Check it, mate: Viswanathan Anand to Garry Kasparov

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Viswanathan Anand checkmated people calling for his retirement Sunday saying he will continue to play chess as long as he enjoys it.

“Why should I retire when I have just retained my world title? I am already looking forward to the defence of my title in a couple of years,” he said.

The fact that the five-time world champ is not ready to rest on his laurels is evident from the fact that he is scheduled to play a tournament in Romania at month-end.

Anand was not amused with Russian legend Garry Kasparov’s suggestion that he was past his prime and should retire.

“Kasparov is missing the limelight of being a player and it looks like he regrets retiring from the game. He retired in 2005 and he is trying to make me retire. He should have consulted me before asking for my retirement,” the Indian GM said.

World chess championships were the preserve of Russians for years before American genius Bobby Fischer broke the hegemony and later Anand stepped into the shoes of his favourite player.

Asked if his achievements deserved a Bharat Ratna, Anand said he would not canvass for himself.
Whether he would like to become a member of Rajya Sabha like batting icon Sachin Tendulkar, he said he would think about it as and when an offer comes.

Earlier, Anand thanked chief minister J. Jayalalithaa for the cash incentive of Rs 2 crore for winning the world title. “It is a wonderful gesture. She has always been encouraging sports.”

The world champ also heaped praised on Ms Jayalalithaa for introducing chess in schools. “We will see the next generation of chess players emerging from the state as a result of this excellent move,” he said.

‘Morale has soared high’

The five-time world chess champion spoke about the turning point in the recent world championship, the role of seconds and advantages of teaching chess to schoolchildren while also congratulating his opponent Boris Gelfand for his camaraderie.

Excerpts:

After winning five world championship titles, you have nothing left to prove in chess? What is going on in your mind right now?

For me it is irrelevant as to how many world titles I have won. If you want to defend the title, you need to do it again. I want to do it again and again. There is no thought of retirement. In fact, after the Gelfand match, my morale has soared high. I want to play more chess. I want to win as many games as possible. There is no checklist.

How did you react to Russian president Vladimir Putin’s comment — “we’ve brought this on ourselves by raising a champion” — when you told him about your childhood connection with the Soviet Union and how you developed your game at the Tal Chess Club in Chennai?

Well, we laughed. We thought it was a very witty line. The meeting took place for 30 minutes and the president treated Gelfand and myself equally. We were surprised to see him talk about chess and discuss the intricacies of our match. He followed the series.

Did the adverse comments made by Garry Kasparov affect your concentration during the series? How did you try to shut such talks out of your system?

In general, I tried not to read any magazine or chess website. I was in a state of bubble. My seconds will go through comments and give only technical information to me. But inevitably, I found out something was wrong, when I was asked for my comments during press conferences. It seems that Kasparov wants media attention.

Can you tell us something about your opponent Boris Gelfand who was born in Belarus? Did he benefit from playing in Moscow?

Gelfand definitely has roots there. He is a nice guy. He has incredibly loyal school friends, studied there, and lived there. A product of Soviet school of chess, he has interacted with great chess legends including Botwinnik and Spassky. Moscow is very much his hometown. Inevitably he got more support, but I also got good support.

Can you give a brief account of the match against Gelfand? How well prepared was he for the series?

Gelfand was one step ahead of me in the series. He always caught me off guard. He kept surprising me and it was very difficult to predict what he would do next. The positional set up in the first four games was new to me. But it was not a one-way game. I also came up with novelties at crucial junctures to gain initiative and with it the title.

Can you share with us the most crucial game and how you felt before and after it?

The win in game eight was the crucial moment for me. After the loss in game seven, I couldn’t sleep. I thought I had blown up the match. I slept for only two hours and went for an early breakfast. Unusually, I slept for a few hours the following day.

In the meanwhile, we had also prepared a better line to counter Gelfand’s Grunfeld from game three. We also didn’t neglect other lines. Surprisingly he switched to Benoni in game eight and since I was well prepared, I also altered the variation by moving my knight to the queenside instead of the kingside. It probably surprised him.

Things began to develop fast and I liked my position with white. The pawn structure was better and I began to play confidently. But within a few moves, we had to make a critical plan and he blundered. It helped me get back to the game. To be able to equalise immediately was a huge plus. I was able to play the rest of the match peacefully.Very few chances were created in the series.

What do you think about tiebreak games and how the win in the second game happened to be the turning point of the series?

In fact, I reached a good position in the first game with black pieces and it gave me immense confidence to concentrate better. In game two, he managed to neutralise my novelty, but then to defend a difficult position was tough in time trouble. He made a mistake. It was a fluctuating game three and he could have easily equalised the score by winning it. But then, time pressure played havoc on his plans. After an attack of nerves, I managed to turn around in game four and retain the lead in the four-game rapid play-offs.

In general, the large section of public looked down on the spate of draws. Can you explain the heat generated behind the drawn results and which games were bitterly fought?

I have known Gelfand since 1985. He is a professional to the core, a disciplined player and a keen lover of the game. For the first time in his life, he played Grunfeld defence. He also followed up Sveshhnikov opening differently. He managed to set all dominant openings by side and came up with new lines.

I had to completely forget all lines and prepare quickly. We really had to catch up during the match. With white, we sort of managed to stay clear and control the match to a great level. Only in games 11 and 12, were we able to start breaking out.

While most of the games were drawn, we really had exciting chess played in game three, nine and 12. In the 12th game, I surprised him and he responded bravely with an unexpected pawn sacrifice. So, in all, the battle was over the board while we maintained camaraderie off it.

What role did the seconds play in such world championship matches?

First of all, workload in a match is huge. The seconds help you mange the workload. You cannot do it yourself. And in that way, they allow you to rest and recuperate during the match. For the third time in a row, five of us — grandmasters Peter Heine-Nielsen of Denmark, India’s Surya Sekhar Ganguly, Radoslav Wojtasek of Poland, Rustam Kasimdzhanov of Uzbekistan and Aruna have been working together. As a result, we have become a very close-knit team.

I think what I really like about them is their dedication to work. When there are some areas of concern, they will ask me not to worry, but then they would work through the night to find a solution. That gives you a certain kind of confidence. No matter what they do, they work like maniacs whenever necessary. They go to sleep at 5.30 am, wake up at 9 am and have breakfast with me and then explain the lines to me. So, that gives you a lot of support.

During the tiebreak games, we actually got to take two seconds with us. I took Kasimdzhanov and Heine-Nielsen. They gave me a summary of the lines that I could play in the next game and they also helped me calm down from the previous game. They can relate to what you do on the chessboard.

How has life been since Akhil was born 14 months ago?

When you have a child, emotionally it is a fantastic feeling. Obviously I missed Akhil during the three months of training and all through the championship. But then it has been great to experience fatherhood. That gives a kind of balance in life. I don’t know what Akhil will say.

Tamil Nadu government has introduced chess in school from this academic year. What do you think about it?

It is excellent for the future. Playing chess can be hugely beneficial to all. The game helps children develop certain skills that will be useful in all walks of life. I thank CM J Jayalalithaa for this great initiative.

Can you tell us something about your continuing relationship with NIIT?

It has been a very long association. We started in April 1999 and it is going on till date. The biggest initiative that we have started is the NIIT Mind Champions Academy in 2002. I am now excited to be part of this Turning Point Scholarship. Even in a long match when you prepare yourself for many months, the results often boil down to one or two things.

So everything hinges on the reaction and decision at that particular stage. So it is pertinent to learn as many skills as possible. In today's unfriendly economy and market place, you need more skills to have a successful career.