Praggnanandhaa's Training Methods and Rise to the Top
How the youngest-ever World Cup finalist and first GM sibling trained at Chess Gurukul to become India's number one player.
Published 2026-02-01 | Last verified 2026-02-14
Professor Archer says: What impresses me most about Praggnanandhaa is the composure. When he beat Magnus Carlsen in the 2022 Airthings Masters at age sixteen, becoming only the third Indian after Anand and Harikrishna to defeat Carlsen, he said he did not feel anything too special. That calmness under pressure is not a gift. It is trained. And it is something every player can work on.
From Record-Breaking IM to World Number Four
Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa, known universally as Pragg, was born on August 10, 2005, in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. In 2016, at ten years, ten months, and nineteen days, he became the youngest International Master in history. By June 2018, he earned the Grandmaster title at twelve years old, making him one of the youngest GMs ever.
Pragg's career milestones since then read like a highlight reel. In 2022, at sixteen, he became only the third Indian to beat Magnus Carlsen. At the 2023 FIDE World Cup in Baku, he became the youngest-ever World Cup finalist at eighteen, defeating Fabiano Caruana in the semifinals before losing to Carlsen in the final. In 2025, he won the prestigious Tata Steel Masters, beating Gukesh in the playoff tiebreak, and climbed to world number four and India's top-rated player with a 2758 FIDE rating.
What makes Pragg's story even more remarkable is his family: his sister Vaishali Rameshbabu also holds the Grandmaster title. Together, they are the first brother-sister pair in chess history to both be Grandmasters, and both won gold medals at the 2024 Budapest Olympiad.
Training at Chess Gurukul with GM R.B. Ramesh
Pragg's development was guided by GM R.B. Ramesh at Chess Gurukul, a chess academy in Chennai founded in 2008. Ramesh's training methods combine traditional study with modern analysis tools. His students are required to study deeply, including watching at least ten chess videos daily and conducting thorough analysis of their own games.
The key word in Pragg's approach is balance. He does not rely solely on engines or solely on intuition. He builds intuitive understanding through studying master games, then sharpens his analysis with engine assistance. This two-pronged approach develops both the creative and the calculative sides of chess thinking.
Pragg's playing style reflects this training: fearless and creative, with calculated risks and deep tactical intuition. He is exceptionally strong in faster time controls. As he has said himself: maybe I am just good with less time, I do not get tense. I keep my calm and just keep playing. That composure has allowed him to beat Carlsen across all three formats: classical, rapid, and blitz.
Training Principles You Can Adopt from Pragg
- Structured daily practice with variety - Pragg's training follows a structured schedule with specific blocks for openings, middlegame study, endgame practice, and tactical exercises. You can adopt this principle by dividing your study time into focused blocks rather than doing the same thing every session. Even a thirty-minute session can include ten minutes of puzzles, ten minutes of game analysis, and ten minutes of opening review.
- Deep post-game analysis in two steps - After every serious game, Pragg conducts a thorough post-mortem. First without an engine, noting his impressions and where he felt uncertain. Then with an engine to check his assessment. This two-step process builds independent evaluation skills while still catching errors that human analysis misses.
- Targeted weakness elimination - Rather than studying randomly, Pragg identifies specific weaknesses from tournament games and designs study sessions to address them. If endgames were a problem, the next training block emphasizes endgames. If a particular opening gave trouble, it gets extra preparation. His use of the Schliemann Gambit to defeat Vidit at the 2024 Candidates showed the depth of his opening preparation.
- Stay physically fit and mentally fresh - Elite training is not just about hours spent studying. Pragg maintains physical fitness through regular exercise, which supports mental stamina during long tournament games. He stays off social media during tournaments to maintain focus. For recreational players, this means taking breaks, getting exercise, and approaching chess with a clear mind.
Competition as Training
Competition is a crucial part of Pragg's training cycle. Tournaments expose weaknesses that home study cannot reveal. His World Cup run in 2023 - where he defeated Arjun Erigaisi, Fabiano Caruana, and nearly beat Carlsen in the final - demonstrated how high-pressure competition accelerates development. He has spoken about the importance of being in good mental and physical shape for tournaments, noting that even getting a slightly worse position out of the opening is not the end of the world: you can still fight and survive.
For recreational players, this means that playing regular games, whether online or at a club, is not a distraction from training. It is an essential part of training. Study and competition feed each other in a virtuous cycle. The players who improve fastest are those who both study seriously and compete regularly.
Questions About Pragg and Elite Training
What records does Praggnanandhaa hold?
He was the youngest International Master in history at the time of his achievement in 2016. He was the youngest-ever World Cup finalist in 2023. He and his sister Vaishali are the first brother-sister Grandmaster pair in chess history. As of 2025, he is India's number one rated player at 2758.
Do I need a coach to train like this?
A coach accelerates progress significantly - Pragg's development under GM R.B. Ramesh at Chess Gurukul demonstrates this clearly. But the core principles - structured practice, game analysis, and targeted study - can be applied independently. Free resources online provide enough material for significant improvement.
How important is physical fitness for chess?
More important than most people realize. Long tournament games demand sustained mental energy, which is closely linked to physical fitness. Pragg maintains a fitness routine to support his competitive schedule. Regular exercise improves blood flow to the brain, enhances sleep quality, and builds the stamina needed for competitive play.
Should I use chess engines in my training?
Yes, but wisely. Always analyze a position yourself first, then check with an engine. Using an engine without independent thought teaches you nothing. Using it to verify and extend your analysis teaches you a great deal. This is exactly the two-step approach that elite players like Pragg follow.
Professor Archer says: You do not need to train like a super-grandmaster to benefit from these principles. Scale them to your life. If Pragg studies six hours a day, you can study thirty minutes. The principles of balance, analysis, and targeted practice remain the same.
Quick Quiz
What makes Praggnanandhaa and his sister Vaishali historically unique?
- They are the first twins to both become chess Grandmasters - Pragg and Vaishali are siblings but not twins. Vaishali was born in 2001 and Pragg in 2005.
- They are the first brother-sister pair in chess history to both hold the Grandmaster title (Correct) - Correct. Praggnanandhaa earned his GM title in 2018 and Vaishali earned hers in 2023, making them the first brother-sister GM pair in chess history. Both also won gold at the 2024 Budapest Olympiad.
- They both became World Champions in the same year - Neither has won the World Championship title. Their unique achievement is being the first brother-sister pair to both hold the Grandmaster title.
- They are the youngest siblings to ever play chess competitively - While both started very young, their unique distinction is being the first brother-sister Grandmaster pair, not the youngest sibling competitors.