Hindi English Translation || Editorial || Queen on the board: On R. Vaishali winning the Women’s Candidates tournament

Queen on the board: On R. Vaishali winning the Women’s Candidates tournament

Vaishali’s success should lead to (कारण बनना, परिणामस्वरूप होना) greater depth (प्रतिभा की प्रचुरता) in women’s chess

The significance of R. Vaishali winning the Women’s Candidates cannot be overstated (बढ़ा-चढ़ाकर कहना, अतिरंजित करना). The winner of the gruelling (अत्यंत कठिन, थकाऊ, श्रमसाध्य) 14-round tournament, featuring (शामिल करना, प्रमुख रूप से प्रदर्शित करना) the world’s top chess players, gets the right to challenge (चुनौती देना, मुकाबला करना) the World champion; now the 24-year-old, who was not among (के बीच) the favourites (पसंदीदा खिलाड़ी) in Cyprus, will take on China’s Ju Wenjun in the World championship (the highest-level international competition to determine the best player in the world) later this year. Vaishali is the first Indian to win the Women’s Candidates, which dates back (पुराने समय से शुरू होना, अतीत से संबंधित होना) to 1952, and now only the second Indian to contest the Women’s World (classical) chess championship match. She must be aiming to become the first Indian to capture the crown (खिताब, उपाधि) that matters most (सबसे अधिक महत्वपूर्ण होना) in women’s chess. Besides (इसके अलावा, के अतिरिक्त) Vaishali, Divya Deshmukh also played at the Candidates, though she had a forgettable tournament, finishing seventh in a field (all the competitors taking part in a contest; competitors, participants, contenders, line-up) of eight. Divya had made history herself last July when she won the World Cup: she was the first Indian woman to win that prestigious event. It is remarkable (उल्लेखनीय, असाधारण) that two young Indian women have won two of the biggest events in world chess within a space (period, duration, interval, span) of nine months. And Koneru Humpy had clinched (secure, achieve, win, seal) her second World rapid championship (an international chess tournament played under fast time controls) in December 2024.

Notwithstanding (इसके बावजूद) their successes, and the fact that (used to refer to a particular situation or truth; the reality that, given that, considering that, acknowledging that) Indian women, like the men, are the reigning (currently holding a title or championship; defending, incumbent, current, presiding) World team champions (by winning the Chess Olympiad), the country cannot boast of (possess something to be proud of; pride oneself on, feature, show off, take pride in) great depth in women’s chess. While there is no shortage (scarcity, lack, dearth, deficiency) of fresh talent among boys on the Indian chessboard (the checkered playing surface for the game of chess, here used metaphorically for the chess arena; chess arena, competitive chess scene, chess landscape), the story is different when it comes to girls. Women like Vaishali and Divya are not products of the system (the organized framework or structure of an organization; establishment, structure, setup, institution); they have succeeded because of their parents, and in the case of the former, generous (liberal, lavish, bountiful, substantial) corporate sponsorship (financial support provided by a business to a player or event in exchange for brand exposure; business backing, commercial funding, corporate patronage) has also played a role. Corporates have also contributed to the staggering (astonishing, astounding, overwhelming, mind-boggling) growth of Indian chess. The WestBridge Anand Chess Academy (WACA) (a prominent Indian chess academy founded by WestBridge Capital and Viswanathan Anand to train and sponsor young chess prodigies), founded by Sandeep Singhal and five-time World champion Viswanathan Anand, ensured that money was no constraint (restriction, limitation, hindrance, impediment) for Gukesh’s challenge for the World title against Ding Liren in 2024. Indian chess can get only better if more corporates step forward (take action to help; volunteer, offer assistance, intervene, come forward). To ensure that women’s chess keeps its momentum, the chess federation (the governing body responsible for organizing and regulating chess in a country, such as the All India Chess Federation (AICF); chess governing body, chess authority) should focus on girls, get them trained by Grandmasters (the highest title awarded to a chess player by the international chess federation (FIDE)), and organise more tournaments for them.

Courtesy: The Hindu

Important Word List With Meaning

1.lead to (phrasal verb)

Hindi Meaning - कारण बनना, परिणामस्वरूप होना
English Meaning - result in, cause, bring about, give rise to.

2.depth (noun)

Hindi Meaning - प्रतिभा की प्रचुरता
English Meaning - the quality of having a large pool of talented players; abundance of talent, strength in numbers.

3.overstate (verb)

Hindi Meaning - बढ़ा-चढ़ाकर कहना, अतिरंजित करना
English Meaning - exaggerate, overemphasize, magnify, inflate.

4.gruelling (adjective)

Hindi Meaning - अत्यंत कठिन, थकाऊ, श्रमसाध्य
English Meaning - extremely tiring and demanding; exhausting, punishing, rigorous, arduous.

5.feature (verb)

Hindi Meaning - शामिल करना, प्रमुख रूप से प्रदर्शित करना
English Meaning - include as a prominent part; showcase, highlight, present, involve.

6.get the right to (phrase)

Hindi Meaning - अधिकार प्राप्त करना, पात्र बनना
English Meaning - earn the privilege to, qualify to, obtain the entitlement to, be permitted to.

