For the first time, two Indians feature in top five of FIDE live ratings

Indian chess Grandmasters Arjun Erigaisi and D Gukesh made it to the top five in the latest live ratings, announced by the International Chess Federation (FIDE) on Monday.

This is the first time two Indians entered the top five of FIDE world rankings.

Arjun is currently in fourth place with 2788.1 rating points in the classical category, whereas Gukesh is just behind him in fifth place with 2775.9 rating points.

Arjun saw the addition of 10.1 points and Gukesh 11.9 points to their existing rating points, thanks to their recent good form at the ongoing Chess Olympiad in Budapest.

The two of them are currently representing the Indian men's team at the 45th Chess Olympiad.

The Indian team is on top with five wins from five rounds, thanks to scintillating performances from the entire team. Arjun and Gukesh have been in phenomenal form.

Their fifth-round victories against Azerbaijan ensured India continued their winning streak and remained on top.

Arjun has been extremely consistent for the last year and ranked in the top ten for quite a while now.

Gukesh, for his part, has gone from strength to strength in 2024, winning the prestigious Candidates 2024 and setting up a championship match with current world champion Ding Liren of China. The World Championship will take place in Singapore from November 25 to December 13.

Magnus Carlsen, meanwhile, continues to be No.1 with a rating of 2832.3 points, followed by Fabiano Caruana of the USA with 2808.1 points.

In third place is another American, with Hikaru Nakumara having accumulated 2802.0 points.