Tejas Bakre cannot stop admiring Chennai. Ahmedabad’s lone Grandmaster says he has always been in awe of the southern metropolis for its rich tradition in chess, but the World championship has increased his admiration even further.
“No other Indian city could have hosted the World championship better,” says Tejas, a former World youth and Asian junior champion. “I am glad I could be in Chennai for this great event. I could see posters while walking around the city and people here are talking about chess. In other cities, you would have to make people aware about chess; here, it seems to be in their blood.” Tejas says that as a player, it feels great to see so many people coming to Hyatt Regency and buying tickets to watch the game. “I like the atmosphere at the venue too; it is chess everywhere,” he says. “I think other cities in India could learn from Chennai, and Tamil Nadu, in general, about nurturing chess. You have many tournaments here, round the year. The last time I played here was during the National ‘A’ championship in 2008.”
Tejas, who has enjoyed some successes in tournaments in the United States recently, says he is impressed with the coverage of the World championship. “I have never seen newspapers giving a full page to chess, though The Hindu has always covered chess well.”
A tough battle
About the World championship, he says it would continue to be a tough battle. “Yes, it is a bit disappointing that both the games were drawn, but I am sure there would be more exciting games as the match progresses.” Tejas is hoping that at the end of it all, the crown would be still with one of Chennai’s greatest sons, Anand.
