Chess is not for the faint of heart. One of the most perplexing sports to exist, this mind-twisting, gut-wrenching sport has led to dramatic events for grandmasters all over the world. However, in the English-medium circuit, one name is synonymous with this intense sport, Aariz Zaman Khan. Throughout competitions, he has excelled to become one of the best board players in the Dhaka Division, defeating the children of grandmasters along the way. I had the pleasure of interviewing him through means of social media. Here is his viewpoint on Chess in Bangladesh.

Ilman Islam: What is your greatest experience in a chess tournament? 

Aariz Zaman Khan: My greatest experience is when I beat one of the grandmasters’ sons in a rapid chess tournament when I was 11 years old. It was my first one. I was also the best board 4 player in the Dhaka division 4 tournament back in grade 8. Another great experience was winning second place back to back for my school, bringing the first 2 trophies for the academy.

II: Who sparked the fire inside you to commence chess? 

AZK: My inspiration was the helping hands and the guards in my grandmother’s house. I have played chess with them since I was 5 and developed my skills since then. They inspired me to pursue a career in it

II: What influenced you to begin competing on a professional level? 

AZK: Parents inspiration and a need to develop my skills allowed me to seek out somewhere outside the amateurs I beat every day where I can learn my weaknesses allowed me to compete on a pro level

II: What qualifications does an individual require in order to begin competing? 

AZK: First of all there are no qualifications, you start small by going to the rated tournaments. You have to beat some rated players to get your rating and get an international ranking. Local chess academies host them regularly in Bangladesh, where a lot of engineers, professors , architects and businessmen with a lot of rating and experience play.

II: What must be recommended in order to promote chess in Bangladesh?

AZK: More local tournaments across the country and in rural areas would be vital. Moreover inter school tournaments as well as more support from parents would encourage more chess in Bangladesh. Parental workshops on its cognitive significance may also enhance it

II: What advice would you give to aspiring chess players? How can they follow your path in achieving success? 

AZK: One advice I would give to chess players is to always solve the puzzles in the books. There are so many strategies and variations that they can use. Solving the books will encourage more practice and more active thinking. It’s what the greats like Gary Kasparov and [Magnus] Carlsen did.

II: What are the resources that players require to support and develop their craft and expertise? 

AZK: As I mentioned they should use chess puzzle books for resources however not everyone can afford them. For those people I’d suggest they go to chess.com or lichess.org for similar puzzles and play with people around the world. for children I would suggest the beginners to go to chesskid.com first and when they get older, to go to chess.com