The 36 years old grandmaster talks about easing up on playing to spend more family time after she became a mother of a 5 year old girl. 

Koneru says, "I feel I am surviving at the top level because of my experience. There are a lot of youngsters coming up, but so far I have managed.” 

Koneru Humpy is more than just another chess player. The woman is world ranked two in women’s classic chess rating, and she was the youngest woman to become Grandmaster in 2002. She won gold in the world rapid championship in 2019 and silver in the world blitz championship in 2022. She was a member of the Indian women’s team that won bronze at the 44th Chess Olympiad in Chennai last year. After becoming a mother, her priorities are gradually shifting. She is now quite selective while choosing tournaments. 

“Personally, it is a bit difficult to spend more time on chess (these days),” said Humpy during a virtual interaction ahead of the Global Chess League beginning in Dubai on June 22. “In my younger days, I used to spend 8-9 hours on chess every day. Now, my lifestyle is completely different. When I am home, I need to spend time with my daughter and the family. If I have an important event, I make sure I spend 15-20 days before it entirely on chess. Or else, I work 1-2 hours a day just to stay in touch.”This year Humpy needs to check her every move on the chess board. “The Asian Games and the World Cup are the two major events I will prioritize this year,” she said.

But before that, she will participate in the inaugural Global Chess League, a six-team rapid tournament that brings together the best players in the world. Humpy is part of Upgrad Mumba Masters, alongside Vidit Gujrathi, Harika Dronavalli, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, Alexander Grischuk and Javokhir Sindarov.“If it’s an individual event, it is just about your result. Here, even if the position is not too comfortable to prolong, the situation may be such in other boards that you have to take certain risks. Team events are a bit tricky, but it’s also more relaxed. You always have a group of people surrounding you and you can interact more. I personally feel there is less pressure in a team event,” she said.

"This event is being organised in a very different manner. Definitely it will attract more sponsors in the time to come. It will also give chess more visibility. During the pandemic, the online spectators have increased drastically. After this league, I also expect a lot of improvement,” said Humpy.