CHENNAI: Fresh after winning the World Rapid title, Viswanathan Anand will be looking to continue his rich vein of form at the Tata Steel Masters, which starts in Wijk aan Zee, The Netherlands, on Saturday. World champion Magnus Carlsen, American No 1 Fabiano Caruana, defending champion Wesley So, former World champion Vladimir Kramnik and Azerbaijan No 1 Shakhriyar Mamedyarov are the other strong players competing in the 14-player, 13-round, round-robin tournament.
Winning in Riyadh should spur Anand to perform better in 2018, even though he will be playing in a different format (classical). The five-time world champion had mixed results in last year’s classical tournaments, finishing joint 2nd at the Sinquefield Cup and Isle of Man Open, while having below-par performances at the Norway Chess and London Chess Classic. Anand’s chances will depend on how well he starts, besides avoiding hiccups in the first half of the tournament. The other motivating factor for Anand is winning his sixth title, which will make him the most successful player. “I’m expecting a great performance from Anand,” said India GM Sundararajan Kidambi, when queried whether Anand can continue his Riyadh form.
Baskaran Adhiban scintillated on his debut last year, posting victories over Sergei Karjakin, Radoslaw Wojtaszek, Dmitri Andreikin and Richard Rapport. It will be a big challenge for the Indian to repeat his third-place finish from 2017. “Last year was great, but there were a couple of things stopping me in the beginning, which won’t stop me this time! I am looking forward to a fantastic tournament.”
“I am proud and honoured to be playing alongside Anand. I have been waiting for this moment a long time! I hope we both rock in this event,” said Adhiban.
Carlsen had a great year in rapid events, winning in Paris and Leuven, besides regaining his World Blitz title in the Saudi Arabian capital. The Norwegian also triumphed in the Isle of Man, one of the strongest Open tournaments. However, he couldn’t win a single classical round-robin tournament in five attempts, which is a rarity.
Indian chess on the rise is vindicated by the fact that two players will be taking part in the Challengers section also. Vidit Santosh Gujrathi gets the top billing. India No 1 women’s player Dronavalli Harika will be the other Indian in the fray.
80
This will be the 80th edition of the Tata Steel Chess in Wijk aan Zee.
INDIANS IN FRAY
Masters: V Anand, B Adhiban.
Challengers: Vidit Gujrathi, D Harika.