Balasubramaniam wins 19th Adyar Times Open for a record fourth time

Adyar Times open turns 19

IM Ramnathan Balasubramaniam wins Adyar Times for a record fourth time. His first win was back in 2002, second was in 2005, third reign was a decade later in 2015 and now in 2019 he won it for the fourth time. This was also Balasubramaniam's third tournament win of the year.

Runner-up Vignesh B has sent us his annotated game against Swaraj Palit from round 7 of the tournament

Come month of October every year South Chennai will a have a chess carnival. The occasion is the Adyar Times FIDE rated chess tournament a traditional event organized by the Tamil Nadu State Chess Association. Perhaps this is India’s fourth oldest rating tournament being conducted regularly next only to Sangli open in Sangli, Cusat Open in Kerala, Ernakulam and The Telegraph schools in Kolkata.

Started as an ordinary open tournament with the support of Adyar Times a neighbourhood newspaper of Chennai , this was the brainchild of then TNSCA’s General Secretary and India’s first IM Mr. Manuel Aaron. Last week the tournament has celebrated its 19th birthday.

The event’s inaugural edition was organized at St.John’s matriculation school in Besant Nagar, Chennai way back in the year 2001. Curiously the school was just opposite to the legend Viswanathan Anand’s home! I enrolled myself as a player in this tournament and even got a prize ahead of stars like GM Harika Dronavalli. Next year onwards Mr.Manuel Aaron assigned me with the role of Chief Arbiter which I am doing consistently for the last 18 years. Names like R Gurusamy Naidu memorial open, Palani, Sri Mappilai Vinayagar open, Madurai (both in Tamil Nadu), Piloo Mody Open (Lucknow), Captain Ranade (Pune) are synonymous with the game of chess in India. But all these events are extinct now due to lack of patronage from the sponsors or from the organizers. On the other hand Adyar Times despite having change of guard from its founder editor Mr. A M Ambrose, I.A.S. (Retd.) to his son Mr. Janakan, the Managing editor the tournament has continuous support from the Adyar Times family.

The 19th Adyar Times FIDE rated open chess tournament was formally inaugurated by IM Manuel Aaron and Mrs. Daffenee Rodgers, Vice Principal of Bala Vidya Mandir Senior Secondary School on October 3rd. The venue Bala Vidya Vidya Mandir is a popular CBSE school in Gandhi nagar, South Chennai which offers chess as a part of curriculum. Interestingly five-time World Champion Viswanthan Anand’s son had his early education in this school only. The magnificent Vidya Peet Auditorium and two other spacious halls were the playing halls and this year. 431 players including participants from three more federations namely Botswana, France and United States of America were in the fray.

Right from the start of the tournament each round was fought with grit and determination. Only by the end of the sixth round the leadership issue was resolved with the top seed and IM P D S Girinath of Andhra Pradesh emerging as the sole leader with six points. But it was short lived as he went down fighting against A Balkishan of Karnataka after overstepping the time limit in the seventh and the penultimate round. At the same time the second seed Vignesh B accounted for Swaraj Palit of Jharkhand and Rajarishi Karthi also scored a fluent victory over FM Vinoth Kumar.  All the above three winners were leading jointly with 6.5 points each before the start of the final round and it was a virtual photo finish on the cards. On the top table in the final round, while the game between Vignesh B and CM Rajarishi Karthi ended in a draw, IM R Balasubramaniam of Integral Coach Factory, Chennai struck a brilliant victory over A Balkishan to set a target of 7 points. Earlier he had conceded two draws. Soon he was joined by five others to make it a six-way tie for the championship. On account of his higher Buchholz score R Balasubramaniam was adjudged as the 19th Adyar Times FIDE rated open champion. Earlier he has lifted Adyar Times trophy three times in 2002, 2005 and 2015. CM Rajarishi Karthi and Vignesh B finished second and third respectively.

On the evening of 6th October in a well attended closing ceremony Mr. J P Janakan, Managing Editor, Adyar Times felicitated the winners in the presence of Mr. D V Sundar, FIDE Vice President, Mr. Manuel Aaron, Dr. R Srinivasa Raghavan, Principal B V V M School, Mr. B Murugavel, Vice President, TNSCA and Mr. P Stephen Balasamy, General Secretary, TNSCA.

Final Standings

Complete Standings

About the Author

Paul Arokia Raj is a Grade-A International Arbiter. He is one of the most reputed arbiters of India. He has officiated many top events. He is a former National Sub-Junior champion and his career high rating was 2205. He was also the coach of University of Madras for nearly 20 years. Best among his products is GM Sundararajan Kidambi. He is now employed with Chennai Port Trust and he was All India Major Ports Chess Champion for nearly 20 years.

