Online Rankings: Anant Purohit Storms to the Top This Week; Tarun Goyal Caps Off February Unbeaten & Keeps His POY Charge on Overdrive

In this feature, we bring you the top three weekly, monthly, and yearly performers every Sunday. These rankings are based on cumulative winnings (cashes). However, the rankings only include players registered to our online ranking system, so hurry up and register if you haven’t signed up on PokerGuru yet!

The online poker action isn’t just simmering; it’s a raging inferno! PokerBaazi’s ₹100 Crores GTD National Poker Series India 2025 is making it rain money, with almost ₹23 Crores (and 343 medals!) already changing hands in just the last seven days. The fight for those NPS medals and leaderboard glory has turned the Indian poker community into a pack of ravenous wolves, from the veterans who’ve seen it all to the ambitious up-and-comers, all clawing for a piece of this epic pie. And with Natural8 India’s big events also firing, it’s pure, unadulterated leaderboard chaos. And there is still much more to come.

But standing tall amidst the madness is the king: Tarun Goyal. Last year’s Player of the Year isn’t just sitting on his throne – he’s building a fortress around it. February belonged to him, and his yearly lead is so massive it’s almost comical. We’re talking about a February haul of ₹3.23 Crores and a year-to-date total of ₹3.51 Crores. This lead looks almost impossible to conquer, and we’re only two months in. Goyal’s deep runs on Natural8 India are becoming legendary, and the whispers of a back-to-back POY title are growing louder by the day.

Emerging as a serious threat, Tushar Bhartia is making some serious waves this year. He’s also cleaning up on Natural8 India, currently holding down the #2 spot for the year, and ended February in the same position. With ₹89.33 Lakhs in February and a colossal ₹97.14 Lakhs for the year, he is the only player even remotely within striking distance of the king. Keep an eye out because there are two other dangerous sharks in the Natural8 India waters, known only as ‘borntrouble‘ and ‘dontraiseplz,’ closing in on that ₹1 Crore annual earnings mark.

The top two from last year are shaping up to rule this year too. Anant Purohit, who crushed it in 2024 with a second-place POY finish, put on a clinic this week after an amazing February. He grabbed the top weekly earner title with a whopping ₹28.65 Lakhs. With ₹41.51 Lakhs, he was third in February and is now #3 on the yearly leaderboard with ₹86.09 Lakhs in total winnings.

Purohit might have stolen the weekly show, but Vikhyat Ahlawat is lurking a close second. Ahlawat scored two gold medals at the NPS India 2025, one in the NPS#12 Monday Marathon and then another in NPS#29 (7-Max) SPRINT. His weekly earnings boosted to ₹18.45 Lakhs. Advait Rajguru, another double NPS gold winner (NPS#32 (PLO-5) Megadive and NPS#48 Megadive), rounds out the weekly top three with ₹17.54 Lakhs.

Tarun Goyal: Untouchable? Maybe.

Tarun Goyal. The name alone should send shivers down the spines of his opponents. After a 2024 that saw him crowned Player of the Year with a record-smashing ₹12.39 Crores in winnings (and a jaw-dropping ₹10 Crores in profits), this WSOP bracelet winner isn’t resting on his laurels. He’s kicked off 2025 like a man possessed. A “solid” January (a mere ₹27.58 Lakhs) was just the warm-up. February was the explosion.

If five eight-figure scores in 2024 were not enough (all on Natural8 India), he hit a sixth one on the platform just a fortnight ago (becoming the first Indian to hit the mark this year) with a mind-blowing ₹3.54 Crores total haul! This incredible windfall came from a stunning final table run in Natural8 India’s GGMillion$ Main Event—a high-stakes clash with a hefty ₹10.30 Lakhs buy-in that drew a stacked field of 1,226 entrants. He fought his way to an eighth-place finish for a jaw-dropping ₹2.74 Crores, his second-largest career score after his monumental ₹5.05 Crores haul in the Mystery Millions Online 2750 in December. And because the poker gods clearly love this guy, he also flopped a royal flush at a $100/$200 All-in or Fold PLO cash table, pocketing an extra ₹79.83 Lakhs jackpot.

