India, Dec. 22 -- Before flying into Mumbai, Wesley So's most recent act in India was a dramatic resignation from an objectively drawn position in his first match at the Goa World Cup. Competing for the "local team" Mumba Masters at the Global Chess League (GCL) here has been far more fun for the Filipino-American GM.

At 32, So, who achieved a peak classical Elo rating of 2822 and became world No.2 in 2017, is still eager to improve in today's changed chess world. In this interview, the world No.11 talks about the need for players to pick and choose events and the health of chess in the US.

Excerpts:

You won the Sinquefield Cup, but had a poor World Cup. How do you sum up 2025?

It's been a fairly decent year, fairly quiet. Compared to...