The article was edited by Shahid Ahmed

Related news:

	Ilamparthi and Prishita Gupta are National Sub-Junior Open and Girls 2024 Champions @ 21/11/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Muthaiah and Harikrishnan claim 1st MCA and CHCA Rapid and Blitz Rating Open 2024 @ 05/11/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Harikrishnan dominates 5th Capa Chess Academy Rapid Rating Open 2024 @ 22/10/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Semetei Tologon Tegin triumphs at 30th Tamil Nadu IM-norm Closed Circuit 2024 @ 20/10/2024 by R Srivatsan (en)
	Imran triumphs at 29th Tamil Nadu IM-norm Closed Circuit 2024 @ 12/10/2024 by M Ephrame (en)
	Sriram Adarsh Uppala convincingly wins 28th Tamil Nadu IM-norm CC 2024, Dhruva second and Aakash third @ 05/10/2024 by S Paul Arokia Raj (en)
	Evgeniy Podolchenko wins 27th Tamil Nadu IM-norm Closed Circuit 2024, Sriram Adarh Uppala third @ 02/10/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Akshay Borgaonkar dominates 26th Tamil Nadu IM-norm CC 2024, Harshit Pawar second and Harshad third @ 30/09/2024 by V Vijayaraghavan (en)
	Aarav A and Pavithra R V are 36th Tamil Nadu State Under-11 Open and Girls 2024 Champions @ 26/09/2024 by S Ramanathan (en)
	Sriram Adarsh Uppala superb at 25th Tamil Nadu IM-norm Closed Circuit 2024 @ 13/09/2024 by M Ephrame (en)
	Hari Ganesh clinches Adyar Times Rating Open for the second consecutive year @ 12/09/2024 by S Paul Arokia Raj (en)
	David Gochelashvili wins 24th Tamil Nadu IM-norm Closed Circuit 2024, Kunal M second @ 08/09/2024 by V Vijayaraghavan (en)
	Shashveen A K triumphs at 14th Modern School Rating Tournament 2024 @ 06/09/2024 by S Ramanathan (en)
	Harshad S dominates 23rd Tamil Nadu IM-norm Closed Circuit 2024 @ 04/09/2024 by R Srivatsan (en)
	Arjun Adireddy convincingly clinches 22nd Tamil Nadu IM-norm Closed Circuit 2024, Harshad third @ 15/08/2024 by R Anantharam (en)
	Aakash G wins 21st Tamil Nadu IM-norm Closed Circuit 2024, Manigandan second @ 08/08/2024 by S Paul Arokia Raj (en)
	Laxman R R wins Chairman's Trophy Rapid Rating Open 2024 @ 03/08/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Ajay Karthikeyan wins Muralimohan Memorial 4th Capa Chess Academy Rapid Rating Open 2024 @ 29/07/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	G Nigash and Keerti Shree Reddy become Tamil Nadu State Junior Open and Girls 2024 Champions @ 19/07/2024 by R Anantharam (en)
	Vaibhav Suri victorious at 2nd RCMIC Rotachess Rapid Rating Open 2024 @ 18/07/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Umashankar dominates Visalakshi - Arunachalam 8th SCS Rating Open 2024 @ 30/06/2024 by R Anantharam (en)
	14-year-old Aakash G clinches 74th Tamil Nadu State Open Rating 2024 convincingly @ 12/06/2024 by R Anantharam (en)
	T Nagar Chess Academy invites you to 2nd RCMIC Rotachess Rapid Rating Open 2024 offering 6 lacs prizes @ 09/06/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Aakash and Vaishnavi are Tamil Nadu State Under-15 Open and Girls 2024 Champions @ 06/06/2024 by R Anantharam (en)
	Pranav Ganesh Prabhu and Nivedita V C are 36th Tamil Nadu State Under-13 Champions 2024 @ 01/06/2024 by Vinoth M (en)
	Hari Madhavan best at 8th BBCF Rapid Rating Open 2024 @ 26/05/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Nandish and Shanmathi are Tamil Nadu State Under-17 2024 Champions @ 21/05/2024 by R Anantharam (en)
	Sham R dominates 2nd Dr. KCG Verghese Memorial Rating Open 2024 @ 19/05/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Kunal M wins 1st Vidhya Sagar Rating Open 2024 @ 15/05/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Kushagra Mohan wins 20th Tamil Nadu IM-norm Closed Circuit 2024 @ 13/03/2024 by R Srivatsan (en)
	Anton Sitnikov triumphs at 19th Tamil Nadu IM-norm Closed Circuit 2024, Avinash Ramesh second @ 09/03/2024 by R Srivatsan (en)
