Anand to meet Carlsen in Shamkir opener

Viswanathan Anand will meet reigning world champion Magnus Carlsen in the first round of Shamkir Chess, held in the memory of Vugar Gashimov. Drawing number ‘4’ in the draw of lots, Anand will not only have the advantage of playing white in the first game but the Indian ace will also get to play five games in all with white pieces in the 10-player, nine-rounds, round-robin tournament. While the white pieces is good news, Anand would probably want to forget the last encounter against Carlsen at the Grenke Chess Classic earlier this year. Playing white then, Anand suffered a defeat after attaining a better position first.