Chess prodigy Sakline dreams of becoming GM

Sakline Mostafa Sajid, a 13-year-old chess prodigy, has made a big splash in Bangladesh's chess fraternity by clinching back-to-back titles in just one week's time, outsmarting several FIDE Masters and Grand Masters of the country.

Candidate Master Sakline first became the unbeaten champion in the open section of Sheikh Russel National Under-20 Chess Championship on December 31, 2023, which featured promising FMs Tahsin Tajwar Zia and Manon Reza Neer.

Then on January 6, the teenager reigned supreme over veterans GM Ziaur Rahman and GM Reefat Bin Sattar and also FMs like Sheikh Nasir, Mehdi Hasan, Tahsin Tajwar, Reja Neer and Subrato Biswas to lift the title of Walton International Rating Chess tournament.

Sakline, who is an eighth grader from Rajarbagh Police Line School, said that he surprised himself by winning the top prize in the International Rating Chess tournament.

"At the Walton tournament, my target was to finish in the top five. I never thought of becoming the champion," said Sakline.

"I was demoralised after losing to Tahsin bhai. But I was still confident and remained focused on my games. In the last round, Neer lost to Zia bhai and I beat FM Sheikh Nasir bhai to become the champion," he added.

Sakline learnt the basics of the game from his businessman father in Pabna and was introduced to the many advanced strategies of chess from his elder brother Julkarnine Naim.

"To be honest, he is a very hard-working and talented player. He regularly watches matches between Super GMs and plays online chess to hone his skills," said Julkarnine, a banker by profession.

In 2019, the young boy from Pabna finished fourth in the School Chess Championship, organised by Shishu-Academy, and then became the national champion in the Under-8 category. He also participated in two tournaments in Sri Lanka and India, where his family bore the expenses.

In 2021, Sakline became a member of the Bangladesh Police Chess Club and began living in a rented apartment in Dhaka with his elder brother and sister.

He earned CM title after becoming runner-up in Western Asian Youth Championship in the Maldives in 2022.

Sakline now dreams of becoming a GM and win laurels for Bangladesh in the international stage.

"My ultimate goal is to earn the GM title which is very tough. I don't know how I will achieve it but I want to achieve it and I am confident that I can do it," said the teenager.

Bangladesh has a poor track-record of handling the development of chess prodigies, as many promising young talents have withered away after a bright start.

To go to the next level, Sakline needs to compete in tournaments abroad, which is very difficult to do without the support of a sponsor or the federation.

His elder brother hopes that sponsors will come forward to help his sibling fulfill his dreams. "Our family will financially support Sakline as long as possible. But I think the sponsors need to come forward to support him to achieve his goals," said Julkarnine.