Six-time world champion Viswanathan Anand will be a part of the Indian team for the Chess Olympiad to be held in Georgia later this year after he accepted the request from the All India Chess Federation.
Both Anand and Sethuraman inched themselves up to five points out of a possible seven and shared the joint eighth spot after a rather dull day that witnessed several draws on the top tables.
'Congratulations to Abhi for this achievement. He fully deserves this success, as I have seen all of his hard work first hand. His father also deserves praise for the sacrifices he has made for Abhi to reach this milestone.'
Former World chess champion Vladimir Kramnik believes Indian icon Viswanathan Anand seems "past his prime" but remains "extremely good" for a 50-year-old and should continue for some more years. Anand turned 50 last year and has been struggling to regain top form for a while now.
Viswanthan Anand got back into the reckoning by defeating compatriot M Shyam Sundar in a one-sided affair in the Isle of Man International chess tournament on Wednesday. On a good day for Indians, former World junior champion Abhijeet Gupta tamed the highly-regarded Liem Le Quang of Vietnam.
Viswanathan Anand was held to a draw by Vladislav Artemiev of Russia in the eighth and penultimate round, ending the Indian challenge in the Isle of Man International Chess tournament on Sunday.
Former women's World champion Susan Polgar feels that the rising strength of Indian players makes them favourites to grab three out of the six medals at stake.
Placed fourth after the first leg on Tuesday, the 48-year-old had a dream run on the final day to secure six wins and three draws in the nine rounds to draw level with the world No 3 American Nakamura to force a play-off.
Chess master-turned-cricketer Yuzvendra Chahal went back to his old passion, headlining an online blitz event organised by chess.com, and said the sport taught him to be patient on the cricket field. A former national Under-12 chess champion, India cricketer Chahal has the distinction of having represented the country at the World Youth Chess Championships, and is listed on the World Chess Federation (FIDE) website. His Elo rating is 1956.
Viswanathan Anand had to be content with a joint third place finish following a draw with compatriot Vidit Gujrathi in the 13th and final round of the Tata Steel Masters, in Wijk Aan Zee, The Netherland.
Reigning world champion Magnus Carlsen of Norway steered clear of the field with another dominating victory over Jan Krzysztof Duda Poland.
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Sunday
'It was a big relief to get it out of the way. Now he can concentrate on future progress.'
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Thursday
Riding on three back-to-back victories, Grandmaster Abhijeet Gupta emerged as the best performing Indian as he finished seventh in the Al Ain Classic International chess tournament that concluded in Al Ain (UAE) on Saturday.
Indian chess great Viswanathan Anand sees signs of greatness in Nihal Sarin but says it's a long journey ahead for the impressive 14-year-old since there has been a trend of players struggling to replicate success as they age.
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Monday
Olympic medallist Indian shuttler Saina Nehwal entered the semi-finals of the Indonesia Masters' tournament after a straight-game win over Pornpawee Chochuwong of Thailand.
'I like to challenge myself. Competing against players much younger than me is something that I want to keep doing,' says Chess Legend Viswanathan Anand
A summary of sports events and sports persons, who made news on Friday
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Thursday
10-year-old Praggnanandha is the world's youngest chess International Master. His sister Vaishali is a Woman's International Master.
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Wednesday
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Saturday
