Being Anand’s second helped me

Being Anand’s second helped me: Ganguly
Wednesday, Jun 03, 2009

KOLKATA: Grandmaster Surya Shekhar Ganguly attributed his recent success in chess to his association with World champion Viswanathan Anand.

“I gained the insight and confidence of winning in a big stage by seeing Anand’s games from close,” Ganguly, who acted as the second of Anand in the World Championship against Vladimir Kramnik, said after arriving here on Tuesday.

Ganguly won the Asian Continental championship at Subic Bay, The Philippines, last month. The title also earned him a ticket to the World Chess Cup in Khanty Mansiysk, Russia, which will be held later this year.

“Being Anand’s second gave me the chance to see how champions play and prepare at the highest level. That helped in reshaping my approach to chess,” said Ganguly.

He added that he skipped many tournaments to prepare for the continental event. “I am grateful to (GM) Sandipan (Chanda), who gave me good practice ahead of the tournament,” he said.

The Asian champion said that he has received a congratulatory e-mail from Anand’s wife Aruna, who sent it on behalf of the World champion who was busy in another tournament.

Biggest challenge

Ganguly said he faced the biggest challenge in the penultimate round of the tournament when The Philippines’ GM Antonio Rogelio Jr. offered to play a draw before the match.

“I was focused on the title and so did not accept Antonio’s offer. I went for a straight win against him and succeeded in doing that,” he said.

Ganguly added his focus now would be on doing well in the World event, which is due in later part of the year.

“I’ll be playing in tournaments in Canada in July and in Spain in September and keep myself free for preparations in October before the big event,” he said.

Source: http://www.hindu.com