Charvi - the girl who broke 2300 Elo at the age of just 11 years!
11-year-old FM Charvi A made an amazing jump last year. She climbed from 1900 to 2300 in live rating. Former World Under-8 Girls Champion and former Under-8 and Under-10 National Champion, Charvi is now the second youngest girl ever to cross the 2300 Elo mark. Her disciplined habit of analysing games independently, without using an engine, has been a major factor behind her rise. Read the full article to see how this young prodigy thinks, trains, and confidently takes on stronger players.
1900 to 2300 in just one year!
Meeting a young chess player who jumps from a 1900 rating to 2300 live Elo within a single year is rare. Meeting one who does it at the age of 11 is extraordinary! FM Charvi A has achieved exactly that. She is one of the brightest young talents in India.
Her list of accomplishments includes: Gold medals at the Under-8 Girls World Championship in 2022, at the Asian Youth Championship in 2022, at the Under-8 Girls World Cadet Championship in 2022, and Under-8 Commonwealth Girls Chess Championship. She is also a former Under-8 and Under-10 National Champion. In 2024, she was honoured with the Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Bal Puraskar. Most impressively, she became the second youngest girl in the world to cross the 2300 Elo mark!
Charvi began 2025 with a rating of around 2088. A difficult phase followed, with back-to-back losses causing her rating to drop sharply to 1900. It was a setback that left her disappointed. She took a short break, regrouped, and returned with a new confidence. Within just a few months, Charvi crossed 2300 in live rating.
One of the key pillars behind this rise is Charvi’s approach to self-analysis. She studies her games independently, without the help of an engine. She jots notes on mistakes and plans. Only then does she check computer lines and discuss ideas with her coach. This builds deep understanding. Many players should try this! This will improve calculations, pattern recognition and decision‑making, something that is needed during tournaments. Those who practice this technique will understand messy positions even when time is short.
Charvi has annotated two of her games from the World Blitz Championship 2025. Check how an 11-year-old prodigy thinks and calculates against stronger players.
Charvi has a great fighting spirit. She likes taking risks, finding new ideas and fighting till the end. This mindset also reflects in her choice of tournaments. She prefers playing open events over age-group events as she believes she learns faster in such events. A book she found especially useful is Forcing Chess Moves by Charles Hertan. It teaches you a revolutionary method for finding winning moves.
If we think about what defines Charvi’s progress, it is the clarity with which she approaches her chess daily. She dares to test herself against difficult opponents. She thinks independently. She has great discipline. These habits have helped her reach where she is today. It will be exciting to watch what this year brings for her!