The most consistent individual champion from India at the
global level is a man who wears his genius behind his thin spectacle frames and
buttoned-down garb. But rarely does Viswanathan Anand get the mass adulation an
international sporting sensation deserves.
Part of the problem lies in the fact that chess is an
impenetrable sport. Your adrenaline kicks in as Bolt scorches to the finish
line. Your appreciation for the sense of beauty is on the ascent when you
witness a Laxman cover drive. And you sit back in awe as Federer produces that
gobsmackingly awesome drop volley. In Anand’s case, the spectator cannot feel
such aesthetics. Although, you wish you could. You wish you could decipher the
thousands of calculations running in his head. The geometry of moves planned. Or,
the salacious strategy that foxes his opponent.
For most of us who think Ruy Lopez is a new soccer sensation
in the Spanish League or Queen’s Gambit is the Queen’s thoughts on Brexit,
Viswanathan Anand and the game he so brilliantly plays will always remain an
enigma. The only way this could be reversed is to take the game to the
grassroots – to schools, where it becomes part of the curriculum. It’s the
least we can do to help the younger generation imbibe the intricacies of the
game. And make a man like Vishy Anand proud.
