CHENNAI: Viswanathan Anand's reign at the helm of the chess world came to an end in his home town on Friday after a hard-fought draw with Norwegian wizard Magnus Carlsen in the 10th game of the World Chess Championship match.Carlsen may have won the battle, but the war is not lost yet, if you ask die-hard Anand fans, who believe it's premature to write an obit to the stellar career of the five-time world champion. And as proof, they will point to his chess calendar.In two weeks Anand will be travelling to London for the annual Chess Classic, where he will be pitting his wits against 15 of the world's top players. Next up is the Zurich super tournament in January 2014, which is the brainchild of Russian billionaire Oleg Skvorstov, who incidentally was one of the spectators in Chennai. Skorstov spares no expense for his tournaments. His lavishness has attracted an eye-wateringly strong lineup, including Anand and Carlsen as well as rising stars like Fabiano Caruana.Then comes the Tal Memorial in Moscow, where the Russians can be relied on to bring together a galaxy of exceptional talent.Anand's calendar looks pretty packed for someone whose "era has ended".Friday's draw marks the end of Anand's second reign as world champion. He first stormed the heights of Olympus in 2000 when he won the FIDE Knock Out world championship. His reign was brief, losing his hold over the chess kingdom in 2001.

Six years later, Anand made a brilliant comeback to grab the crown for the second time in Mexico. Right from the start he faced a series of determined challenges, with Kramnik making the first bid in 2008. Anand, however, proved adept at the game of thrones, seeing off threats from Topalov in 2010 and Gelfand last year.

So will he be back? Can Anand make a re-entry into the rough and tumble of the world championship qualifiers? He may prefer to focus on winning tournaments, pushing his rating up and generally enjoying his game.World championships take an enormous toll on mind and body. Summit clashes typically need 4-6 months of lead time not including the one month of actual matchplay. They demand assembling a team of trainers and coaches and intense training, which is very specific to the opponent.Anand, free of this, may choose to hit the tournament circuit. His first goal may be to push his rating another 30 points, and re-enter the 2800 Club, the highly exclusive club of players with such a statospheric grade. Currently, only Carlsen and Levon Aronian are members of this clique.Can he do it? The sceptics claim he will fade away from the sport that has been his life. After the 9th game, Anand had come heartbreakingly close to scoring a win, pulling back into the match. After the game got over, it would have been natural for Anand to leave as quickly as he could, to get away from the hall.Instead, both players continued with the "post-mortem", where they continue to make moves on the board, discussing possible alternatives, alternate approaches.Despite the disappointment, Anand's eyes lit up as the moves were being discussed. He reeled off long lines of variations, to find the moment where he had gone wrong, the moves on which the game could have turned. It is this passion that has taken him to the top. This love of the game has been his sword and shield in the two decades he has been at the very top.The fire hasn't dimmed, the spark is still there.