India Has Responded Well To The Situation, Says Anand

The chess maestro, stranded in Germany, speaks about the pandemic’s impact and foray into commentary

- P.K. Ajith Kumar

Viswanathan Anand should have been at home in Chennai now. Instead, he is in an apartment in Frankfurt.

The five-time World champion’s travel plans went haywire following the outbreak of the coronavirus. He had travelled to Germany to play in the Bundesliga chess.

Though he wasn’t playing, Anand had been kept busy by chess. He made his debut as a commentator during the Candidates chess tournament, the only high-profile sporting event taking place anywhere in the world till it was stopped on Thursday at the halfway mark at Yekaterinburg, as Russia decided to ground international flights.

In this exclusive interview, Anand tells The Hindu whether FIDE was right in going ahead with the Candidates (the tournament that will determine Magnus Carlsen’s challenger for the next World championship). He also speaks about life in Europe in the time of coronavirus, India’s response to the pandemic and the quality of chess on display at Yekaterinburg. Excerpts:

How is life in Germany and the rest of Europe in these hard times?