In July 2025, in a great achievement for India player Tanmay Srinath became ICCF Senior International Master, only the 2nd active player from India to achieve this title after Sasikiran and the 4th player in the history of Indian Correspondence Chess to become SIM!
The YouTube video below on AIWCF channel is an interview on this occasion.
He was also interviewed by Chessbase:
We asked Tanmay to write about his journey and his achievement and here is the article.
Maybe This Was Always the Path
I didn't grow up with chess in the usual sense. I learned the game only in 2013, at age 13, and by 2015 had my first rating. Like most kids, I dreamed of titles and tournaments — until academics took over. What felt like a pause at the time was, in hindsight, a redirection.
In 2017, I began contributing to ChessBase India, first with simple annotations, then with long-form pieces and opening surveys. Writing deepened my love for analysis and engines, and by 2019 I was publishing surveys that grandmasters appreciated for the inventiveness I brought. That validation planted a thought: maybe my true place in chess wasn’t over the board, but in the quiet depth of research.
Discovering Correspondence
In 2020, I tried correspondence chess almost as an experiment. To my surprise, it felt like home. Here, emotional swings didn't matter — only ideas and persistence did. With engines as a baseline, the real challenge was to ask questions beyond their first lines.
The early years were filled with lessons. Copying the engine didn't work. Simplifying too early killed chances. And yet, when I trusted my instincts, I could outplay strong opponents even in "equal" positions. My first major breakthrough came in the Lockdown Preliminaries, where I introduced a Catalan idea against Josef Filipek that effectively ended a mainline from theory. That game (below) convinced me the Catalan could be my lifelong weapon.
Hard Lessons, Small Wins
2021 was difficult — I even suffered my only loss in correspondence (game) due to an input error.
But it taught me patience and the importance of keeping tension alive. Later, in the Champions League C Division, I bounced back with five wins, securing my CCE norm and helping our team qualify (Kan Sicilian game, lucky win):
In 2022–23, I slowed down deliberately. Most of my games ended in draws, but those years gave me discipline. I stopped playing 1.e4 altogether, leaned into closed systems, and earned my CCM title — largely by holding my own against very strong opposition.
The Push Toward SIM
By 2024, the ICCF rating system had changed to reward wins more, and I sharpened my approach. At the Indian National Championship, I will mostly finish +4. My highlights included a clean Slav victory and one of my best games ever — a Queen’s Gambit Declined masterpiece featuring an exchange sacrifice. These two games are in the panel below:
But the real breakthrough came in two international events.
• In the Friends of Caissa International Open, I scored my first SIM norm. My best game was a Catalan with Bb4+, where I sacrificed two pawns for long-term pressure and launched a devastating attack. I also scored a win in the French Winawer after my opponent collapsed under time pressure. These two games are in the panel below:
• In the 35 Aniversario FECAP A9, I secured my second SIM norm — and the title. My Catalan once again delivered, this time with a bold exchange sacrifice that led to a brutal dark-square attack. Fittingly, the game that sealed the title was not a win but a well-fought draw in the Winawer French. These two games are in the panel below:
What it Means
With these results, I became the 4th Indian ever — and the 2nd active Indian alongside GM Krishnan Sasikiran — to achieve the Senior International Master (SIM) title. I even skipped the IM title completely, jumping straight from CCM to SIM, something very rare in correspondence chess.
But honestly, it was never about the title. Since late 2023, after being initiated into Samyama meditation by Sadhguru, I've meditated three hours daily. That practice changed me. I no longer chase outcomes. My only focus — in chess, work, or life — is whether I can give my full effort to this moment.
Today, I’m playing the World Correspondence Chess Championship Candidates Semifinals and two World Cup Preliminaries. Yes, there are paths that could eventually lead to a World Championship match. But I’m not chasing them. My only goal is simple:
Keep creating chances. Keep showing up. Keep playing with heart.
The rest will take care of itself.