Goyal has now blown past the ₹3.50 Crores mark in annual winnings (and that is without including the cash game jackpot), with ₹3.51 Crores for the year and ₹2.77 Crores in straight-up profit. Closing February with a stunning ₹3.23 Crores in total winnings and ₹2.46 Crores in profits further reinforces his dominance, giving him the monthly crown. Already sitting at more than 3X the earnings of his closest competitor, Goyal’s numbers tell a story of complete and utter control over this year`s POY race.

Not only has he crushed both the monthly and annual leaderboards, but he is also making an undeniable case for back-to-back Player of the Year titles—a feat previously achieved only by poker legend Young Gun Gaurav Sood.

Tushar Bhartia: The Upstart With Eyes on the Prize

Every year, a new star rises. This year, that star is Tushar Bhartia. He arrived at Natural8 India in January, and it didn’t take him long to make his presence known.

But February was Bhartia’s coming-out party. He kicked things off with a deep run in the APL Green Snake Main Event, finishing eighth for a staggering ₹76.04 Lakhs. He followed that up with a fifth-place finish in the Bounty Hunters Big Game 215, adding another ₹7.10 Lakhs to his growing pile.

These two phenomenal scores have Bhartia sitting comfortably at #2 in the POY race, with ₹97.24 Lakhs in annual earnings – ₹79.92 Lakhs of that in profits. He made most of that in February – ₹89.33 Lakhs to be precise (₹73.83 Lakhs in profits), landing him the #2 spot in the monthly standings.

Sure, Tarun Goyal is in a different galaxy right now, but there are whispers of other Natural8 India crushers, the mysterious ‘borntrouble’ and ‘dontraiseplz,’ also hovering around the ₹1 Crore annual earnings milestone. The hunt is on.

Anant Purohit: Unleashing a Poker Storm!

Anant Purohit is less like a tsunami and more like a controlled demolition – methodical, powerful, and leaving nothing but rubble in his path! After that near-miss last year, finishing #2 in the 2024 POY race, this poker veteran didn’t just enter the new year; he charged into it.

After a third-place finish on the January leaderboard, Purohit kept his foot on the gas in February. He was stacking chips and making deep runs like it was going out of style, then cranked it up to eleven in the third week, bagging a sixth-place finish in Natural8 India’s Bounty Hunters HR 525 for a tidy ₹9.48 Lakhs.

But that was just the appetizer. This past week, Purohit went full supernova. He didn’t just win; he crushed, racking in a head-turning ₹28.65 Lakhs (weekly profits – ₹23.54 Lakhs)– making him the week’s undisputed champion. This rampage bolstered his already strong February performance, where he piled up ₹41.51 Lakhs in total winnings (monthly profits – ₹27.30 Lakhs), landing him at #3 for the month, behind Tarun Goyal and Tushar Bhartia. Now, he’s sitting pretty at #3 in the overall POY rankings, with a war chest of ₹86.09 Lakhs (annual profits – ₹51.66 Lakhs).

Purohit’s 2025 highlight reel is already looking impressive: a big win in Natural8 India’s Zodiac Goat High Roller (₹12.69 Lakhs richer) and a near-victory in PokerBaazi’s NPS#26 (7-Max) Championship, walking away with a Silver Medal and ₹9.44 Lakhs. Purohit isn’t just playing; he’s sending a message. He’s got the skills, the experience, and a burning desire to claim that POY crown. And judging by his current form, he’s going to make things very interesting.

The 2025 POY Race: Buckle Up!

