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Indian Grandmaster Viswanathan Anand has been the flagbearer of Chess in India for many decades now. In the latest development, Anand has stunned the world number 1 Magnus Charles in the 5th round of the Classical section on Monday in the Norway Chess tournament to secure the top spot.
Earlier, Anand outplayed Norwegian star in the Blitz event that preceded Classical section and continued his top form to register a thrilling victory in Armageddon (sudden death game) after the regular match concluded in a 40-move draw. Notably, the players participate in Armageddon (sudden death) in case of a draw in the classical game.
The 52-year-old showed his expertise when he beat top-seeded Carlsen to post a win in 50 moves. In the tournament, which features the best players globally, the Indian Grandmaster earned ten points in his kitty and now leads the field with four more rounds to go.
However, the Indian started the Classical section with three straight wins, beating Maxime Vachier-Lagrave (France), Veselin Topalov (Bulgaria) and Hao Wang (China), he failed to make a mark against America's Wesley So.
After the recent results, Anand is leading the charts with 10 points, while Carlsen is a half a point behind. Wesley So and Shakhriyar Mamedyarov share third place. In the other match, Frenchman Maxime Vachier-Lagrave won the sudden death game against veteran Veselin Topalov (Bulgaria) to improve his score to 7 points.