Anand beat Ponomariov in round one

Linares:

Viswanathan Anand got his campaign off to a flying start in the 20th Linares Super Grandmasters chess tournament, beating World Champion Ruslan Ponomariov of Ukraine in a first round match. The much-awaited clash between Garry Kasparov and Vladimir Kramnik turned out to be a damp squib, petering out to a draw in just 18 moves. In another game, Hungarian Peter Leko gave a tactical lesson to tournament baby Teimour Radjabov, 15, en route to securing the full point. Playing white, Anand was at his technical best while crushing Ponomariov. The 'Speed King' was remorseless once he got the upper hand and won in 64 moves. The win was just another attestation of his superlative form which won him the prestigious Corus Chess title last month. (PTI)