Excelsior Sports Correspondent
JAMMU, Oct 24: Commonwealth gold medallist and Jammu & Kashmir’s top-ranked woman chess player, Meenal Gupta, is set to make a comeback to competitive chess at the Union Territory and national level after a break of several years.
Meenal, who had taken a hiatus from the game to focus on higher studies and career development, announced her intention to return during an interaction with her coach, Vivek Bharti, and young trainees at the Vivek Chess Academy in Jammu.
Sharing her experiences, Meenal-daughter of former J&K chess champion Atul Gupta-said she learned the basics of the game within her family. She credited her father for nurturing her passion and her first professional coach, Vivek Bharti, for transforming her into a competitive player and national champion.
A highly accomplished player, Meenal has impressive achievements, including holding current Women’s World Champion Divya Deshmukh to a draw in the 2018 Commonwealth final, where she secured a silver medal. She has also drawn twice against reigning World Champion Gukesh in previous Commonwealth events.
Reflecting on her break from the game, Meenal admitted she regretted staying away but is now motivated to return stronger. “This time, it’s my own decision to come back and aim for higher goals,” she said.
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