NEW DELHI: Former India player Robin Uthappa will be the face of the inaugural SOG Grandmasters Series' South 1 zonal finals, an initiative of the Skillhub Online Games Federation (SOGF), scheduled from December 18-19 in Bengaluru.

Along with Uthappa's presence and overwhelming response through their registrations for the online qualifiers of the southern zone championship, the tournament will celebrate exceptional talents and unearth mind sports athletes and promote excellence nationwide.

Over 55,000 players have signed up for free online pre-qualifiers of Indian Rummy Grandmasters (IRG) and Indian Chess Masters (ICM).

The top 125 from the total registered players, who played the Online Qualifiers for IRG and ICM, will travel to Bengaluru for the Zonal finals.

In addition, the Chess for the Blind event, organised by the All India Chess Federation for the Blind (AICFB), served as pre-qualifiers to the Indian Chess Masters for the Blind (ICMB), from which 16 top players have been shortlisted for the south zonal finals.

"Mind sports are truly unique in how they celebrate cognitive skills. The SOG Grandmasters Series is a remarkable platform that highlights the power of strategy, focus and mental resilience — qualities I deeply value both as a cricketer and as an advocate for mental well-being," Uthappa was quoted as saying in a media release.

The south 1 zonal finals will be a "phygital" experience, blending physical and digital formats under one roof.

The Bengaluru event will be followed by zonal finals in other zones, with the finalists — two each from chess for men and women, two from Chess for the Blind and six from online rummy in each zone — competing in the nationals in April next year.