387 players to compete in second leg of state school chess championship at Dahisar from Nov 13

School players from across the state are ready to chase a place in Maharashtra's team for the national school chess championship. The second leg of the SBI Life Maharashtra State School Chess Championship begins on Friday, November 13, at Rustomjee Cambridge International School in Dahisar (West). A total of 387 players are taking part in the three-day event.

Organised by the Indian Chess School, the tournament has bouts in six FIDE-rated groups, for boys and girls under 9, under 13 and under 17. The top two players in each group will get the chance to play for Maharashtra in the national school chess championship in Ahmedabad. The national event will be held from December 16 to 20, 2026.

In the second leg, the under-9 open group has 110 players and the girls' group 56. The under-13 open group has 123 players and the girls' group 45. The under-17 open group has 38 and the girls' group 15. The first leg was held from November 4 to 6 and had 417 players. Across both legs, the total number of players has reached 804.

In the under-9 open group, Adhvan Oswal (1724) is the top seed. Ishaan Agnihotri (1618) is second seed and Nihansh Khode (1572) third. Aarav Jhawar (1571) and Ivan Dubey (1545), who won the under-7 open title in the first leg, are also expected to give tough competition.

Among under-9 girls, Gargi Harkare (1568) of Nagpur is the top seed. Liya Krishnan (1558) and Didhiti Banerjee (1553) will be her main rivals. Liya won the under-7 girls' title in the first leg, so she will be closely watched. Ishi Singh (1538) and Mirai Sardana (1533) will also make the group competitive.

The under-13 open group is the largest, with 123 players. Nirvan Shah (1956) is the top seed, while Om Ramgude (1906) and Vihan Rao (1826) will be his main rivals. Among girls of the same age, Tvesha Jain (1697) is the top seed. Ihina Iyer (1566), Nishka Agarwal (1562) and Tisya Bhatt (1524) will challenge her. Tvesha won the under-11 girls' title in the first leg and a strong performance is expected from her again.

In the under-17 open group, Arya Bagayatkar (1742) is the top seed. Yuvraj Singh (1690), Soham Sahamate (1667) and Daivik Mehta (1642) will be his main rivals. Among girls of the same age, Drishya Naik (1713) is the highest-seeded player. Himanshi Tendulkar (1530), Ikshaa Soni (1528) and Trisha Jagtap (1527) are also expected to play well.

The tournament has cash prizes totalling Rs 60,000, or Rs 10,000 for each group. The top three players in each group will receive the SBI Life trophy, while players placed fourth to tenth will be honoured with medals.

The seven-round tournament will be run under chief arbiter and international arbiter P. B. Bhilare. SBI Life is the main sponsor and Rustomjee Cambridge International School is the venue partner.