SRM-A Wins India College Chess Championship For The Second Time!

The spring season of the 2025 India College Chess Championship concluded with SRM Institute of Science and Technology winning the event for the second consecutive time! The team took home a cash prize of ₹3,00,000 (approximately $3,498). After topping the round-robin stage, Jeppiaar University lost to SRM with a score of 10-1 and secured second place, earning a cash prize of ₹2,00,000 (approximately $2,332).

Semifinals

SRM-A convincingly won their match against ISIK-A (Indian Statistical Institute-Kolkata) and advanced comfortably to the finals. Jeppiaar University overcame SRCC to set up the final clash.

Here are some interesting games and moments from the semifinals:

We have an interesting situation where a player had two options to recapture but chose the wrong one. Had Black played correctly, the ensuing complications would have made the game far more intriguing:

There was a textbook example on how to play with a double bishop advantage that caught my attention. Black did not refrain from transforming the advantage by giving up the bishop pair. IM Srihari L R of SRM-A made no mistake and displayed flawless technique:

Team SRM-A has an interesting coincidence: Two of their players share the same first name. I'm presenting a game by the other Srihari, who is also an international master. One of the challenges of being in a worse position is that the player under pressure may overlook an opportunity arising from the opponent's errors, simply because such chances are not expected in a difficult situation. In this game, Black had a resource to complicate matters, and if both sides had played accurately, the game could have ended in a wild perpetual draw.

The next example is pretty instructive based on many factors. It tells us the drawbacks of hanging pieces and showcases the motifs that are challenging even for grandmasters.

GM Arjun Kalyan has a good bind as Black in the position. It seems like the desire to improve the dark bishop's position overpowered his other choices. Black has no problems here if he goes 22...Rbc4 or 22..Kf8.


The game continued: 23.Rxd6! Bb6+ 24.Kh2, and now 24...Bd4. Can you spot what Black missed?


White made use of the hanging rooks on b4 and c8 with a temporary exchange sacrifice. 

Finals

SRM Institute of Technology and Science clinched the event with a dominating victory over Jeppiar University, scoring 11-1! Here is a masterclass by GM Pranesh M on how to outplay your opponent in equal endgames:

Jeppiar University was able to score a point in one particular game thanks to a skewer trap. Take a look:

There were a lot of endgames in the SRM-A matches. In queen endgames, the role of a passed pawn is of great importance. Here is an example worth remembering:

Standings of Top 5 Divisions

Kudos to all the teams that participated in the second edition of the India College Chess Championship! We may see new faces and fresh teams in the upcoming seasons.

Congratulations to SRM-A on winning the event for the second time in a row. BIG Question: Can anybody stop them? We will have to wait until next season to find out!

These are the final standings for the top four teams of the first three divisions:

Division 1

1. SRM Institute of Science and Technology
2. Jeppiar University
3. Indian Statistical Institute - Kolkata
4. SRCC

Division 2

1. St. Joseph's College of Engineering
2. DG Vaishnav College
3. KMIT A 
4. Xaviers Team A 

Division 3

1. Knightmare 2.0
2. VIT Team B
3. Amrita ICCC
4. Martial Knights

You can also check out the full divisions' standings. 

Stay tuned for the next season!

The India College Chess Championship is the premier online chess competition for college students in India. It is a team event featuring a $15,000 prize fund.