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Raring to go
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The Hyderabadi is all set to become the fifth International Master from the State
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Rishipal receiving an award
He may have not stormed chess competitions with a series of outstanding performances but the fact that Sardar Rishipal Singh has finished in the top eight of almost every event he competed over the last decade, bears testimony to the fact that he has something special in him. All he lacks is the finesse to come up with the extra effort and deal the final blow when it matters most.
He is a player to watch out for in the preliminary rounds. And this 24-year-old player who has a genuine passion for the sport, is now in the mood to make amends and come up with some real big wins in the `elite' circuit.
Rishipal (ELO 2304) comes from a family in which his two brothers also are regulars in the chess tournaments. Rishipal was taught chess by his father Bishan Singh when he was just ten years old but for some inexplicable reason, this unassuming youngster failed to deliver the knockout punch in the big games.
After fine-tuning the basics of the sport with the help of his coach G. Vijay Kumar, this Hyderabadi is now keen to change the script in the days to come and become the fifth International Master from the State. This FIDE-master, who has completed his Masters degree in Computer Applications, stresses that the reason for lack of big wins is not because he lacks precise game plans, but due to the fact that he lacks the financial support to get the required exposure. Mostly his opportunities so far have been confined to the local events and some within the Southern India region due to financial constraints.
Interestingly, all his appearances in the major events like the fifth Asian individual championship, the World juniors and twice in the Commonwealth Championship and the World university events, were more by virtue of his ability to qualify rather than because of any mercy shown by the officials.
He literally earned his slot in the respective teams by impressive performances in the qualifying events. It is a definite sign that he has inherent talent. He might well hold an unique record - that of taking part in 52 national championships and invariably finishing in the top eight in most of them.
Rishipal was largely instrumental in helping Osmania University enter the medal bracket four times having figured on the top board six times. This incidentally saw the team take part in the World meet. The fact that he won 13 State open events in different age groups from under-10 to under-25 is also proof that Rishipal just could not translate his abundance of talent into results at the higher levels. He holds the record for being the Senior State champion at the age of 12. Will he break into the big league? "Well, if I get a decent job now, I can definitely focus more on the sport and produce the results," is what Rishipal says.
V. V. SUBRAHMANYAM
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