At 45, chess wizard Viswanathan Anand still hungry for success

Age is no bar for 45-year-old five-time chess champion Viswanathan Anand, at least for now. In fact, the chess wizard is looking forward to playing more games.

Age is no bar for 45-year-old five-time chess champion Viswanathan Anand, at least for now. In fact, the chess wizard is looking forward to playing more games.

Vishwanathan-Anand-plays-chess-with-Daly-College-students-in-Indore-on-Sunday-Shankar-Mourya-HT-photo

"I am still hungry for success. I am preparing to play more tournaments in the coming year," said Anand, while addressing media and students after inaugurating the MathLab Impact study at Daly College in Indore on Sunday.

Anand, who became India’s first grandmaster at the age of 18 in 1988, said he never thinks of opponents’ rankings or their age. "My only focus is on making the right move," Anand replied to a school student's query on how he manages to handle pressure of rankings.

"I used to practice on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday evenings and spend the remaining time on study," the wizard replied to another student on how he managed both chess and studies simultaneously during schooling.

Anand, who started playing chess at the age of six, qualified for the World Championship Candidates' match in 1991 when he was 22.

Ask him what keeps him motivated and how he manages to make a strong comeback, and the legend said: "I always try to forget previous debacles and start afresh in every tournament."

The chess maestro also likes to play table tennis and badminton. He said he is happy to see the number of youngsters, particularly schoolchildren, taking interest in chess. "It will help students perform better in academics also. Chess enables students to memorise and strategise things better," said Anand.