Anand left in the lurch

Last year, Kasparov invited Vladimir Kramnik of Russia and Alexie Shirov of Spain for a championship series. Shirov beat Kramnik and qualified to meet Kasparov in the final. But the title match never took off as Kasparov failed to find a sponsor.

This time around, it was Anand who was left in the lurch like Shirov last year, as Kasparov again could not come up with a sponsor for the match.

It is sad that Anand has hurt himself in the crossfire of the tussle between the Super Ks Karpov and Kasparov. If it wasmoney that Anand was after, then he has been cheated; if it was fame that he was seeking by playing Kasparov, then he has been fooled.

Kasparov8217;s recent track record, off the board, has reflected his inability to meet his commitments. He launched the the Grand Masters Association and later the Professional Chess Association which flourished for a while before tapering off; and now, the World Chess Championship has been virtually a non-starter.

Anand8217;s mental block against Kasparov the player was not only limited to the 64 squares. He was always over-awed by the Russian and seemed to have believed that Kasparov was invincible. Anand also suffered in the PCA match in New York where Kasparov unleashed all his tricks to outwit his rival. It is difficult to believe a good chess player like Anand was totally unaware of all these factors when he faithfully followed Kasparov8217;s dictate.

In contrast, World champion Alexander Khalifman, Liviu Nisipeanu and Vladimir Akopian the semifinalists in the Fide knockoutresponded to Kasparov8217;s uncharitable remark that the three GMs were only tourists.8217; They all challenged Kasparov8217;s right to make such a remark and shunned him for his unethical attitude.

Perhaps, Anand would have served his cause better by taking part in the recent FIDE World championship in Las Vegas, won the title there and then thrown a challenge to Kasparov for match.

Such a move would have probably moved the FIDE into joining the bandwagon and help its champion in getting sponsorship for this kind of a match.

Sasikiran sole leader

VUNG TAU CITY: Grandmaster normholder Krishnan Sasikiran continued his brilliant run with his third straight victory to emerge sole leader in the boys section of the Asian Junior Chess Championship here today. National A champion Sasikiran 3 beat Bangladesh8217;s Hossain Enamul 2 to be half-a-point clear of second-placed Laylo Darwin of The Philippines and Ehsan Ghaem Maghami Iran.

The third day of the championship, however, was not fully rewarding for theIndians as defending boys champion Tejas Bakre 1.5 and girls8217; top seed S Vijayalakshmi lost after two successive wins.

Selected results Round 3

Boys: K Sasikiran 3 beat Enamul Hossain 2; Laylo Darwin 2.5 drew Ehsan Ghaem-Maghami 2.5; Tejas Bakre 1.5 lost HA Rahman 1.5; Liang Chong 1.5 beat Ngugen Hoai Thach 1; Nguyen Si Sung 1 lost to Ngoc Thach Tran 2; Erwin Yulianto 0.5 lost to Nguyen Tranh Binh 1.5.

Girls: S Vijayalakshmi 2 lost to Wang Yu 3; Lim Jean Nie 1 lost to Le Kieu Thien Kin 2.5; Lomibao Joysherrie 1.5 lost to Pallavi Shah 2; Le Jhie Phong Lien 2 beat Lee Su Am 1; MR Sangeetha 1 lost to Nguyen Thi Dung 2; Dang Bich Ngoc 2 beat Bui Nhu My 1.5; Connie Constantine 2 drew Thi Ngoc Guao Chau 2.

Chennai, Kolkata share lead

NAGPUR: Chennai and Kolkata, with 9 points each, shared the lead at the end of the third round of Dart Computers 7th National Cities Chess Championship, being played here at the VBA Hall,today.

Mumbai 6.5 were at the second spot, while hosts Nagpur Chess Academy, Nagpur City and Chrompet 6 each shared the third position. Chennai, who faced overnight leaders Kolkata, emerged winners bagging 2.5 points. Kolkata managed 1.5 points, allowing Chennai to emerge joint leaders. FM T S Ravi8217;s fabulous win over Kolkata8217;s R Bandopadhaya proved vital for the Chennai team. The other three boards ended in fighting draws as the players opted to play it safe.

Mumbai struck form scoring an easy win over Kamptee to grab the second position. Nagpur City 6 defeated Vijaywada 3.5-0.5 to share the third spot with the hosts.

Results 3rd round: Chennai 9 bt Kolkata 9, Chrompet 6 dr NCA 6, Kamptee 3.5 lost to Mumbai 6.5, Vijaywada 2 lost to Nagpur City 3.5.