Fans get the best of both worlds at the World championship

Matteo Mencarelli resigns against Viswanathan Anand, who planned to offer a draw

Matteo Mencarelli didn’t quite anticipate that little chat with Viswanathan Anand. When he resigned his game during the simultaneous display of chess given by the five-time World champion, he was told that he might have got a draw.

Mencarelli, who flew in from Sofia, was one of the fortunate 10 players who got to take on Anand at Resorts World Sentosa, the venue of the World chess championship. “Anand told me that he was planning to offer me a draw before I made a stupid move with my king earlier in the game,” says Mencarelli, who works for a think-tank focussing on the Middle East. “It was very kind of him to have said that and he has been a favourite player of mine.”

There are many who have travelled to Singapore to watch Ding Liren and D. Gukesh battle it out for the World title, like Stuart Currey from Hong Kong.

Cheng Liu and Ariel Wangho have come in from Shanghai, and would of course be happy to see their fellow-countryman Ding triumph. “But Gukesh is a very strong young player,” says Liu. “The match is exciting and we both are happy that we could play against Anand.”

Anand, who is also the FIDE deputy president, says the level of chess he encountered was quite high. “Good openings, defensive resources and all that I tried was to follow a strategy of wearing them down slowly,” he says. “I also was very impressed by the youth event that I went to for the prize-giving. I think something is starting in Singapore with regards to chess.”