Ansat (KAZ); drew with IMs C R G Krishna, Miklos Galyas (HUN) and Joshua Sheng (USA).
Srihari - Lajos, Vezerkepzo GM October 2021
White persevered a difficult position to get the above one. 25.Nfxg5 is winning here, however White chose the safer route 26.Ne5 and went on to win the game.
Third IM-norm
The final IM-norm was scored at Vezerkepzo GM Oct-Nov. He drew with GMs Jergus Pechak (SVK) and Gabor Nagy (HUN), drew with IMs Joshua Sheng (USA), Souhardo Basak and Aldiyar Ansat (KAZ). He defeated WGM Sarah Papp (GER) and WIM Zsoka Gaal (HUN).
Srihari - Zsoka, Vezerkepzo GM Oct-Nov
White had a connected passed pawn on a and b-file, yet it was not easy. However, 38...Rc7 turned out to be a game changer, as White got an opportunity to get back in the game and push for a win. Find out how.
Replay Srihari's games
Final Standings
| Rk. | SNo | Name | FED | Rtg | Pts. | TB1 | TB2 | TB3 | |
| 1 | 10 | GM | Pechac Jergus | SVK | 2541 | 7,5 | 0,0 | 6 | 28,75 |
| 2 | 8 | IM | Sheng Joshua | USA | 2464 | 6,5 | 0,0 | 4 | 25,50 |
| 3 | 5 | GM | Nagy Gabor | HUN | 2535 | 6,0 | 0,0 | 3 | 23,50 |
| 4 | 6 | FM | Nitish Belurkar | IND | 2351 | 5,0 | 0,5 | 4 | 15,25 |
| 5 | 3 | FM | Srihari L R | IND | 2414 | 5,0 | 0,5 | 2 | 20,75 |
| 6 | 9 | IM | Souhardo Basak | IND | 2382 | 4,5 | 0,0 | 2 | 15,50 |
| 7 | 4 | WIM | Gaal Zsoka | HUN | 2276 | 4,0 | 0,0 | 2 | 14,00 |
| 8 | 7 | GM | Pap Misa | SRB | 2397 | 3,5 | 0,0 | 2 | 13,25 |
| 9 | 1 | IM | Ansat Aldiyar | KAZ | 2408 | 2,0 | 0,0 | 0 | 8,50 |
| 10 | 2 | WGM | Papp Sarah | GER | 2315 | 1,0 | 0,0 | 1 | 2,00 |
Previous coverage of Srihari
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Super Juniors Cup: Srihari and Aronyak are the 'Giant Killers'
@ 06/12/2020 by Shahid Ahmed (en) |
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Srihari holds Koustav in 49th National Junior 2019
@ 03/11/2019 by Shahid Ahmed (en) |
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World Youth 2019 Round 4: Srihari LR beats top seed Sreeshwan in under-14 section to claim sole lead
@ 05/10/2019 by Sagar Shah (en) |