Won't be surprised if Anand vs Carlsen World Chess match goes to 6-6 and tie-breaker fight: GM P Harikrishna

Harikrishna

World Chess Championship 2013 GM interview – Former Indian national chess champion Grandmaster P Harikrishna feels Viswanathan Anand‘s biggest quality is his adaptability and as the rounds progress, he would get used to the pressure. GM Harikrishna spoke to Indian Express:

It is a battle between two different generations. Carlsen currently is the world No 1 in ranking and he is in good form with many tournament victories. On the other hand, Anand is a seasoned campaigner. He has won the last three world championship matches against Vladimir Kramnik (2008), Veselin Topalov (2010) and Boris Gelfand (2012). For Anand, this match is more important than the previous ones.

He might feel a bit of pressure in the initial rounds. However, as the match progresses, he will get used to it. It is hard to predict what his approach will be in this match. But Anand has one of the best qualities that is adaptability. I have seen him using different approaches for different opponents. He has played Carlsen in many tournaments and I’m sure he is aware which strategy to take against him. If we look at Anand’s tournament performances in the last five years, we can see a big difference in his approach.

Carlsen tries to win every single game. He can play many openings as he can grasp very quickly the nuances of any position. So this makes him highly unpredictable. He can choose any opening on the morning of the game and play it as if he has studied it for months. In fact, I won’t be surprised if it is 6-6 and they fight it out in the tie-breaker. The mental battle will be limited to the openings, strategy and other things related to the game and nothing else.

* Opinions by Grandmasters