Anand is World Champion again

Chess World Champion Viswanathan Anand poses with his trophy after defending his title against runner-up and challenger Vladimir Kramnik of Russia in Bonn October 29, 2008.

WASHINGTON/NEW DELHI: It's his third world chess title, but the relief at winning this one is palpable and the joy is unbridled. ''I'm just exhausted, man,'' Vishwanathan Anand told the Times of India, speaking on his cell phone from Bonn on the way back to his hotel to stash away his trophy before heading out for a Mexican dinner.

It's been so bad, he said, that he's not even followed the world financial crisis, let alone the Obamania that's sweeping America - something unusual for a guy who likes to stay on top of news and current events. But the preparation has been bruising, and his team of seconds is so overjoyed that everything panned out well that they are already out roistering, well before Anand and his wife Aruna can join them.

''I might surprise you guys this time,'' Anand joked, when asked if he would join them for a tipple.
But the man who is said to drink nothing stronger than tomato juice has sent the country's spirits soaring with a performance that will sparkle in the annals of sporting history that is getting richer by the year. It's not every day or every year that the Soviet/Russian/Central Asian chess dominance is challenged, and Vishwanathan Anand is starting to make it a habit.

The victory over Kramnik, a consummate artist, was especially sweet (Australian Grandmaster Ian Rogers called it a battle between the painter and the philistine, so well-regarded is the Russian's sense of aesthetic play). But Anand is a stylist in his own right, and one of his fabulous win among the three in this series is set to go down as one of the great games in the chronicles of world championships.

''Kramnik does not lose three games in a year, forget three games in a series,'' Anand mused, ''So in that sense, I guess it was a comprehensive win.'' The fact that it finished one game ahead of the scheduled 12 means, Anand and Aruna can actually advance their plans to visit India, where doubtless a hero's welcome awaits him.

Asked to choose which was his favourite between the three world titles, Anand said they were all special. For us, too.