‘This six-year-old chess ‘prodigy’ will amaze you’

Tinashe Kusema

THERE are several things that separate young Panna Saruchera from the ordinary six-year-old.

For starters, she is by far the most courteous six-year-old you will ever meet, as she literally greets every person she meets with a bright smile saying, “Hello. How do you do?”

Then, she was able to separate her queen’s gambit from her benko gambit before she could recite her ABCs.

And, while most young girls her age are playing with dolls and singing along to the latest nursery rhymes, the youngest of the Saruchera clan already knows what she wants to be when she grows up.

“I want another gold medal, and I want to be a grandmaster,” said Saruchera.

The word prodigy has been used to descibe her, but her aunt and custodian, Gamuchirai Biri, hesitates to use it.

“Getting her tested (intelligence) is not really on the books right now, we just want her to enjoy being a kid, and nurture her chess skills.

“Maybe, when she is older,” said Biri.

The lives of Biri and Saruchera have been intertwined even since the birth of the latter.

“Her parents (Grace and George Saruchera) have very demanding jobs, which requires them to travel abroad a lot. I have taken care of Panna and her two older siblings, Patrice and Perry, since birth.

“I was there when young Panna first showed interest in chess, as a three-year-old.

“We were waiting for one of her older brothers to finish school and came across Malvin Chidzonga, who had just finished a chess lesson at David Livingstone Primary School.

‘I think the colours on the board he was carrying attracted her.

“She asked if she could take a closer look and Malvin (Chidzonga) obliged.

“The two had a long chat, during which, I think he took her through the basics.

“All I remember is that after that chat, she was hooked and begged me and her parents to buy her, her own board.

“Chidzonga followed up on their chat; and once we found out that she had both a knack and interest for the sport, he decided to coach her,” she said.

Saruchera picked up on the basics very fast and soon began to compete.

Unfortunately, there are not too many kids her age that play chess, so, she has been forced to play against people much older than her almost every time.

In the three years since she began competing competitively, Saruchera has mesmerized seniors. She has also made a couple of nine and twelve-year-olds cry.

ln fact, she has caught the attention of everyone that she has come into contact with. She has played in the Insurance Chess League and the Twin Rivers Chess tournaments, where she garnered her first gold medal in 2017. She has also played in a couple of St Johns College and Gateway Chess tournaments.

Saruchera is on a scholarship at Avenues Primary School.

“She is one of my top students. I see great things in her future,” said her coach Chidzonga.

“We have played many tournaments now. She has come a long way, from that kid I met some years ago.

“Even then, she showed a high intellect, she grasped everything I taught her pretty fast.

“With time, she will learn how to concentrate more and control her emotions, even when things are not going her way. She certainly has the potential to become a grand master,” he said.