Explained: How India is coming to dominate the chessboard

India has its own chess-specific websites including Chessbase India, a local subsidiary of the European giant, which sells the most commonly used software

Last Sunday, 16-year-old Grandmaster Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa beat world champion Magnus Carlsen and world No 6 Levon Aronian at the Airthings Masters. It made the headlines, and deservedly so. Pragg (as he is called) is the youngest player to have beaten the world champion in an official game.

In chess circles though, there was little surprise at the upsets. Pragg is one of the leaders in a pack of young Indians tipped as potential world champions. The strength of Indian chess can perhaps be illustrated by the muted domestic response to another achievement.

Two weeks ago, Bharath Subra­maniyam achieved the exalted