Viswanathan Anand - The czar of 64 squares

India`s ranking world number one chess player Vishwanathan Anand became the game`s world champion winning the global tournament in Mexico. Anand replaced Vladimir Kramnik of Russia as champion, winning the tournament on points after tying a match with Hungarian Peter Leko on the 14th day of the contest, which he dominated from the start. The champion spoke with Himanshu Shekhar of Zeenews.com about his new crown, his rivalry with Kasparov, future-plans and his better half. Excerpts:

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Is Vishy happy with the reception he received in India? I can’t complain much about that. I am happy how things have turned out. I just met President Pratibha Patil and that in itself is quite a big thing. I don’t want to think on that lines any more. Which victory will you rate as the biggest or more close to your heart, wining the World Chess Championship or beating Gary Kasparov? Both, but beating Kasparov is closer to my heart. Winning the unified chess championship in itself is great but I just can’t forget how Kasparov reacted after losing- not even a handshake! But I can understand that as he lost even after gaining an edge. At the final in Mexico why did you chose to play safe and go for a draw were even though you were playing whites? As I was playing with whites so the advantage was with me. So instead of losing from that position I decided to play wise. I had waited for this moment for the last 5 years, living a quiet dream. It was hurting me the most. So I badly needed this championship. How difficult is it to maintain yourself at the top for such a long period? It is a challenge. I have played for over a decade now and things or strategies today change at a rapid pace. You cannot milk one good move or strategy for more than two or three matches. There are computers where every move of yours gets discussed and studied. So as a player one has to work out new plans and moves to carry on the good work. Whom do you rate as the country’s most promising talent or, shall we say, the next Vishwanathan Anand? Well there are a few promising talents; Parimarjan is playing lot of tournaments, Harika is one name you can look out for and Harikrishna is also in the reckoning. Any name you will single out? Harika. Are you satisfied with the way chess is managed in this country? Well there is lot of improvement. More and more young kids are taking to the game today than it used to be in my time. So that is quite encouraging. However, management is some thing that I should not comment on as the scope of improvement remains, like in any other field. Now that you have got the crown, is there anything else that you would want professionally? I wish if Kasparov comes from politics and we can start that rivalry. I miss Kasparov. I wish he was back. Will you rate Kasparov- Anand rivalry as Nadal- Federar rivalry? Well, interesting. Yes I do enjoy watching both of them play. They are great ambassadors of their game. Rivalry, until it is not personal, is great. However to renew Kasparov-Anand rivalry I will have to join politics! Any such plans? (Laughs) No plans to join politics for now… What has been Aruna’s (his wife) contribution to your success? Well she makes sure that I do not get distracted with any other thing during tournaments. Often she advises me when I lose and when I am in no mood to listen to any advice (laughs). Actually, I only recollect her advice after forty moves (laughs). She has been with me through my good and bad times and often her one-liners clear my doubt but I normally don’t let her know that! What sort of fitness exercise you follow? I do work out. I go to gym for an hour. (Aruna intervenes, “But not before I remind him!”) Any plans to get six-pack abs like SRK? (Laughs) I have seen him in his new look but I liked the earlier look. I go to gym to keep myself fit and that is it. What other sports do you follow? Football is one thing which you have to live with in Madrid. I follow Champions League and Spanish League. Tennis comes second. Any immediate goals? Winning the next tournament! The very process to better yourself is a goal. I told young kids who played with me today to keep looking for better moves in the game and in life and that’s true for every body. Thank you for your time and congratulations once again for giving India a rare World Champion? Thank you.