	Karthik Rajaa wins 1st Nallu Memorial Rapid Rating Open 2024 @ 06/03/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	P Shyam Nikhil wins 18th Tamil Nadu IM-norm Closed Circuit 2024, Aakash G third @ 02/03/2024 by R Srivatsan (en)
	Srihari L dominates 17th Tamil Nadu IM-norm Closed Circuit 2024, Sai Vishwesh third @ 01/03/2024 by M Ephrame (en)
	Anton Sitnikov wins 16th Tamil Nadu IM-norm Closed Circuit 2024, Lokesh second and Suyog third @ 22/02/2024 by M Ephrame (en)
	Anton Sitnikov triumphs at 15th Tamil Nadu IM-norm Closed Circuit 2024, Karthik Rajaa second @ 21/02/2024 by V Vijayaraghavan (en)
	Simultaneous Chess Exhibition with Grandmaster Sethuraman @ 19/02/2024 by S Ramanathan (en)
	Kunal M conquers CMI Tessellate Rapid Rating Open 2024 @ 14/02/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Senthil Maran wins 1st Battle Field Rapid Rating Open 2024 @ 13/02/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Bharath Subramaniyam H perfect at 7th BBCF Rapid Rating Open 2024 @ 12/02/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Karthik Rajaa and Lokesh N are the winners of 13th and 14th Tamil Nadu IM-norm Closed Circuit 2024 @ 02/02/2024 by V Vijayaraghavan (en)
	Hemanth Raam clinches 11th Tamil Nadu IM-norm Closed Circuit 2024, Harsh Suresh third @ 01/02/2024 by M Ephrame (en)
	Srihari L R superb at 14th Chennai GM Open 2023, Aakash G third @ 18/01/2024 by R R Vasudevan (en)
	Sahil Sanjay Shejal convincingly clinches Velammal Hospital 3rd Athens of the East Below 1600 Rating 2023 @ 09/01/2024 by R Anantharam (en)
	Tharig S triumphs at Velammal Hospital 3rd Athens of the East Below 1700 Rating Tournament 2023 @ 08/01/2024 by R Anantharam (en)
	Duc Hoa Nguyen triumphs at 3rd Athens of the East GM Open 2023, Srihari L R second and Nitin third @ 04/01/2024 by R Anantharam (en)
	Srihari L R triumphs at 1st SA Castle Rapid Rating Open 2023 @ 26/12/2023 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Alexei Fedorov wins 10th Tamil Nadu IM-norm Closed Circuit 2023, Suyog Wagh second @ 22/12/2023 by R Anantharam (en)
	Syed Anwar Shazuli triumphs at 1st KPK-ABCCC Rapid Rating Open 2023 @ 18/12/2023 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	David Gochelashvili wins 9th Tamil Nadu IM-norm Closed Circuit 2023 @ 17/12/2023 by R Anantharam (en)
	Alexei Fedorov dominates 7th Tamil Nadu IM-norm Closed Circuit 2023, Sai second and Arjun Adireddy third @ 02/12/2023 by R Anantharam (en)
	Alexei Fedorov terrific at 6th Tamil Nadu IM-norm Closed Circuit 2023, Ajay Santhosh Parvathareddy third @ 25/11/2023 by R Anantharam (en)
	Arnav Maheshwari wins 5th Tamil Nadu IM-norm Closed Circuit 2023 @ 19/11/2023 by R Anantharam (en)
	Nandhidhaa wins 4th Tamil Nadu IM-norm Closed Circuit 2023, Srihari L second @ 12/11/2023 by R Anantharam (en)
	Harikrishnan A Ra dominates D A V Krida Kendram Blitz Rating Open 2023 @ 11/11/2023 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Ajay Karthikeyan wins D A V Krida Kendram Rapid Rating Open 2023 @ 11/11/2023 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Back to back GM Tournaments in Madurai and Chennai @ 10/11/2023 by R Anantharam (en)
	Arjun Adireddy dominates 3rd Tamil Nadu IM-norm Closed 2023 with a 2709 performance, Harsh second @ 07/11/2023 by R Anantharam (en)
	Prasannaa S triumphs at 1st Rainbow Chess Academy Rapid Rating Open 2023 @ 01/11/2023 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Dinesh Rajan M wins 2nd Nanban CEG Rapid Rating Open 2023 @ 01/11/2023 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Asylbek Abdyzhapar triumphs at 2nd Tamil Nadu IM-norm Closed Circuit 2023, Srija Seshadri third @ 30/10/2023 by R Anantharam (en)
	Praveen Kumar C wins 1st Hindustan Chess Rapid Rating Open 2023 @ 28/10/2023 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Harshad wins 1st Tamil Nadu IM-norm Closed Circuit 2023, Srihari L second @ 23/10/2023 by R Anantharam (en)
	Harikrishnan A Ra dominates 1st Smart Chess Academy Rapid Rating Open 2023 @ 17/10/2023 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Tamil Nadu to host 50 IM-norm Closed Circuit tournaments @ 15/10/2023 by R Anantharam (en)
