Anand: Need time for next world champ

INDIA’s Viswanathan Anand firmly believes that India has enough talent to produce the next Chess World Champion but not before 2025 since there is no ‘quicker pathway’ and the process to create one will take that much time.

Anand began to groom and mentor the next batch of chess whizkids at his Westbridge

Anand Chess Academy (WACA) after COVID-19 induced first lockdown in 2020.

Six of India’s Gen-Next talents -- Nihal Sarin, R Praggnanandhaa, Raunak Sadhwani, D Gukesh and R Vaishali and Arjun Erigiasi were inducted - when WACA came into being in December 2020.

Alcaraz, 19, fell to his back and cupped his hands to his face before jumping up to embrace Ruud at the net. He then climbed past photographers and into the stands to celebrate in his box with his team.

‘This is something I dreamed of since I was a kid, to be number one in the world, to be the champion at a Grand Slam,’ Alcaraz said in an on-court interview.

‘All the hard work that I did with my team, with my family. I’m just 19-years-old so all of the tough decisions are with my parents and my team as well.

‘This is something that is really, really special for me.’ ‘Bravo Carlitos!’ was displayed on a banner inside the stadium for the tennis prodigy from El Palmar.