Elite player, 2nd to world champions, and now team captain: P Harikrishna readies for new role at GCL with Mumba Masters | Chess News
After shaping the world championship-winning campaigns of Gukesh Dommaraju and Ju Wenjun as their second, and then making it to the round of 16 of the wildly-volatile FIDE World Cup as a player last month, Pentala Harikrishna is currently readying himself to sport a third hat: that of a team captain for the Mumba Masters franchise in the third edition of the Global Chess League, that will begin in Mumbai from December 14. A team captain, like a captain in the Davis Cup team in tennis, does not play in games, but is in charge of overall strategy besides other intangible elements like player morale in the outfit. In a largely individualistic sport like chess, the GCL introduces a rare team dynamic which players only experience at Olympiads that happen once in two years or in European leagues. This makes the team captain’s role vital. In the past, GCL franchises have used team meals as a way to foster team culture and bonding, especially with players coming from different nationalities. “The first thing for me …
