With Chennai having made a mark by hosting international cricket, squash and tennis matches (amongst other sports), chess enthusiasts are now thrilled that the international chess championship is going to be held in namma city.
After all, it isn’t every day that you’ll get to see someone like Magnus Carlsen squaring off against Viswanathan ‘Vishy’ Anand in the latter’s backyard.
“It’s going to be really good fun to see what an international chess competition is like. To be honest, the regional ones have little recognition and the facilities are ordinary,” says sports enthusiast Ramananthan R, an accountant who makes it a point to attend most sporting events in South India. “This is a good move by the Chief Minister. She has given quite a hefty allocation so maybe the facilities and viewing galleries will draw in good crowds and give chess viewership a big boost,” he added.
M Mahalakshmi, who was recently crowned the Under-14 World Chess Champion in the girls’ category, is delirious with excitement. “It is great to know that the two are playing in Chennai. Finally, we will get to see their plays and how they play, in person,” she says. She feels that it is a godsend for her to have a chance to interact with such giants. Incidentally, she did have an earlier tryst with Viswanathan Anand, when he presented her the ‘Young Achiever’ Award for her achievements despite growing up in an economically subdued family. “I have never seen Carlsen, so I’m really looking forward to seeing him,” she says, a ring of excitement evident in her voice.
Sharing Mahalakshmi’s sentiment is another young chess player who has been crowned around the world in a litany of international sporting events, Monisha.
A four-time national championship winner, in addition to winning two golds and a bronze at Asian chess championships, and gold at the Commonwealth sporting events, Monisha feels that the match will make for an encounter to relish. “I am glad that the match will be taking place in Chennai.” For chess players this will be an opportunity to see whose style of play comes out on top during the five-game championship to be held in November, “While Anand is a master of the end-game, Carlsen tends to neglect his game opening. The encounter will really pit their skills against one another,” she explains.
So who’s she rooting for? Despite going gaga over the encounter and the chess champions, Monisha springs a surprise – apparently Garry Kasparov is her favourite chess champion.