Abhimanyu Puranik has been flying beneath the radar fairly a bit since turning into a Grandmaster again in 2017.
The 25-year-old was Divya Deshmukh’s ‘second’ throughout the latter’s triumphant World Cup marketing campaign, however sought to minimize his function and mentioned Divya got here up with an unimaginable efficiency.
A ‘second’ is a coach or analyst who helps a participant put together for a match by learning opponents, analysing video games and openings.
Abhimanyu mentioned he was pleasantly shocked when the 19-year-old Divya reached out to him.
Impromptu
“It was pretty impromptu [Divya reaching out to me],” Abhimanyu, who’s at present enjoying within the Challengers part of the Chennai Grandmasters 2025 event, informed The Hindu.
“It was a very nice experience working with her. I was happy to help her. She is someone who is showing a lot of maturity at a very young age.
“The World Cup performance was simply incredible. I hope she carries the momentum forward and plays well in future events, too.
“Divya is super pragmatic and has been preparing well for some time now, and it is slowly giving her the results. She is very adaptable as a player, which certainly helps,” he mentioned.
On his personal profession, Abhimanyu, runner-up within the World Junior Championship in 2018, mentioned: “I might be slightly older, but I am feeling as motivated as ever.
“I am trying out a lot of new things. It is as exciting, and I just want to continue the process.”
Main objective
Abhimanyu, going by a middling 12 months to date, admitted that issues might be higher.
“My main goal is to be in the top 50 in the world, and I will keep working towards that end,” he signed off.
