Arjun Kumar Erigaisi is one of India’s brightest young chess players, known for his smart thinking and bold style of play. He became a Grandmaster at a very young age and has made India proud in many international tournaments. His journey from a small town in Telangana to becoming one of the world’s top players is truly inspiring and shows his hard work and talent.
Arjun Erigaisi was born in Warangal, Telangana, into a Telugu family. His father is a neurosurgeon, and his mother is a homemaker. He began learning chess at a young age at the BS Chess Academy in Hanamkonda. His natural talent and dedication quickly made him stand out as a child prodigy.
He was studying data science at university but decided to drop out in 2021 during his first year to fully focus on his chess career — a decision that proved to be life-changing.
Arjun’s talent was visible early in his career. In 2015, he won a silver medal at the Asian Youth Championship held in Korea. This was one of his first major international successes and marked the beginning of his journey toward becoming one of India’s leading chess players.
The year 2021 was a turning point in Arjun’s career. He became the first Indian to qualify for the Goldmoney Asian Rapid of the Champions Chess Tour, performing impressively against top international players. Later, he secured second place at the Junior U21 Round Table Open in Bulgaria and third place in the Lindores Abbey Blitz Tournament in Riga.
He also won the Rapid section of the Tata Steel India Chess Tournament 2021, outperforming big names like Levon Aronian and Vidit Gujrathi.
In January 2022, Arjun won the Tata Steel Chess Challengers, which earned him a spot in the next Tata Steel Masters event. That same year, he became the Indian National Champion by winning the 58th MPL National Championship.
He also triumphed in the 19th Delhi Open and the 28th Abu Dhabi International Chess Festival, where his performance rating was an impressive 2893.
Arjun ended the year by winning the Tata Steel Chess India Blitz 2022, marking his third Tata Steel title.
The year 2024 was a historic one for Arjun. He won the Menorca Open A and the Stepan Avagyan Memorial.
At the Chess Olympiad 2024 in Budapest, Arjun played a key role in helping India win its first-ever team gold medal. His outstanding personal score of 10/11 and a performance rating of 2968 earned him an individual gold medal.
Later, he won the WR Chess Masters Cup in London and reached a FIDE rating of 2801, becoming the 16th player in history to cross the 2800 mark.
In the Tata Steel Chess Tournament 2025, Arjun finished 10th with a decent performance. He then made history by winning all three Chess.com Freestyle Friday events in a row — a record achievement. In June 2025, he also helped his team win the World Rapid Chess Championship in London.
Arjun’s hard work and success have earned him several honors:
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