Chess Grandmaster Vishwanathan Anand has issued a statement after Indian billionaire and Zerodha co-founder Nikhil Kamath cheated to win a game against him at a charity event. Vishwanathan Anand said that he expected the game to be played in an ethical manner.
Anand said, “I just played the position on the board and expected the same from everyone.” It was an obvious dig at Kamath who later issued a statement essentially admitting that he had cheated during the match.
Yesterday was a celebrity simul for people to raise money It was a fun experience upholding the ethics of the game.I just played the position onthe board and expected the same from everyone . pic.twitter.com/ISJcguA8jQ
— Viswanathan Anand (@vishy64theking) June 14, 2021
Neutral observers are displeased with Nikhil Kamath as well for resorting to cheating even during a charity match.
It takes years to build reputation and seconds to get it destroyed.
— Prasad Karwa (@PrasadKarwa) June 14, 2021
What Nikhil Kamat did destroyed his. (Even though it was a friendly match for fund raising – but cheating is a cheating) https://t.co/qSgRvBGlBN
Pure class. This is how to give back to cheaters in such a subtle way. He is the legend for all the right reasons.. https://t.co/Do0G1Wwzay
— Jagjit Kaur (@Jagjit_kaur_Phy) June 14, 2021
Class and integrity, that's why Vishy is the five time world champion.👏👏 https://t.co/OTCWb7IVo6
— Ridam Lakhotia (@LakhotiaRidam) June 14, 2021
During the match, Kamath had a 98.9% accuracy rate while Vishwanathan Anand managed 92.7%. The Grandmaster played White while India’s youngest billionaire played Black. Since the victory, Kamath has admitted that he had outside help.
Chess.com has banned Kamath’s account for violating its fair-play policy. In his statement, Kamath admitted that he had help from “people analyzing the game, computers and the graciousness of Anand Sir himself to treat the game as a learning experience.”