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Anand readies for battle of the giants

Vishwanathan Anand may have gotten away easy when he met Anatoly Karpov a couple of weeks ago. He trounced the FIDE champion 5-1 in their 'Advanced Chess' encounter, but then, Karpov is not the computer whiz that Anand is.

This week, things get tougher as Anand sits down to battle three giants of the 64-squared board. His opponents are the three Ks -- Kasparov, Karpov and Kramnik, and they don't get bigger than that.

The 'Giants Category' of this year's Frankfurt Chess Classic, which is slated for June 29-July 2, will see the four sit down in round robin format, with each player taking on his three opponents in rapid chess. Further, each player will play each of his opponents twice, thus upping the ante further.

A huge draw for the Frankfurt Classic is the fact that the two titans, Kasparov and Karpov, will be facing each other after nearly three years. Their last encounter was in 1996, and the two have been avoiding each other diligently ever since. Since both claim to be the world champion, their encounter automatically assumes huge importance.

Each of Anand's encounters with the other grandmasters will be interesting for different reasons. Kramnik is continuing a run of over thirty undefeated games, an amazing record in modern day top-level chess. It will be interesting to see if Anand or any of the others manage to squeeze a win out of Kramnik. No easy task, given Kramnik's defensive, draw-oriented style of play.

The Anand vs. Karpov games are interesting for two reasons. The first is to see if Anand can also subdue Karpov in an old-fashioned over the board encounter. And the second is that by winning, Anand can cast doubts into everyone's minds regarding the value of Karpov's title of World Champion (FIDE).

The Anand-Kasparov encounters will be a psychological battle, in preparation for their Ultimate World Chess Championship (UWCC) games. Should Anand defeat Kasparov, it will be an unbelievable boost for his confidence. There is also sure to be an undercurrent of probing, where each player tries to test the other's preparation for the UWCC games to follow in October.

At the conclusion of the 'Giants' category, Anand will play four games with the Chess program Fritz, on July 3rd and 4th. This is being billed as a 'revenge' match since Anand lost in his previous encounter with Fritz, but is expected to win this one.

Anand is a big favourite with the Frankfurt chess crowds -- as indeed he is with the chess public around the world. There is enormous expectation here, that he will continue his domination of this event as he has done the past years.

And Anand himself will be keenly aware of what is at stake in this tournament. And determined to prove that his 5-1 demolition of Karpov was no fluke.

RELATED REPORT:
Chess giants for Frankfurt Classic