Archive · 30 Aug 2026
Coach Vaibhav Suri’s Sacrifice Behind Praggnanandhaa’s Grand Chess Tour Triumph
Vaibhav Suri is the chess coach of Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa.
Praggnanandhaa had a very busy tournament schedule and played 54 games in 26 days.
He eventually won the Grand Chess Tour.
Suri could not travel because of visa problems, so he coached Praggnanandhaa online.
The two had to work across an 11.5-hour time difference.
Suri stayed awake much of the night to prepare for the next games.
Praggnanandhaa said Suri worked extremely hard and helped him improve.
Suri is already preparing for India’s next major team competition.
Vaibhav Suri coached Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa remotely during his Grand Chess Tour campaign.
Visa problems prevented Suri from traveling to the United States, forcing the pair to work across an 11.5-hour time difference.
Praggnanandhaa played 54 games in 26 days and won the Grand Chess Tour.
Suri regularly prepared plans for Praggnanandhaa’s next games and monitored possible opening improvements.
Suri is now preparing with India’s team for its men’s Chess Olympiad title defence.
- Who
- Chess player Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa and his full-time coach, Vaibhav Suri.
- What
- Praggnanandhaa won the Grand Chess Tour, with Suri providing extensive remote coaching during the campaign.
- When
- During the 2026 Grand Chess Tour season; Suri is now preparing for the men’s Chess Olympiad.
- Where
- The tour included events in Saint Louis and at the Sinquefield Cup; Suri coached remotely from outside the United States because he could not obtain a visa.
- Why
- Suri and Praggnanandhaa wanted to maximize their preparation and performance during a demanding tournament schedule.
Praggnanandhaa’s View
Suri’s View
Importance of defeating Magnus Carlsen
Praggnanandhaa’s View
Praggnanandhaa described the victory over Carlsen at Norway Chess as not being such a big win.
Suri’s View
Suri said defeating Carlsen was significant, emphasizing that beating Magnus Carlsen is never a small achievement.
- Player
- Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa
- Coach
- Vaibhav Suri
- Achievement
- Praggnanandhaa won the 2026 Grand Chess Tour.
- Tournament workload
- He played 54 games in 26 days in Saint Louis.
- Coaching arrangement
- Suri coached remotely after visa issues prevented him from traveling to the United States.
- Time difference
- The coaching work took place across an 11.5-hour time difference.
- Next assignment
- Suri is preparing for India’s men’s Chess Olympiad title defence alongside Sankalp Gupta and N Srinath.