'I think I should give Vishy a chance to improve': Kasparov playfully teases old rival Anand ahead of exhibition match

Former World Chess Champion Garry Kasparov takes a playful jibe at five-time World Champion Viswanathan Anand ahead of their highly anticipated exhibition clash in October’s Clutch Chess Series.

Looking ahead to their highly anticipated showdown, Kasparov cheekily suggested he might give Vishy an opportunity to better his record against him.

Kasparov to go easy on Vishy

“It’s entertaining. I think I should give Vishy a chance to improve our score!” Kasparov said during the live broadcast of the fifth round of the Sinquefield Cup tournament. “He’s playing very good chess and he’s very much in chess, I am not. But I’ll enjoy it. Let’s see if I manage against Vishy even if my chess preparation is almost non-existent,” Kasparov added.

Kasparov dominates their classical encounters with 15 victories compared to Anand’s 3 wins, alongside 30 drawn games. However, when it comes to the most recent meeting, it was the Indian who had the better of the Russian. Anand and Kasparov met at the 2021 Croatia Rapid and Blitz Tournament in Zagreb, where Vishy emerged triumphant.

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Kasparov on Gukesh’s world championship win

Besides commenting on his upcoming encounter with Vishy, Kasparov also turned his attention to India’s other world champion, D Gukesh.

Expressing thoughts on Gukesh’s World Championship victory over Ding Liren, Kasparov stated that it was a fair victory for the Indian, but despite that, he does not walk as the strongest player in the circuit, as that title belongs to Magnus Carlsen.

“Gukesh won fair and square but you can hardly call him the strongest player in the world. I don’t want to sound offensive but I think Magnus ended the era of classical world champions. Gukesh’s world championship title is very different. It’s still clear that Magnus is the strongest and Gukesh is yet to prove his superiority over others. Even players of his age category. The round 1 game against Praggnanandhaa at the Sinquefield Cup was very unimpressive. The rules are the rules and the games are the games,” Kasparov said.

Kasparov says the game has evolved and the world championship title is not the same as it was during the eras of Fischer, Karpov, himself, or Magnus.

“I’m sure there will be more excitement in the Candidates and the next world championship match. But I apologise. I have to apologise time and again. This is not exactly the title that I had or Karpov had or Fischer had or Magnus had,” Kasparov added.