7.challenge (verb)

Hindi Meaning - चुनौती देना, मुकाबला करना
English Meaning - compete against someone for a championship title; take on, confront, dispute, vie with.

8.among (preposition)

Hindi Meaning - के बीच
English Meaning - included in, one of, surrounded by, in the company of.

9.favourite (noun)

Hindi Meaning - पसंदीदा खिलाड़ी
English Meaning - the competitor thought most likely to win a contest; front-runner, top seed, likely winner, preferred competitor.

10.date back (phrasal verb)

Hindi Meaning - पुराने समय से शुरू होना, अतीत से संबंधित होना
English Meaning - originate at a particular time in the past; originate from, trace back to, go back to.

11.crown (noun)

Hindi Meaning - खिताब, उपाधि
English Meaning - the title of champion; championship, title, trophy.

12.matter most (phrase)

Hindi Meaning - सबसे अधिक महत्वपूर्ण होना
English Meaning - be of the greatest importance; carry the greatest significance, be paramount, hold the most weight.

13.Besides (preposition)

Hindi Meaning - इसके अलावा, के अतिरिक्त
English Meaning - apart from, in addition to, other than, aside from.

14.remarkable (adjective)

Hindi Meaning - उल्लेखनीय, असाधारण
English Meaning - extraordinary, exceptional, outstanding, notable.

15.Notwithstanding (preposition)

Hindi Meaning - इसके बावजूद
English Meaning - in spite of, despite, regardless of, nevertheless.

16.space (noun)

English Meaning - period, duration, interval, span.

17.Queen (noun)

English Meaning - the most powerful piece in the game of chess.

18.on the board (phrase)

English Meaning - in the game of chess.

19.Queen on the board (phrase)

English Meaning - referring to a female player asserting dominance or taking a prominent role in chess.

20.the Women’s Candidates (noun)

English Meaning - an elite chess tournament organized by the International Chess Federation (FIDE) to determine the challenger for the Women’s World Chess Championship. The 2026 FIDE Women’s Candidates Tournament held in Paphos, Cyprus from March 28 to April 15, 2026.

21.Cyprus (noun)

English Meaning - an island country in the eastern Mediterranean Sea.

22.take on (phrasal verb)

English Meaning - compete against, face, challenge, oppose.

23.World championship (noun)

English Meaning - the highest-level international competition to determine the best player in the world.

24.the Women’s World (classical) chess championship (noun)

English Meaning - the pinnacle international chess competition for women played under classical time controls to crown the world champion.

25.field (noun)

English Meaning - all the competitors taking part in a contest; competitors, participants, contenders, line-up.

26.clinch (verb)

English Meaning - secure, achieve, win, seal.

27.World rapid championship (noun)

English Meaning - an international chess tournament played under fast time controls.

28.the fact that (phrase)

English Meaning - used to refer to a particular situation or truth; the reality that, given that, considering that, acknowledging that.

29.reigning (adjective)

English Meaning - currently holding a title or championship; defending, incumbent, current, presiding.

30.the Chess Olympiad (noun)

English Meaning - a biennial international team chess tournament organized by the International Chess Federation (FIDE).

31.boast of (phrasal verb)

English Meaning - possess something to be proud of; pride oneself on, feature, show off, take pride in.

32.shortage (noun)

English Meaning - scarcity, lack, dearth, deficiency.

33.chessboard (noun)

English Meaning - the checkered playing surface for the game of chess, here used metaphorically for the chess arena; chess arena, competitive chess scene, chess landscape.

34.system (noun)

English Meaning - the organized framework or structure of an organization; establishment, structure, setup, institution.

35.generous (adjective)

English Meaning - liberal, lavish, bountiful, substantial.

36.corporate sponsorship (noun)

English Meaning - financial support provided by a business to a player or event in exchange for brand exposure; business backing, commercial funding, corporate patronage.

37.play a role (phrase)

English Meaning - have an effect or influence on something; contribute, be a factor, have a part, influence.

38.staggering (adjective)

English Meaning - astonishing, astounding, overwhelming, mind-boggling.

39.WestBridge Anand Chess Academy (WACA) (noun)

English Meaning - a prominent Indian chess academy founded by WestBridge Capital and Viswanathan Anand to train and sponsor young chess prodigies.

40.constraint (noun)

English Meaning - restriction, limitation, hindrance, impediment.

41.get better (phrase)

English Meaning - improve, progress, advance, enhance.

42.step forward (phrasal verb)

English Meaning - take action to help; volunteer, offer assistance, intervene, come forward.

43.keep one’s momentum (phrase)

English Meaning - maintain the speed, force, or progress of an ongoing process; sustain progress, continue advancing, maintain pace, keep driving forward.

44.chess federation (noun)

English Meaning - the governing body responsible for organizing and regulating chess in a country, such as the All India Chess Federation (AICF); chess governing body, chess authority.

45.Grandmaster (noun)

English Meaning - the highest title awarded to a chess player by the international chess federation (FIDE).