Archive · 10 Aug 2026
Chess star Deekshitha, 14, jumps 29,200 spots in one month
Deekshitha is a 14-year-old girl from Hyderabad, India, who loves playing chess.
For a long time, her chess rating stayed stuck below 2000, and she could not earn the title she wanted.
Then she went to Europe for a month and played in four chess tournaments.
She won many games against very strong players who were rated higher than her.
In just 30 days, she gained almost 500 rating points and jumped about 29,200 places in the world rankings.
Now she is the best girl chess player in the world under the age of 20.
She is also the fourth best woman chess player in India.
Her mother had to pawn her special wedding necklace to pay for the trip, and her coach helped too.
Deekshitha traveled by herself because her parents could not go with her.
Her coach says she is very strong mentally and never gives up, even when she is losing.
Modipalli Deekshitha, a 14-year-old from Hyderabad, gained 484.8 Elo points in one month, climbing from a 1985 rating to a live rating of 2469.8.
Over four back-to-back European tournaments, she jumped nearly 29,200 world ranking places and is on the verge of breaking into the world's top 800.
Deekshitha is now the top-ranked player in the world among girls under 20, ahead of Ukraine's Anastasiia Hnatyshyn, and the fourth highest-rated Indian woman.
Across the four events, she defeated 11 higher-rated opponents, including three international masters, and drew with 11 others, earning an IM norm at the Pontevedra Masters.
Her mother mortgaged her mangalsutra to fund the trip, and Deekshitha traveled alone; her trainer, IM Krishna Teja, provided financial and coaching support.
- Who
- Modipalli Deekshitha, a 14-year-old chess player from Hyderabad, India, supported by her trainer IM Krishna Teja.
- What
- Gained 484.8 Elo points across four European tournaments, jumping nearly 29,200 world ranking places and becoming the world's top-ranked girl under 20.
- When
- Over roughly one month during the European summer, from late July through early August 2026.
- Where
- Europe: La Plagne and Les Menuires in France, Pontevedra in Spain, and the Leca Chess Open in Portugal.
- Why
- Her training, mental toughness, and deep love of the game drove her to defeat many higher-rated opponents and never give up in difficult positions.
- Age
- 14
- Rating gained
- 484.8 Elo points in one month
- Rating change
- 1985 to live rating 2469.8
- World ranking jump
- Nearly 29,200 places, from roughly 30,000th toward the top 800
- Tournaments
- La Plagne Maitre 2026, Les Menuires Masters, Cidade de Pontevedra Masters, Leca Chess Open
- Title milestone
- Earned an IM (International Master) norm
- World junior standing
- Top-ranked girl under 20, ahead of Anastasiia Hnatyshyn (2465)
- India standing
- Fourth highest-rated Indian woman, behind Koneru Humpy, Divya Deshmukh, and R Vaishali