Biography

Nihal Sarin is an Indian chess player and a chess prodigy who is known for being the fourth youngest player to cross the Elo rating mark of 2600 at the age of fourteen in 2019.Surprisingly, at the age of three, he was able to recognize the capitals and the flags of 190 countries. He was also able to recite the scientific names of insects and plants. Nihal Sarin as a child.When he was in upper kindergarten, he was able to communicate in English fluently. He was six years old when he enrolled in class one. He also knew multiplication tables in class one.He used to live in Kottayam before he shifted to Kerala in 2011. Nihal learned chess at the age of six during his vacations. His father introduced him to chess and his grandfather A. A. Ummar taught him the rules of chess. After his summer vacations, he was trained once a week by his school coach Mathew P. Joseph Pottoore. In an interview, he talked about this and said, After I learnt to play chess from my grandfather, I was lucky to be in a school where chess was taught as a subject. My first successes were the usual ones win state-level tournaments, national-level events, and world youth medals. Then I began to beat grandmasters. I keep playing as much as possible and I try to win all the games. Nihal Sarin with his coach Mathew P. Joseph Pottoore.He played his first tournament at the age of six and had to sit on three chairs to reach the table.In 2011, he won the Kerala state championship in the U-7 category, U-9 category twice, U-11 category twice and U-15 category once.He became state under-19 runner-up twice, at the age of eight and at the age of ten.In 2013, he became the U-9 champion in Chennai.In 2014, he received the title of Candidate Master (CM) by FIDE at the World Youth Chess Championship in the Under-10 category. Nihal Sarin received Candidate Master (CM) by FIDE.In 2015, he was given the title of FIDE Master by the World Chess Federation for crossing the Elo rating of 2300. Nihal Sarin given the title of FIDE Master.