Indian chess grandmaster and former World Chess Champion Vishwanathan Anand and Indian cricketer Yuzvendra Chahal have raised Rs 8.8 lakh crore through an online chess event for waste picker’s community fighting the coronavirus pandemic.
The Chess.com organised Chess for Charity on Saturday evening. Team of Vishwanathan Anand, India no 2 Vidit Gujrathi, Grandmaster Nihal Sarin, Woman Grandmaster Tania Sachdev and Croatia’s Antonio Radic played against team of comedians comprising Biswa Kalyan Rath, Tanmay Bhat, Samay Raina, Abhishek Upamanyu and Aakash Mehta.
Yuzvendra Chahal also took part in the event, along with women’s chess player Koneru Humpy and D Harika.
Chahal is a former under 12 chess champion, and he had an interesting conversation with Vishwanathan Anand.
“Do you ever think in chess terms before bowling to different batsmen/on different conditions?” Anand asked Chahal.
“In chess, every move you make is dependent on possible outcomes. You always have to be a step ahead of your opponent. In cricket, too, you’ve won half the battle if you can anticipate your opponents’ move. I think I carry that skill from my years of playing chess and apply it whenever I’m bowling to different batsmen,” Chahal replied.
“Finally, I’ve been a huge fan of yours, when am I getting a selfie with you?” Chahal asked.
“Thank you for your questions. It’s really nice to get questions from a cricketer who understands chess. I’d love to do the selfie the first chance we get. As soon as I fly back home, let’s get it done. Maybe over a game of chess. I wish you the very best and I hope you’re playing a little bit of blitz during this lockdown period,” Anand concluded.
