Road to be the Best Chess Player in the World!

While both Sheva and Anna were enjoying their day off, Claudia didn't really have a great time here. She had to fill the shoes that her big sister left, and it was definitely a big responsibility, especially considering who she was going to play after this.

Tania Sachdev.

She was a legendary figure in the chess community, not for her game, since she was just an International Master, but for her proficiency in hosting some of the biggest tournaments in the world. There were not many high-level tournaments that she had never hosted, from the world chess championship in the last couple of years, the Grand Chess Tour, to the Candidates Tournament last month.

Even though she was the lowest-rated player on India's first team, that didn't mean the woman was the weakest here. Hell, if anything, Tania Sachdev, with her vast experience in hosting so many high-level tournaments in the past, probably was the trickiest one here. She was used to discussing a lot of high-level games with another grandmaster commentator like Peter Leko or Daniel Naroditsky, and if she could even use half of that experience to improve herself, the woman probably had a chance to climb higher to the point that she could get her grandmaster title.

Of course, that didn't mean she was unbeatable. Yesterday, Claudia had researched a lot of things about her, and with Anna and Sheva's help, she got some information that boosted her confidence immediately.

'Before this Olympiad, Tania Sachdev had only played nine formal games in the last two years, and those were in the Reykjavik Open a few months ago. You are also there to play, Ia, and you know the difficulty in playing in that tournament. While she got a decent result, her opponents are not quite strong. Out of those nine games, her best win was against the Icelandic GM, Hedinn Steingrimsson, but other than that, she didn't really play that well. Hell, she was even forced into a draw against a Spanish player with an ELO rating of 2000! She is definitely not in her best form, and there is no way two months of training will be able to bring her back to that state. So, your chance is quite open here, Ia.'

That was what Sheva concluded after spending three hours researching. Of course, that was easier said than done.

Even though Tania Sachdev seemed to lack preparation for this Olympiad, the woman had been playing great in the first four rounds. She managed to get three wins and a draw, and while all of her opponents were not that strong, she still managed to get into her rhythm, gaining a strong momentum to go forward. Hell, in the last round, Tania Sachdev even gave her team the decisive point, winning against the young WIM from Hungary, Gaal Zsoka, when all of her teammates were forced into a draw.

If Claudia was not careful, she would become the woman's next victim, and that was definitely not something she wanted to experience.

'No, no, I am also riding on a great momentum right now.' The girl shook her head strongly, trying to banish the insecurity inside her head. 'I won my first three games cleanly, and I also did the same as her in the last round, winning the only game for the team. Sheva and Big Sis believe me, so I cannot disappoint them here!'

She was not fighting alone here. Next to her, Laysa was also trying to calm her nerves while waiting for the alarm to ring. She didn't even have the usual cheerfulness and bright energy, feeling somewhat nervous for this game.

No, Laysa wasn't worried about her next opponent. Even though Vaishali Rameshbabu was going to be a tough opponent, the girl still had confidence in herself. In her mind, that was something that all the great players had: the confidence that no matter who sat next to them, they would always be able to handle it so easily. So, yeah, Laysa wasn't really that worried about the next game here.

What was inside her mind, though, was a target that she suddenly had for herself in this tournament. Yeah, after having a chat with Sheva and the others last night and finding out that Sheva and Anna had a target to win a medal on their board, the desire to aim for a medal suddenly surged inside her.

Even though at first, the girl only wanted to have the best result to help the team get into a good spot, now that she realized that she had a chance to get a medal, she suddenly put pressure on herself, not wanting to come out of this tournament empty-handed like any other players here.

'Since I am registered as the fourth player of the team, my rivals shouldn't be the top players in this tournament.' She muttered to herself, taking a glance at Tania Sachdev, who sat next to Claudia. 'She is definitely one of them, and the other one is from Ukraine. The Georgian and Polish players on table 4 are also contenders for getting the medal, but I think I could outperform them if we somehow met in the future.' Laysa thought.

As for any other players who currently have a great momentum… Well, she didn't really consider them as her rivals. After all, they came from a weak country, and their momentum was achieved after winning a couple of games against 2000-rated players or something like that. Once they met the top dogs, they would start crumbling, and their chance to get any medal would have to be buried six feet under.

Of course, Laysa was not blind enough to not see that she also came from a weak country. She could also receive the same fate as she had just described here, getting beaten by those players from the top country. Hell, there was a huge chance that something like that would happen today, since the opponent she was about to face was not someone ordinary. However, the girl was trying to aim for the top here, so the stronger her opponent was, the more excited she became.

As the alarm rang and the game officially began, her gaze became resolute, and Laysa couldn't help but mutter to herself, 'Vaishali Rameshbabu, the sister of the young prodigy Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu… This is going to be my first test. If I cannot even survive against her, what right do I have to aim for the medal?'