Tania Sachdev is no stranger to the camera. But never before has she been photographed as much as over the past couple of weeks in the city.
International Master Tania was one of the commentators at the world chess championship that came to an end on Friday.
“Though I have often been recognised in public in the past, nothing like this has happened to me ever,” says Tania.
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“For me, it has been a thoroughly enjoyable experience as a commentator on television,” she says. In a way, it was dream come true for the former Asian women’s champion.
“It has been one of my ambitions to be a television anchor,” says the New Delhi-based champion. “That I could do chess on television made it even more special.”
Tania admits she was a bit nervous on day one. “I wasn’t expecting to be part of the commentary team for such a huge match as this,” she says. “But I guess the nerves disappeared after the first day. And I could team up well with Lawrence Trent, with whom I shared the microphone.”
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She says she tried to keep it simple, without going too deep into analysis. “I wanted to engage with people who are not too seriously into chess,” she says. “You have to remember that it is not just professional players you are talking to when the broadcast is for a large audience. It was nice to be part of a fine commentary team that also included Grandmasters R.B. Ramesh and Susan Polgar. The feedback has been tremendous, especially on Twitter,” she says.
Tania is of course disappointed that Viswanathan Anand lost the title. “I was so distressed to see him lose the ninth game,” she says.
“I was hoping he would win it and come right back into the match. But, he has been a great champion, a great inspiration for all of us,” she says.