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Niji thinks big

Stan Rayan

Niji finished runner-up at the National sub-junior championship in Chennai late last year
Niji’s dreams have now become bigger

KOCHI: Four years ago, when a worker in her dad’s brick kiln showed A. Niji some strange looking pieces and called them kings and queens, the little girl was very excited.

The 11-year-old soon realised that many of the pieces moved strangely too, on little squares. And that they were a bunch of fighters.

It did not take long for Niji to persuade her uncle T.G. Pramod, a State-level player who now lives in Australia, to teach her chess.

A few months later, the Kozhikode girl won the under-15 girls title in a State-level tournament in her district.

“After that victory, I wanted to know more about chess, play more tournaments and bigger ones too,” said Niji.

“I went to K.R. Madhusoodanan (an experienced Kerala player), to learn new things,” Niji added.

Guidance

And as she began climbing the game’s little ladders, she was guided by some very experienced players in her district, including O.T. Anilkumar and A.K. Jagadeesh and later by Thrissur’s E.P. Nirmal and International Master Raja Ravisekhar in Bangalore.

Runner-up

Niji finished runner-up at the National sub-junior championship in Chennai late last year. On Thursday, the 15-year-old stunned defending champion Nimmy A. George and won her maiden State women’s title.

Nimmy — who has gained a reputation as Kerala’s Judit Polgar after she won a men’s all-India tournament in Tamil Nadu two years ago — began as the big favourite.

When the State championship began at the Cochin University, there was no question about whether Nimmy would win but how big her winning margin would be.

Nimmy finished seventh in the 2005 women’s National ‘A’ and with a current Elo rating of 2217 compared to Niji’s 2015, everything seemed to be in her favour.

But all these did not rattle Niji. Not even the fact that she had lost all her three games against Nimmy, from Ernakulam.

“I had prepared well, I was confident,” said the 12th standard student of Savio HSS, putting it very simply.

Niji got an edge in the opening and a little later, she was all smiles when Nimmy committed a blunder in the middle game.

A couple of hours after that, Niji lifted the title, ending Nimmy’s three-year reign.

Attacking player

“Niji is an attacking player. She doesn’t worry about taking chances, she fights till the end,” said State player P.S. Ameer who played her in a recent tournament.

“She has a very bright future.”

Niji’s dreams have now become bigger.

Inspiration

The recent feats of the State’s first Grandmaster G.N. Gopal in the international circuit and International Master K. Ratnakaran, who finished runner-up in the recent National ‘A’ in Chennai (Gopal was third), have now made Kerala players think big.

“I want to do well, like Gopal and Ratnakaran,” said Niji.

“I know I can do it in the women’s circuit.

“And I’m willing to work harder on the openings where I am weak.”

The women’s National ‘B’, which will be played in her home district Kozhikode next month, will offer the talented girl her next big chance.

Niji is young, talented and determined. The future sure looks exciting.

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