Anand haunted by 'ghosts of past', says Kasparov after winning 'Clutch Chess': 'His score against me historically is bad'

Garry Kasparov claimed Viswanathan Anand had been haunted by “ghosts of the past” after defeating him in ‘Clutch Chess: The Legends’ event in St. Louis, USA on Friday. Kasparov had built up an 8.5-3.5 lead over Anand across the first two days and gained an unassailable 13-5 lead on the third and final day, clinching the title as well as the lion’s share of the prize money – $70,000 plus $8,000 in bonus money.

It was a dominant victory for the Russian Grandmaster as he clinched the title without letting his opponent win a single game. Anand, however, ensured that the three-day affair at the Saint Louis Chess Club would not be a completely lopsided affair by winning the last two blitz games on the final day, resulting in the three-day showdown ending in a 13-11 scoreline.

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The final score of Clutch Chess: The Legends!
After an incredible fight, Garry Kasparov finishes with 13 points and Viswanathan Anand with 11.
A historic showdown between two legends in chess history! Thank you to both players for this unforgettable match! ♟️#KasparovAnand… pic.twitter.com/4l0970bqXY

— Saint Louis Chess Club (@STLChessClub) October 10, 2025

The showdown between Kasparov and Anand, who have been world champions six times and five times respectively, took place three decades after their face-off on top of New York City’s World Trade Center for the Classical World Chess Championship.

Kasparov insists he was ‘more resilient’ than Anand expected

Kasparov had won that battle, which was organised by the defunct Professional Chess Association, with a 10.5-7.5 scoreline. And reacting to his victory on Friday, the Russian GM – officially representing Croatia – took a jibe at his former rival by claiming that Anand’s track record against him “historically is bad”, and that the Indian chess legend was haunted by “ghosts of the past”.

Also Read | Kasparov stuns Anand with a pre-move as commentator goes crazy: ‘Did you see that?’

“Luck is luck, but I tried—I tried to make sure luck would be with me!” Kasparov was quoted by Chess.com as saying after gaining an unassailable lead over Anand on Friday.

“I think I was more resilient than he expected. His score against me historically is bad, and I think it’s somehow probably the ghosts of the past visited him during the games,” he added.

My thanks to the Club and founder Rex Sinquefield, and congrats on their grand reopening. And to my old friend and rival Vishy, the buildings where we battled in 1995 are long gone and even the rules of the game were different, but we are still here! https://t.co/qIwbugWawv

— Garry Kasparov (@Kasparov63) October 11, 2025

The three-day event was played in rapid and blitz time controls in the Chess960, a.k.a. FischerRandom format, with two rapid and as many blitz games taking place each day.

The points awarded for a victory and a draw, meanwhile, increased with each passing day - a win and a draw were worth 1 point and 0.5 points respectively on Day 1, 2 points and 1 point on Day 2 and 3 points and 1.5 points on Day 3.

Also Read | Anand opens up on clock blunder during Clutch Chess battle against Kasparov

The bonus money for each win also increased each day – $1,000 on Day 1, $2,000 on Day 2 and $3,000 on Day 3.

Had Anand held Kasparov to a draw in Game 10 on Friday, instead of losing in 40 moves while playing as white, he could have beaten Kasparov by a 10.5-9.5 scoreline instead of finishing two points short.