Wishing Vishy Anand streak of wins; when Carlsen came close to losing !!! - 8th game drawn..

Sachin hogged all the limelight in the Test at Wankhede ~ the result of which as almost lost in SRT 200 bash…. The great batsman Sachin Tendulkar was immediately conferred ‘Bharat Ratna’…. He is quoted as saying that he wants to light up homes that have no electricity…. Few months backs the icon and Schneider Electric came together in a project to provide cheap, efficient and eco-friendly electrification in the rural areas in the country.

After so many records in his name, perhaps the most no. of farewell parties is getting added.  Far way in the Britain's House of Commons a motion congratulating cricket maestro Sachin Tendulkar on his magnificent career was moved  by Indian-origin MP Keith Vaz, who  stated that Tendulkar has served as an inspiration for millions around the world and recognised his selfless dedication to the sport. With the most coveted Bharat Ratna opened up for the sportspersons – it is imperative that Dhyan Chand and great Vishwanathan Anand are also honoured.  Anand announced his arrival among the best chess players by winning the World Junior Championship in 1987 at the age of 17 and his collection of world titles is impressive and thus far unmatched.  He has won the World Chess Championship five times (2000, 2007, 2008, 2010, 2012), and has been the undisputed World Champion since 2007. Anand was the FIDE World Rapid Chess Champion in 2003, and is widely considered the strongest rapid player of his generation. 

At Chennai, things are not alright for the reigning champion Viswanathan Anand (43) facing  22-year-old Magnus Carlsen of Norway—nicknamed the "Mozart of Chess" because of his meteoric rise at such a young age.  The FIDE World Chess Championship Match ( FWCM) is the final event of the World Championship cycle; the winner of the FWCM 2013 will be declared World Champion for the period 2013-2014.

In the 7^th match I was pained to read reports that ‘Anand manages a draw’ ~ the game took about two hours;  was a 32 move draw because the same position was repeated 3 times. Not a very interesting game. Magnus is now ahead 4.5 to 2.5, with 6.5 required to win the match. Anand is yet to win a game and there are 5 games left.  The back to back losses might prove too costly for the defending champion. 

Have earlier posted on Chess commentary ~ Susan Polgar, Hungarian-American chessGrandmaster is one in the panel. She is an Olympic chess champion, a chess teacher, coach, writer and more. Susan was  a child prodigy at chess, the first female to earn the grandmaster title through tournament play and at 15 became the top ranked women player in the World in July 1984.   In an interview to IANS she is quoted as saying that the board game could be made into major spectator sport with slight changes in the format, holding more promotional events and even cheerleaders !.  she said  “Chess has all the drama and excitement to be a spectator sport. I believe that with a slight change in format it could be made a major spectator sport, fit for playing in a big stadium and not in hotels.”

Getting back to the game, the challenger Carlsen is not just one of  the best chess players on the planet – he’s also been voted one of the sexiest men alive. The UK edition of the women’s magazine Cosmopolitan published a list of the “Sexiest Men of 2013″ and amongst the actors, singers and assorted other celebrities is the world’s #1 ranked chess player. Carlsen has done some modelling before for the Dutch designer clothing company.

Read this sensational news in the blog of Susan Polgar that ‘Anand was 14 seconds away from winning game 7’…. The post states that there was a situation which could have made headline news at the start of game 7 between Anand and Carlsen. However, it is not widely reported. Her post details the happening inlaid with photos and description of the timeline….

It starts stating that at 2: 54:25 pm, Anand arrived at his chair and was  served tea by one of the hotel staff. At 2:57:26 pm, Carlsen emerged from the backroom rest area. At 2:58:52 pm, Carlsen looked at the monitor for the starting time. It showed a 1 min 08 second remaining on the countdown clock. He decided to get up and went to the restroom. The rule is if he is not seated before 3:00 pm, he would be forfeited. 

At this time, the chief arbiter nervously looked at the monitor and his watch. He confirmed to me (Polgar) that he was very nervous as he did not want to forfeit any player. However, he said that he would have no choice if Magnus is not seated timely.  Seconds later, Carlsen once again emerged from backroom, arrived in his chair and at 2:59:46 pm, Carlsen sat down on his chair. He avoided the game 7 forfeit by 14 seconds!

Wishing that Vish Anand starts winning streak from Game 8 and retains the World Championship.

That was not to be !!!!

Today, an hour ago, the eighth game of the FIDE World Championship Match, finished in draw after 33 moves of play.

The challenger and world’s top rated player Magnus Carlsen changed his opening strategy and went for 1.e4 this time. The defending champion Viswanathan Anand echoed Carlsen’s repertoire and defended with Berlin Ruy Lopez, to the surprise of everyone ~ though the result was not the surprise or to liking of us……

With regards – S. Sampathkumar

19^th Nov 2013

With inputs from : IANS, Firstpost and Susan Polgar’s blog.~ photo courtesy : Susan Polgar blog