	Hari Madhavan N B wins 2nd SRM Rapid Rating Open 2023 @ 10/10/2023 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Castle Red invites you to 2nd Nanban CEG Rapid Rating Open 2023 offering ₹3 lacs prizes @ 09/10/2023 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	School boy Hari Ganesh lifts 21st Adyar Times Rating Open 2023 Trophy @ 18/09/2023 by S Paul Arokia Raj (en)
	Velammal Nexus felicitates Gukesh and Praggnanandhaa with ₹20 lacs cash award each @ 15/09/2023 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Harikrishnan A Ra clinches VHNSN College Rapid Rating Open 2023 with a perfect 9/9 @ 14/09/2023 by R Anantharam (en)
	Kunal M and Bharath Subramaniyam win GM Chess 1st Rapid and Blitz Rating Open 2023 @ 13/09/2023 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Harsh Suresh wins Muralimohan Memorial 2nd Capa Chess Academy Rapid Rating Open 2023 @ 15/08/2023 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Laxman clinches 2nd Athens of the East Blitz Rating Open 2023 @ 05/08/2023 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Vishnu wins Golden Jubilee of Sivakasi Chess Club, NPSS Rathina Nadar - Dr. N Mahalingam Rating Open 2023 @ 30/07/2023 by R Anantharam (en)
	Arjun Kalyan wins Chairman's Trophy Rapid Rating Open 2023 @ 28/07/2023 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Ram S Krishnan wins Sivakasi Chess Club NPSS Rathina Nadar Dr. N Mahalingam Rapid Rating Open 2023 @ 13/07/2023 by R Anantharam (en)
	Vijay Shreeram P clinches 2nd SSS Rating Open 2023 @ 26/06/2023 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Sivakasi Chess Club celebrates 50th year - Triple Tournament Treat for the Chess Lovers @ 23/06/2023 by R Anantharam (en)
	Srihari L clinches Visalakshi Arunachalam 7th SCS Rating Open 2023 with a perfect 8/8 @ 23/06/2023 by R Anantharam (en)
	Sethuraman S P wins Rotachess Rapid Rating Open 2023 @ 21/06/2023 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Rotachess Rapid Rating Open 2023 R1-4: Haridev stuns Karthik @ 17/06/2023 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Harshad and Harikrishnan triumph at 1st Kanyakumari Parents Forum Rapid and Blitz Rating Open 2023 @ 13/06/2023 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Harikrishnan clinches May Day Celebration Rapid Rating Open 2023 @ 07/06/2023 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	T Nagar Chess Academy invites you to RCMIC Rotachess Rapid Rating Open 2023 offering ₹5.55 lacs prizes @ 01/06/2023 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Ajay Karthikeyan clinches 1st RCA Rapid Rating Open 2023 @ 08/04/2023 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Senthil Maran wins 1st Xaverian Rating Open 2023 @ 25/03/2023 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Harikrishnan clinches 34th KCF Rapid Rating Open 2023 @ 11/03/2023 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	A cakewalk for Phani Kanuri of AP at 1st Tirupattur Rapid Rating Open 2023 @ 07/03/2023 by R Anantharam (en)
	Laxman triumphs at CMI Tessellate Rapid Rating Open 2023 @ 02/03/2023 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Arul Anandh wins 3rd Little England Rating Open 2023 with a round to spare @ 15/02/2023 by R Anantharam (en)
	Harikrishnan dominates Velammal Republic Day Celebration Rapid Rating Open 2023 @ 06/02/2023 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Pranesh wins 1st ENS Rapid Rating Open 2023 and a brand new TVS Raider-125 Bike @ 31/01/2023 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Muthaiah Al triumphs at Tirumala Tirupati Rapid Rating Open 2022 @ 23/11/2022 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Ilamparthi A R wins Mrs. Meera Memorial Rapid Rating Open 2022 @ 22/11/2022 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Nitin and Rathanvel win D A V Krida Kendram Rapid and Blitz Rating Open 2022 @ 13/11/2022 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Kunal clinches Hatsun - Idhayam 6th SCS Rating Open 2022 @ 20/10/2022 by R Anantharam (en)
