Niharika steals show

MUMBAI, Seot 13: Niharika Thakkar is the new U-16 girls inter-school chess champion. She claims she knows 4,44,444 Sardarji jokes! And un...

MUMBAI, Seot 13: Niharika Thakkar is the new U-16 girls inter-school chess champion. She claims she knows 4,44,444 Sardarji jokes! And unlike most chess players, who look very serious, she is non-stop fun when you sit down to talk with her. 8220;Chess is my career. Other games I play are for fun. I want to be another Vishwanathan Anand. I lose to my brother Sameer at home but beat him in tournaments. I like to play chess because it does not involve any physical exercise. I do not like playing against my computer 8212; I always win. I believe in God but do not believe in ghosts, though I dreamt of skeletons once. My father is going to buy the Fritz 5 software, it has 3,33,333 games.8221;

At 10, the standard V Lady Vissanji Academy student is the youngest girl to win the U-16 title. But her prodigious talent was already laid bare when she became the youngest player to qualify, and win, the Bombay Chess Association entrants title last month. 8220;Youngest means I was 9,8221; Niharika says unassumingly. Though she lost todefending champion Yogita Yevle in Round 8 today, Niharika was declared winner on better progressive scoring.

Her performance overshadowed the efforts of Akash Khalwadekar St Stanislaus School and Ameya Karandikar Parle Tilak Vidyalaya, who won the Mumbai Schools Sports Association boys U-14 and U-16 titles at the University Sports Pavilion today. Akash, who is just 10, shares Niharika8217;s inner urge to win. Asked if he could beat Niharika, he replied, 8220;You can defeat anybody, if you have the practice.8221; Even Anand? 8220;It is not easy, but it is possible,8221; said Akash bravely.

Final StandingsU-14 boys: 1. Akash Khalwadekar Stanislaus 2. Mahesh Rewaskar Gokuldham 3. Jatin Ramanathan Gokuldham 4. Sameer Thakkar Lady Vissanji 5. Varun Dattani Cathedral 6. Kabir Malhotra CathedralU-16 boys: 1. Ameya Karandikar Parle Tilak 2. Nikhil Bhat Xavier8217;s, Fort 3. Vispy Pardiwala Bombay Scottish 4. Raj Parak Gokhale 5. Ninad Pandit Joseph, Orlem 6. A Siddharth Bombay Scottish

U-16 girls: 1.Niharika Thakkar Lady Vissanji 2. Priyanka Vora JB Vachha 3. Yogita Yevle Parle Tilak 4. Purva Variya Gokuldham 5. Swarali Thipsay Joseph8217;s, Bandra 6. Priyanka Khalwadekar Joseph, Bandra.