15-year-old Kheerthi Ganta becomes the first girl to win Telangana State Rapid and Blitz 2022
25/04/2022 - 15-year-old Kheerthi Ganta created history on 15th April when she became the first female player to win Telangana State Rapid and Blitz Chess Championships 2022. Kheerthi scored an unbeaten 6.0/7 and 7.5/8 to win the Rapid and Blitz titles respectively. In the Rapid, she edged past Tata Keerthi Rana, Md Bashiq Imrose, top seed of the tournament FM Rishpal Singh S, Sriram R and Rithvik R. They were placed second to sixth. However, she was a clear champion in the Blitz event by finishing a half point ahead of the competition. CM Amithpal Singh 7.0/8 and Bashiq 6.5/8 secured second and third place. Kheerthi joins the rare list of women like Sonakshi Rathore and Rutuja Bakshi to win a State Open title in India.