For Viswanathan Anand, it is Lucky 13 vs Magnus Carlsen in World Chess Championship

For Viswanathan Anand, 13 is not an unlucky number. Desperate for a win to keep his chances alive against young champion Magnus Carlsen in the world chess championship, Viswanathan Anand won game No. 3 in Sochi on Tuesday. It was Viswanathan Anand's first win in 13 world chess championship matches against Carlsen.

It was also the third time that Anand bounced back immediately after losing a world championship game. Carlsen had won game No. 2 on Sunday. Whenever Anand has hit back like this, he has gone to win the world championship crown.

In Sofia in 2010, Anand lost game 1 against Veselin Topalov but clinched game No. 2. In 2012 in Moscow, Anand lost game 7 against Boris Gelfand but won game no. 8. Both years, Anand became the world champion. This time in Sochi the 44-year-old Anand is aiming for his sixth world title.

The last time that Anand had defeated Carlsen was way back in 2010. On Tuesday, it was a vintage Viswanathan Anand as he played an almost flawless game in his usual elegant style. Anand's reputed formidable preparation was once again to the fore-front as he later said that he had the position after White's 24th move during home preparation.

Giving an indication of the depth of his preparation, the Indian always had a stranglehold on the game. "What can I say? I am pleased," said Anand. A happy Aruna Anand said: "We are back... good game and hope that Vishy plays the chess that we know he can."

Saddled with a hopeless position Carlsen resigned on the 34th move. "It's the kind of game where everything went wrong from the start. I didn't have many chances. That sucks," said the 23-year-old Norwegian champion.

Game No. 3 Moves: Viswanathan Anand (Elo Rating 2792) vs Magnus Carlsen (2863)

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 d5 4.Nc3 Be7 5.Bf4 0-0 6.e3 Nbd7 7.c5 c6 8.Bd3 b6 9.b4 a5 10.a3 Ba6 11.Bxa6 Rxa6 12.b5 cxb5 13.c6 Qc8 14.c7 b4 15.Nb5 a4 16.Rc1 Ne4 17.Ng5 Ndf6 18.Nxe4 Nxe4 19.f3 Ra5 20.fxe4 Rxb5 21.Qxa4 Ra5 22.Qc6 bxa3 23.exd5 Rxd5 24.Qxb6 Qd7 25.0-0 Rc8 26.Rc6 g5 27.Bg3 Bb4 28.Ra1 Ba5 29.Qa6 Bxc7 30.Qc4 e5 31.Bxe5 Rxe5 32.dxe5 Qe7 33.e6 Kf8 34.Rc1