Zerodha's Nikhil Kamath apologises for using unfair means to defeat Viswanathan Anand

Zerodha co-founder Nikhil Kamath has apologised for using unfair means to beat Indian chess legend Viswanathan Anand in a charity match.

Kamath played against Anand in the charity match and defeated the five-time world champion. However, Kamath later issued an apology after for taking help from the people analysing the game and computers.

"Yesterday was one of those days that I had dreamt of when I was a really young kid learning chess, to interact with Vishwanath Anand. Got the opportunity thanks to Akshaypatra and their idea of raising funds for charity conducting a bunch of chess games with Vishy. It is ridiculous that so many are thinking that I really beat Vishy in a chess game, that is almost like me waking up and winning a 100mt race with Usain Bolt," Kamath said in a statement.

"I had help from the people analyzing the game, computers, and the graciousness of Anand sir himself to treat the game as a learning experience. This was for fun and charity. In hindsight, it was quite silly as I didn't realise all the confusion that can get caused due to this. Apologies," the Zerodha founder added.

Anand himself retweeted Kamath's statement and said, "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 on the board and expected the same from everyone".

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

Meanwhile, All India Chess Federation (AICF) Secretary Bharat Chauhan condemned Kamath's action, saying it was "unfortunate" to see use of unfair means in the charity match, according to ANI.

"It is very unfortunate it was a charity match. We don't expect anybody to get help from computers, at the national and state level we are following the protocols. We are putting cameras where players are playing and there is a fair play committee which includes three grandmasters and two players," he said.

On Sunday, Anand simultaneously played chess against multiple celebrities for Checkmate COVID, a fundraising event organised by Chess.com and the All India Chess Federation. Kamath was one of the celebrities the world champion was playing against. Other celebrities included Amir Khan, Riteish Deshmukh, etc.

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