For years, cricket, that too male cricket, has dominated the Indian sports. However, in past few years, other sports, too, are finally the due respect and credit they deserve. Indian athletes and sportspersons have made us proud in many tournaments including Olympics. Along with sports like badminton and hockey, wresting, weight lifting, and javelin throw are also getting recognition. Recently, Chennai hosted the Chess Olympiad.
In recent times, with Indian players making waves in the chess field, Twitter influencers Abhi and Niyu on Sunday tweeted how Chess is the ‘new cricket’. To that, Magnus Carlsen listed out four reasons why chess isn’t cricket.
4 reasons why chess isn’t cricket:
— Magnus Carlsen (@MagnusCarlsen) August 22, 2022
Cricket is played on a field with humans, chess is played on a board with wooden pieces.
Cricket has a bat and a ball, chess usually doesn’t.
There are 22 players needed for a cricket match, while chess is only two.
I can’t play cricket. https://t.co/RUxe3sA2V5
Carlsen said how chess is played on a field with humans, while chess is played on a board with wooden pieces. He added that while cricket has a bat and a ball, chess ‘usually’ doesn’t. Further, cricket needs 22 players while chess only needs two. And finally he said that chess is not the new cricket since he does not play cricket.
On August 22, 17 year old Indian Grandmaster Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu defeated world champion Magnus Carlsen at the FTX Crypto Cup, the American finale of the Champions Chess Tour, in Miami. This is the third time in the last six months that Praggnanandhaa has defeated Carlsen. Praggnanandhaa won the game in the blitz tiebreaker after the score was tied at 2-2.
