More than a millennium ago, a board game born in India travelled along the Silk Road into Central Asia before spreading to the rest of the world. Today, that ancient journey is quietly being replayed in reverse. As India and Uzbekistan emerge as two of the fastest-rising powers in global chess, the game is once again connecting the two regions, this time through diplomacy, culture, and a new generation of grandmasters.
The encounters between India’s world champion Gukesh Dommaraju and Uzbekistan’s Nodirbek Abdusattorov capture this moment. Their clashes in elite international tournaments are more than sporting rivalries. They reflect the emergence of Asia as a major centre of global chess and, more subtly, the revival of a historical link between India and Central Asia.
At first glance, chess might seem an unlikely instrument of international relations. Yet cultural connections often play an important role in shaping diplomatic relationships. In the case of India and Uzbekistan, chess carries a civilisational resonance that predates modern borders and geopolitics. The game originated in India around the sixth century as chaturanga, a strategic board game inspired by the four divisions of ancient Indian armies. From there it traveled westward through Persia and Central Asia, evolving into shatranj and eventually becoming the modern game played worldwide today.
Uzbekistan has recently rediscovered this intellectual heritage through ambitious national investment in chess development. Government-backed programs introducing chess into schools and supporting youth training have shown impressive results. The country stunned the chess world when it won the gold medal at the 2022 Chess Olympiad in Chennai, defeating many established chess powers and announcing the arrival of a new generation of Central Asian players. Among them, Abdusattorov stands out as one of the most remarkable talents, having won the FIDE World Rapid Championship 2021 at the age of seventeen.
{{/usCountry}}Uzbekistan has recently rediscovered this intellectual heritage through ambitious national investment in chess development. Government-backed programs introducing chess into schools and supporting youth training have shown impressive results. The country stunned the chess world when it won the gold medal at the 2022 Chess Olympiad in Chennai, defeating many established chess powers and announcing the arrival of a new generation of Central Asian players. Among them, Abdusattorov stands out as one of the most remarkable talents, having won the FIDE World Rapid Championship 2021 at the age of seventeen.
{{/usCountry}}India, meanwhile, is experiencing a chess renaissance of its own. The global success of Viswanathan Anand helped popularise the game across the country and inspired a generation of young players. Over the past decade, India has produced an extraordinary wave of elite grandmasters, including Gukesh, Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa, Arjun Erigaisi, Divya Deshmukh, and Vaishali Rameshbabu. With its expanding talent pool and growing institutional support for chess education, India has become one of the most dynamic centers of chess development in the world.
The growing chess rivalry between India and Uzbekistan, therefore, reflects something larger than competition. It mirrors the strengthening diplomatic relationship between the two countries. Uzbekistan has emerged as one of India’s key partners in Central Asia, with bilateral trade reaching roughly $1.32 billion in recent years and cooperation expanding across sectors such as pharmaceuticals, information technology, education, and tourism. Both countries also cooperate within the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), which provides a platform for dialogue on regional security and economic engagement.
Central Asia occupies an increasingly important place in India’s foreign policy. Connectivity initiatives such as the International North–South Transport Corridor (INSTC) and the development of Iran’s Chabahar Port aim to link India more closely with landlocked Central Asian economies. Uzbekistan, with its strategic location and growing economic ambitions, is central to this vision.
While infrastructure and trade will ultimately determine the depth of this partnership, cultural diplomacy can strengthen the foundations on which it rests. Chess offers a natural avenue for such engagement. Joint tournaments, training exchanges, and youth development programmes could deepen people-to-people ties while reinforcing a shared historical narrative connecting South Asia and Central Asia.
In an era when geopolitics in Eurasia is often framed as a contest of great powers, the story of chess between India and Uzbekistan offers a different perspective. It reminds us that diplomacy is not only shaped by corridors of power and economic agreements but also by ideas, culture, and shared traditions.
More than a thousand years after chess traveled from India to Central Asia, the game is again linking the two regions. The rivalry may soon reach its biggest stage yet, with Uzbekistan’s rising star Javokhir Sindarov winning the 2026 Candidates Tournament to set up a World Chess Championship clash with India’s reigning champion Gukesh Dommaraju, and for the 2026 Women’s World Chess Championship, it is set to feature reigning champion Ju Wenjun against India’s challenger Vaishali Rameshbabu, so these grandmasters will remain at the center of global attention. Their battles may unfold across 64 squares, but they also reflect something deeper: A shared intellectual heritage quietly reconnecting India & Central Asia.
(The views expressed are personal)
This article is authored by Kamakshi Wason, Global COO, Tillotoma Foundation.