	Kunal wins 1st SRM Rapid Rating Open 2022 featuring 575 players @ 16/10/2022 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Harshad wins Azure All India Rapid Rating Open 2022 @ 13/10/2022 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Mitrabha, Murali Krishnan and Koustav are the winners of 44th Olympiad Celebration Rating Open events @ 30/08/2022 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Vishnu Prasanna clinches Olympiad Curtain Raiser Rapid Rating Open with a perfect 9/9 @ 23/08/2022 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Tamil Nadu State Government awards ₹1 Crore each to the Bronze medal winning Indian teams @ 11/08/2022 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Laxman and Nitin win GRT Shasun Jain College Rapid and Blitz Rating Open 2022 @ 29/07/2022 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Hrithickkesh Pr dominates Dr. KCG Verghese Memorial Rating Open 2022 @ 25/07/2022 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Chess Grad wins 1st CEG Trophy State level Open Team 2022 @ 18/05/2022 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Ramnathan Balasubramaniam wins 1st SSS All India Rating Open 2022 @ 16/05/2022 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Golden Knights Chess Academy A scores a hat-trick at 28th Tamil Nadu State Team Rating 2022 @ 09/05/2022 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Pranav Venkatesh wins 1st BCF Rapid Rating Open 2022 @ 14/04/2022 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Laxman R R wins 1st Vellore Rapid Rating Open 2021 @ 11/01/2022 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	IM Harikrishnan A Ra wins Sivakasi Chess Club Rapid Rating Open @ 14/12/2021 by R Anantharam (en)
	Tamil Nadu State Government felicitates players with 1 crore 98 lacs cash award @ 09/10/2021 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	15 वर्षीय प्रणव बने तामिलनाडु राज्य शतरंज विजेता @ 07/04/2021 by Niklesh Jain (hi)
	Pranav V wins 68th Tamil Nadu State Open 2021 with a 100% score 9.0/9 @ 07/04/2021 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	68th Tamil Nadu State Open: Pranav V takes sole lead 6.0/6 @ 31/03/2021 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Sivakasi Chess Club and Covid-19 @ 19/02/2021 by R Anantharam (en)
	Adhiban, Sethuraman, Gukesh, Laxman and Nandhidhaa receive Outstanding Sportsperson award by Tamil Nadu government @ 11/02/2021 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Aravindh wins Karaikudi Grand Prix Rapid Rating Open @ 06/02/2020 by R Anantharam (en)
	Laxman wins 2nd Open Rapid Rating at Trichy @ 11/01/2020 by R Anantharam (en)
	IM Harikrishnan wins Ramco 2nd FIDE Rated Open 2019 @ 16/12/2019 by R Anantharam (en)
	Vaishali wins Sivakasi Grand Prix Open Rapid @ 28/11/2019 by R Anantharam (en)
	IM Arjun Kalyan and Pranav Venkatesh win Velammal Rapid and Blitz @ 12/11/2019 by R Anantharam (en)
	Manigandan wins 15th KCM Open @ 08/10/2019 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Sabarish triumphs at Rotary 100 years Celebration open @ 04/10/2019 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	IM Khusenkhojaev wins Courtalam Saaral FIDE Rated Open @ 18/09/2019 by R Anantharam (en)
	Raahul V S triumphs at Talent Chess Academy 1st Open Rating @ 02/09/2019 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	Courtalam Saaral International Rating Open Preview @ 25/08/2019 by R Anantharam (en)
	Karthikeyan Murali wins 1st A S Subbaraman Memorial Trophy Blitz Rating 2019 @ 23/08/2019 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
	R Balasubramaniam wins Thalavaipuram All India Open @ 22/08/2019 by R Anantharam (en)
	Chess Bonanza in Tamil Nadu @ 16/05/2019 by R Anantharam (en)
	Lake City Open 2018 : IM R Balasubramaniam wins the grand festival in Udaipur! @ 07/12/2018 by Atul Dahale (en)