Chess grandmaster Viswanathan Anand, who recently signed on as brand ambassador for the second season of the Poker Sports League, says he could instantly draw parallels between the two sports—as games of skill which involve strategy and a defined skill set.

Before his next assignment—the World Rapid and Blitz Chess Championships from 26 to 30 December in Riyadh—the 48-year-old current world No. 8 spoke about poker, chess and how 2017 was for him professionally.

Edited excerpts from an interview over email:

How did your association with Poker Sports League come up and why did you agree to be its brand ambassador?

A lot of my chess friends and seconds play poker. For a long time, I have been intrigued by the game. I had read a bit on the PSL in the media. The league is backed by a strong team comprised of Amit Burman and Delta Corp. I was quite curious to be part of it.

You have mentioned the similarities between poker and chess. What are they, if you can give specifics?

You approach both games the same way. You have to anticipate your opponent’s move and take calculated risks. You do prepare a fair bit but on the board, you have to take the risk in real time and you are constantly recalculating your position or hand.

There is also a psychology element in both games. After a loss, would your opponent play aggressive? Have they done it in the past?

You sometimes see poker players wear glasses. This is very much so as you don’t want to give away anything by your facial gestures or mannerisms. In chess, for instance, you sit with a poker face or leave the board the moment you see your opponent make a blunder.

Sometimes, in time trouble, the opponents with more time blunder as they have to deal with the opponent’s time pressure and find the right move. So yes, the emotions are similar.

Do you/have you ever played poker? If yes, what do you enjoy about it?

I have a basic knowledge of the game. But many of my chess friends play a lot and even teach online.

There is a ton of preparation required for chess. Is poker similar?

Yes, I understand there are books on the various styles adopted by players. People also watch video footage to learn mannerisms. This is similar to chess. Funnily, people who play chess and poker tend to have similar styles in both games.

Chess is a cerebral, “clean" sport which mothers would encourage their children to play. Would/can poker be in a similar league? Can young children be encouraged to learn how to play poker?

I would put it this way: a child who learnt chess would in their adult life find poker interesting. It is not for children to play, but it’s an intelligent game for adults.

You don’t associate with many brands/properties in general. When you make an exception, like with this league, what is the motivating factor?

One, it is a mind sport and two, I would like to see how chess and poker could sync up and benefit.

There’s a computer program which learnt all moves of chess in 4 hours. What does technology/artificial intelligence mean for chess and its players?

Well, their intelligence is anything but artificial. It was fascinating to watch the match. But in the end, sport is about human emotions. This is the next disruption in chess development.

Since we are nearing the end of the year, how would you assess 2017 for you professionally? Did you achieve the goals you had set for yourself for the year?

It’s been a pretty decent year. I had some good results in St. Louis (joint-second in the Sinquefield Cup) and Isle of Man (joint second). I am looking at playing the Tata chess event in January (Tata Steel Chess 2018 from 12 to 28 January at Wijk aan Zee, Netherlands) and that would be the high point of my preparation for now. But for us chess players, the year isn’t over—we play till 31 December.

What were some of the other major highlights of 2017 for the world of chess?

I think it was the surge of Indian chess talent. We see a lot of young Indians close to the GM title. They did well in the World Juniors. (R) Praggnanandhaa (world’s No. 1 under-12 players), (Chithambaram) Aravindh (world No. 15 in juniors) and Nihal (Sarin, India’s top-ranked under-14 player) have a lot of promise in them. I think next year would be crucial for them in terms of how their playing skills mature.

The second season of PSL, with an increased prize pool of Rs3.6 crore and possibly two additional teams, started with the online qualification from 15 December. Pro applications open 22 December. The final team selection will be in April and the summit clash will be in Goa in May.

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