Qualifying for the World Cup for the third time, Susanto feels that this time he is more ready mentally to compete alongside top contenders than in his two previous World Cups in 2007 and 2011.

“In 2007, I faced GM Kiril Georgiev from Bulgaria who is more senior and mature than me. I had stage fright at that time. I actually had the chance to beat him but my nervousness screwed [everything] and I lost easily,” he said in a press conference in Jakarta on Tuesday.

“While in 2011, I faced Lê Quang Liêm of Vietnam, who at that time was also on fire and had a higher Elo rating than me. I managed to steal a half point despite losing the entire round,” added the 31-year-old, who earned the World Cup spot after winning the eastern Asian Zonal 3.3 Chess Championship in Ulaanbaatar in April.

For the 2019 edition, Susanto, who now has an Elo rating of 2550, has prepared some strategies to break through the wall to reach the second round as this will be his main initial target. GM Utut Adianto is still the only Indonesian who has managed to progress to the cup’s second round.

However, it will be heavy going for Susanto to realize his ambition as he will face top player GM Sergey Karjakin of Russia in the first round. Despite never playing against the Russian before, the Indonesian is aware that Karjakin is not an easy opponent.

Karjakin, 29, has been hailed as a chess prodigy for his unique maneuvering ability. He is still the youngest player to hold the GM title as he qualified for the title when he was 12 years and seven months old.

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