On July 18, 2026, V.S. Rathanvel of Coimbatore crossed the 2500 Elo mark at the Guwahati Smart City International Open and became India’s 99th Grandmaster. He is only the second player from India to complete his three GM norms years before finally crossing the rating line. He got his norms back in 2022 and spent almost four years chasing 2500.
That wait is now over, and the country is one title away from a historic feat.
Back when Viswanathan Anand became India’s first GM in 1988, it felt like a miracle. Today, India adds a new one almost every month. The 13 years between 2013 and 2026 alone have produced more than 60 new Grandmasters.
So who is going to be the 100th Grandmaster of India? A lot of names float around online right now.
Top Contenders for 100th Indian Grandmaster
Here are five International Masters who are genuinely closer to the milestone, based on their current norm count and recent tournament form.
| Name | Title | State | Classical Rating | Peak Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kushagra Mohan | International Master | Delhi | 2456 | 2456 |
| Harsh Suresh | International Master | Tamil Nadu | 2435 | 2443 |
| Ameya Audi | International Master | Goa | 2419 | 2425 |
| Akshay Borgaonkar | International Master | Maharashtra | 2389 | 2453 |
| Daakshin Arun | FIDE Master | Tamil Nadu | 2308 | 2427 |
1. Kushagra Mohan
Kushagra Mohan earned his IM title back in 2022 without a personal coach, which says a lot about his self-driven approach to the game. He has kept playing GM-level events year after year, including Abu Dhabi, Qatar Masters, and multiple GM round robins in Serbia and Croatia, building match experience against Grandmasters even while his norm count moves slowly. He was part of the field at the Chola Chess GM Norm Round Robin in Chennai in June 2026.
Players like him, with years of GM-level tournament exposure, often complete their norms in a short burst once the pieces fall into place.
2. Harsh Suresh
Harsh Suresh is one of the most active norm-hunters in the country right now. He won the Paracin Open in Serbia in 2025 without losing a game, and he has been a regular face at India’s new closed GM round-robin events.
At the first Chola Chess GM Norm Round Robin in Chennai in February 2026, he held his own in a marathon 111-move draw against a visiting Grandmaster. By the second Chola Chess event in July 2026, he finished third in the field with 6 points out of 9. It was a strong score that shows he is playing at GM level even if the paperwork hasn’t caught up yet. He is still chasing his maiden GM norm, but his consistency against titled opposition makes him one to watch.
3. Ameya Audi
Ameya Audi has been building a quiet but solid resume. He won the Ceske Budejovice IM tournament in 2025 and has been competing at the same norm-focused events in Chennai and Pune that are now feeding India’s GM pipeline. Goa has produced GMs before, but not many; Ameya has a real shot at adding to that short list, and if he does, he would be doing it through the same domestic norm-tournament route that is reshaping Indian chess
4. Akshay Borgaonkar
Akshay Borgaonkar is proof that Maharashtra’s chess scene is catching up fast. He earned his IM title and his first GM norm in the same tournament, the SixDays Budapest GM Round Robin in March 2025, and followed it up by scoring 98% in his Class 10 board exams soon after.
He turned 17 during the Pune International Grandmaster Round Robin in June-July 2026, India’s first-ever GM norm event held in Maharashtra, where he competed against titled players from Belarus, Sri Lanka, and the USA. He already has one GM norm in hand and is playing regularly on the domestic norm circuit that has opened up in the last year.
5. Daakshin Arun
Daakshin Arun is younger than the others on this list, but his trajectory is worth tracking. Training under GM R.B. Ramesh at Chola Chess Academy in Chennai, he already has an IM norm and a GM norm to his name, picked up at the Rilton Cup and the Chola Chess round robins in 2026.
He was the 2023 Under-13 National Champion and crossed 2400 rating that same year. He’s not the closest to the title yet, but the pace at which he is collecting norms puts him firmly in the conversation for the next few years.