The POY leaderboard is a shark tank, and the usual suspects are circling. Advait Rajguru, riding high on a killer week, has blasted his way to #4 with a yearly haul of ₹81.59 Lakhs (annual profits – ₹59.41 Lakhs). Rajat Sharma, who ruled January, has slipped a couple of notches to #5, but he’s still packing heat with ₹75.28 Lakhs (annual profits – ₹48.93 Lakhs). And don’t count out Rajneesh Thakur, who’s quietly climbed to #6 with ₹64.65 Lakhs in winnings (annual profits – ₹29.09 Lakhs). This top order is stacked, dangerous, and hungry. It’s shaping up to be a race that’ll make last year’s record-breaking battle look like a warm-up.

February’s Other Notable Hustlers

February wasn’t just about the top dogs; plenty of other players were making noise. Rajneesh Thakur kept his hot streak going, finishing the month at #4 with a solid ₹39.22 Lakhs (monthly profits – ₹22.34 Lakhs). Close behind, Advait Rajguru piled up ₹37.21 Lakhs (monthly profits – ₹27.45 Lakhs) – good for fifth place. Meanwhile, Saransh Garg made his presence known, grabbing the #6 spot with ₹26.90 Lakhs (monthly profits – ₹15.93 Lakhs).

Vikhyat Ahlawat: Double Gold, Double Trouble!

Vikhyat Ahlawat didn’t just climb to #2 for the week; he exploded onto the scene with a pair of Gold Medals at the NPS India 2025. He conquered both the NPS#12 Monday Marathon and the NPS#29 (7-Max) SPRINT, becoming the first player to pull off that double-header in this series. This golden performance translated into a hefty ₹18.45 Lakhs in total winnings for the week, with ₹11.63 Lakhs in profit.

And Ahlawat isn’t just collecting medals; he’s taking over the leaderboards. He’s now leading the charge on the National Poker Champion (India) Leaderboard with 20 points, knocking PokerBaazi Team Pro Zarvan Tumboli off the top spot. He’s also widened his lead on the Uttar Pradesh State Leaderboard, jumped to #5 in the PokerBaazi 2025 POY race, and is sitting comfortably at #6 on the NPS Series Leaderboard.

Advait Rajguru: The Bengaluru Beast Roars Again

Advait Rajguru is the kind of player who, once he gets momentum, is like a freight train – unstoppable. And he delivered a performance to remember, becoming the second player to snag double gold at the NPS India 2025 after Ahlawat.

First, he outplayed the field in the NPS#32 (PLO-5) Megadive, adding a third NPS Gold medal to his collection. Then, this Bengaluru-based poker shark (who, let’s not forget, finished an incredible #5 in the 2024 POY race) demolished the NPS#48 Megadive. That’s ₹17.54 Lakhs in weekly winnings and a sweet ₹12.87 Lakhs in profit.

Rajguru’s impact isn’t confined to a single leaderboard. He’s now the king of the Karnataka State Leaderboard, sits just a hair behind Ahlawat at #2 on the NPC (India) Leaderboard and has muscled his way to #6 on the overall NPS Series Leaderboard. Plus, he’s currently leading the pack on PokerBaazi’s 2025 POY Leaderboard.

More Weekly Fireworks

This week was full of big scores, and these players are proof. Rising Star Ritwik Khanna made a splash, landing at #4 with ₹16.59 Lakhs (weekly profits – ₹11.53 Lakhs). Ashish Munot wasn’t far behind, claiming #5 with ₹14.90 Lakhs (weekly profits – ₹10.87 Lakhs). PokerBaazi Team Pro Zarvan Tumboli, never one to be ignored, added ₹13.91 Lakhs to his bankroll (weekly profits – ₹7.19 Lakhs). And rounding out the top six, Anshul Rajput grabbed a hefty ₹13.67 Lakhs (weekly profits – ₹10.94 Lakhs).

This week was a reminder that anyone can catch fire at any time. And with the NPS India 2025 running, the dynamics can change quickly!

Weekly Online Rankings (February 23 – March 1)

Monthly Online Rankings (February 1 – 28)

Yearly Online Rankings (January 1 – February 28)

For a complete list of online rankings, check out our ‘Leaderboards’ page. If your name is not on our list, register and enter your screen names into your account to get ranked!